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#1 |
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: musorian territory
Posts: 415
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i have read and had it mentioned on severla occasionas that both steel and white iron guards were cast in solingin in the 19th century and also that whole sword blades for the austrians were cast specifrically the m1869 sabre with its bazaar blade iwht a fuller on one side and asymetrical grinding.
has anyone hever seen any proof of this . it would be a very inferior method to cast the blade it seems crazy. i can belive the guards coudl have been cast in the uk they were forged with a die and punched out.. but in solingen there was many complex casting s of steel already being made int he 50s and 60s. but the blade just sounds bazaar to me |
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#2 |
EAAF Staff
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Upstate New York, USA
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I doubt casting would have been viable for blades back then. One would have to get the molten steel to a pretty high temperature in order to hold the carbon down in an acceptable range and I imagine it would be difficult to adequately decarburize if the casting started as brittle cast iron, as this is mostly a surface phenomenon and a brittle blade core is extremely undesirable. Hopefully some knowledgeable smiths will reply in this thread.
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#3 |
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Join Date: Jan 2011
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I think this is a misinterpretation of the term "fluid cast steel" which appears on some 19th century gun barrels and possibly blades. It refers to the raw billet produced by industrial processes, a homogeneous steel rather than the older folded or puddled metal. This was then forged by hand or rollers into the final product.
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#4 |
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Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Upstate New York, USA
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The "chilled iron plow" was developed in the mid 19th century for casting plows where a heat sink was incorporated into the mold to rapidly cool and harden the soil contacting surfaces. Perhaps something similar was tried with swords, but David's explaination seems more likely.
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#5 |
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Nipmuc USA
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Developments by Huntsman in the 1740s reflected refining shear (blister) steel in crucibles. In following decades, we see a fair amount of sword blades made from these refined steel ignots. These differ from wootz cakes but are still a crucible process. Until Bessemer comes along, this cast steel was a superior cutlery (and spring) steel as an option. We still see "best cast steel" listed for drop forged tools well into the 20th century and indeed, lots of steel is listed as crucible steel.
https://books.openedition.org/pumi/37703?lang=en Cheers GC |
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#6 | |
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: musorian territory
Posts: 415
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#7 | |
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Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: musorian territory
Posts: 415
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#8 |
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Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Tyneside. North-East England
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I've mentioned this in the past but it seems pertinent here:
I have memories of Hollywood depicting the disgraced officer's sword being broken across a knee. Also, the business of blade breakers incorporated into left-hand daggers and cup-hilt rapiers. I always felt this was not a plausible situation and certainly the spring in the best blades precludes this, but maybe there were cast blades around: doesn't seem likely. BTW: Huntsman was a Doncaster clock and watch maker by trade and was searching for the perfect mainspring. |
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