stainless steel

I am the proud owner of several (14) pieces of stainless steel. It is marked 304L. Is this good for forging? Is this good knife material? Will this be workable for stock removal, drilling etc? How does one go about heat treating and hardening it? Can it be done in a forge? Thanks

Hey calvin
The stainless you have is good for many things but knife blades is not one of them....it has no carbon and will not harden.

Also forging stainless is a bit tricky. Anvil has to be preheated and hammer as well. All sharp edges on the bar have to be rounded, and it's a bear to forge. It moves very little even at high heat.

The steel you have is good for bolsters and guards and such.

I had a piece of 440C in my shop for 7 years.....makes a good straight edge.

Micky