Rustforge & Kaelus
Rustforge Rustforge
Kaelus Kaelus
Rustforge Rustforge
I’ve been restoring an old forge and the way the iron cools down really caught my attention—what would you say is the most critical variable to control the temper of a blade?
Kaelus Kaelus
The key is the cooling rate – how fast you pull the hot blade out of the flame and into the quench medium, and how hot that medium is. That single variable decides whether the temper ends up hard and brittle or tough and resilient.
Rustforge Rustforge
Sounds right, the speed and the quench temperature make all the difference. I’ve found that using a controlled salt bath rather than a sudden oil dip gives a steadier heat loss and lets me tweak the toughness without going too brittle. It’s the little details that keep a blade alive in the long run.
Kaelus Kaelus
Nice trick. Salt keeps the heat out of the way, so you can see exactly how much it cools the steel. Just watch the bath temperature – even a few degrees over can make a hard edge snap. If you need a tougher blade, slow it down a notch, keep the bath cooler, and let the metal do its own hardening. No fancy gadgets, just a steady hand and a well‑tuned bath.
Rustforge Rustforge
I’ll give it a try – a steady hand and a well‑tuned bath sound like the best recipe for a blade that won’t give up when the job’s tough. Thanks for the tip.