Turn bent piece of round brass stock to straighten it ??...

[grzdomagala]

So hard hacksaw won't bite, used as a hammer... Could it be beryllium copper? That stuff was used for non sparking tools. Chances are low but that stuff is nasty and grinding it is quite bad idea.
I never seen "normal" brass so hard sharp hacksaw won't cut it...

Wysłane z mojego SM-N950F przy użyciu Tapatalka

 

[Flyinfool]

Only thing I have brass annealing experience with is rifle cases.
About opposite of steels. Heat to red and quench in water. Something that would likely make steel hard makes brass soft.
Just kinda sounded like it might be very hard when you said the hacksaw had trouble cutting it.
Might be worth trying to machine first just to see if it machines ok or not. If it gives trouble then anneal.

Copper and its alloys are the opposite of steel when it comes to heat treating it. As mentioned you heat to red, hold it there to be sure the heat is all the way through the part and then quench in water to ANNEAL it. To harden you heat to red all the way through and then cool slowly to make it harder.

So hard hacksaw won't bite, used as a hammer... Could it be beryllium copper? That stuff was used for non sparking tools. Chances are low but that stuff is nasty and grinding it is quite bad idea.
I never seen "normal" brass so hard sharp hacksaw won't cut it...

Wysłane z mojego SM-N950F przy użyciu Tapatalka

I never even thought of Beryllium Copper, Beryllium copper can get very hard. If it is beryllium copper, it is fine to machine where you have chips, grinding will make dust and beryllium is extremely toxic so breathing in any of the dust can be real bad real fast.

 

[bakrch]

I would do this if possible. 4-jaw chuck w/ flat aluminum stock between jaws and the better end of the brass stock. Just crush the aluminum into the work and it holds very well in my experience. Might not be possible depending on how mangled it is, but that is my go-to method for this type of thing.

 

[56type]

So hard hacksaw won't bite, used as a hammer... Could it be beryllium copper? That stuff was used for non sparking tools. Chances are low but that stuff is nasty and grinding it is quite bad idea.
I never seen "normal" brass so hard sharp hacksaw won't cut it...

Wysłane z mojego SM-N950F przy użyciu Tapatalka

Never heard of Beryllium Copper before just now. To be perfectly honest I'm not sure exactly what it is. when I tried cutting the end off with the hacksaw the hacksaw would bite into it, it just wasn't making much progress, the blade is neither new nor sharp after cutting thru a known hardened steel pin that was used in a rotary lift for cars.

As to it being a bad idea to grind it, well the ship has sailed on that already as I ground the one end using a bench grinder to be able get it in the 4-jaw. Not feeling any worse for wear. The end I ground on was rough on the interior as if had been sheared/torn from something (?). Not smooth like the other face. Here are a few pics for the metallurgists to maybe help ID what metal it actually is...the measurement points were those I noted in an earlier post. I have HSS & small carbide insert cutters to use to machine it with. Thanks All...

 

[matthewsx]

That looks like a great thwacker. I’m in the camp that it’s perfect just as it is, especially since you don’t know what metal it’s made of. I have lots of strange things rolling around in my toolbox that come in handy when least expected....

 

[hman]

Two observations here (not meant to be authoritative by any means) -
1. Bein's how you used the hacksaw blade to cut a hardened steel pin, I'd say it was probably toast, and wouldn't be any good for cutting anything else. So not being able to cut well on your "brass" piece doesn't really mean much ... except that you need to replace the blade
2. Looking at the ground areas of your piece, I'd think it was some kind of brass, or possibly bronze. The copper-beryllium tools I've seen tend to look somewhat redder.

PS - As for you "not feeling any worse for wear" after grinding ... I'd suggest you take a quick look at:

Beryllium - Health Effects

What health effects are associated with beryllium? According to NIOSH (the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2011), "workers exposed to particles, fumes, mists and solutions from beryllium-containing materials may develop beryllium sensitization or chronic beryllium disease...

www.ccohs.ca

As the sergeant used to say on Hill Street Blues, "Be careful out there."