Dan W
Elite Cafe Member
Just curious, is anyone changing the temper of their engravers in order to better engrave the paticular surface being worked on? If so, give some examples.
Thanks,
Dan
Thanks,
Dan
Question: Tempering
- Thread starter Dan W
- Start date
Chujybear
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Not of commercial gravers, if i can help it, but I have occasionally bent a graver.. In which case a re- harden. Sometimes I will leave it just hardened. Sometimes I temper just a bit. Light gold.
Whether that works better or worse, I can't say. Just that it works.
Whether that works better or worse, I can't say. Just that it works.
With today's modern steels, tempering gravers isn't necessary like it was back in the day.
Brian Marshall
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Used to do it, used to bend all my liners too.
Not so much anymore...
As Sam said - that was back in the day when all we had was carbon steel.
The newer alloys require an inert atmosphere and calibrated heat treating kilns. Too expensive and time consuming.
And the carbides are made of sintered metal particles compressed under heat and pressure. That's why they tend to fracture rather than just get dull.
Brian
Not so much anymore...
As Sam said - that was back in the day when all we had was carbon steel.
The newer alloys require an inert atmosphere and calibrated heat treating kilns. Too expensive and time consuming.
And the carbides are made of sintered metal particles compressed under heat and pressure. That's why they tend to fracture rather than just get dull.
Brian
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zzcutter
Elite Cafe Member
I was told by an engraver that when he got new gravers he would ask his wife to bake a cake and make a separate small one which he would put the new gravers in, This would in his mind take the brittleness out of the gravers, being baked in the batter at 350 degrees for what ever time it took to make the big cake. I never tried it but would be interesting to give it a shot.
golden forge
Elite Cafe Member
I was taught to heat treat and temper my gravers when I was apprenticing to learn stone setting, but I also did not have the cash to buy gravers back then, so I made my own gravers.
The jeweler that I was learning from would keep his gravers for yellow gold and platinum softer than the few he used for white gold, and harder metals.
These days, I do not heat treat and temper them, unless it is on the rare occasion that I am making one for a special use.
The jeweler that I was learning from would keep his gravers for yellow gold and platinum softer than the few he used for white gold, and harder metals.
These days, I do not heat treat and temper them, unless it is on the rare occasion that I am making one for a special use.
no reason to even try, but i think many of the muller brand gravers can be tempered to a bit higher on the hardness. with gravers, as with most other tools, harder is more brittle. what one seeks in heat treating, is a balance between hardness and toughness. the toughness tends to reduce point breakage, while hardness increases the tendency. many of us have a few home made tools in our battle gear. there will always be a job that requires a specially made configuration, that is either not available, or you need it RIGHT NOW !
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Back in the day I made my graver's from industrial hacksaw blades and never had to heat treat them just had to be careful when sharpen on the grinder. J.J.
Brian Marshall
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Still have a flat graver I used to hand push, made from a sawblade that was used to cut railroad track with.
Whatever is in it should be analyzed and made specifically for gravers.
It was/still is the best stuff I have ever come across.
Brian
And no, this is not the same graver that Victor Vasquez had me sticking in the potato overnight...
(though this graver was made at his shop in San Jose - it has one of his handles on it)
Or....maybe... it is?
Whatever is in it should be analyzed and made specifically for gravers.
It was/still is the best stuff I have ever come across.
Brian
And no, this is not the same graver that Victor Vasquez had me sticking in the potato overnight...
(though this graver was made at his shop in San Jose - it has one of his handles on it)
Or....maybe... it is?
Haraga.com
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Brian, just reading that made me smile.
When I was at New Orleans Arms an old machinist friend of mine gave me an industrial high speed steel hacksaw blade. I made some gravers from it but it was really time consuming. I did learn to use a surface grinder though.
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