Bandsaw Steel

[Nathan Taylor]

I have a large amount of Bandsaw Blades. The blades are the one piece big blades that are comparable to a hacksaw blade. I don't know the proper term for the machine that used them but they were used in machine shops for the oilfields. Starrett is one of the makers and the blades are hardened completely or have the edge welded on mild steel. The question I have is are these things usable and what type of steel are they? They do not forge easily and are often 1/8 in size. My father-in-law trades watermelons for them (Don't ask) and I would like to put them to good use- other than windchimes. Any Suggestions?

[canyonman]

I posted a reply a couple of days ago, but I guess it didn't take. If any of the band saws are designed for wood there is a good chance the metal is either L6 or 15N20, both good steels. On any that a designed for metal the teeth could be M2 with the body being a 10xx type steel. The ultimate answer is to harden some and check with a file to see if the process took.

Larry

[Nathan Taylor]

Thanks for the reply. I have played with the blades for a little while and found that they are hardened throughout(except the ones with the teeth welded on). I have tried annealing them without much success, so I really don't know what to do with them. I will look up the info on the metals you mentioned and try working the steel with those characteristics in mind. I literally have yards and yards of this steel and would like to use it. Thanks for the imput Now I have a direction to go in.

[paul harm]

try annaling more than once . there has been times 01 didn't annel , so i've done it a second time with good luck . paul