[TheForge] Re: Steel question OT (Wrought Iron)

[Hochewa at aol.com]

To All,
Anybody watch the Mythbusters' episode on trying to make a hammer  explode?
Back to wrought iron:
Byers went out of production in 1971.  They were the last producer of  
wrought iron on an industrial scale in the world.  Their last Bessemer  Converter is 
on display at Station Square in Pittsburgh.
Wrought iron is fibrous because of the silicate fiber in it.  It is  what 
makes wrought iron wrought iron.  When it corrodes or breaks (in a  ductile 
manner)  it looks just like wood.  If you don't strike while  the iron is hot, it 
will break up into fibers just like wood.  Wrought iron  can be brittle at room 
temperature, hot short or hardenable.  Not all  wrought iron is the same.
When using found materials, it would be wise to do a few simple tests to  see 
what you got.
1.  Take several representative samples up to yellow heat; let  one air cool, 
quench one in oil, quench another in water or brine.  Take a  file to them.  
This will give you an idea if the material is  hardenable.
2.  Make a square and twist it hot.  If the edges break up, it  make be 
leaded.  Good for machining but lousey for forging.
3.  Take a 1/2" round or square and chisel half way through.   Bend it.  The 
nature of the break will tell you if it is steel or wrought  iron.
Antbody have other tests?
 
Regards,
 
Hochewa