[futuresoptions]

First, you have to anneal the steel, most files are tool steel which is usually something like 1095 high carbon steel... The file can be shaped without annealing the steel, but since I was doing this by hand, I didn't want to double my work by sanding and filing on hardened steel.... I started my small wood burning forge up and put the file in the center of the bottom of the coals.. I then shut the blower down and put a cover over the forge... and let the file bake and then cool down slowly as the coals died out overnight... the next day the blade is okay to begin working on...

Once the blade is somewhat shaped, I heat it up to about 1500f for a few minutes and then do a oil quench... now it is hardened, but somewhat brittle...

next I temper the steel by drawing it in a 400f oven for about 2 hours... now it is still hardened, but not as brittle as after the quench..

When it comes to tempering/heat treating steel, it is imperative to know what type of steel that you are working with... different steels require different procedures, even working in one type of steel you will see various methods and temperatures of reaching desired results..


I am sorta happy with the wood grips on this one, I usually only use Micarta for my knife handles, this is the first wood I have used since the mid eighties....