What affordable material for parallels?

My current plan I think is to save up for a decent multi-process welder. Then use that to make a welding cart and table for practice, followed by using it to make a heat treat oven.

THEN use that and one of the cheaper air cooled tool steels to make parallels...

Pretty sure that's how it is going to go
 
ErichKeane said:
My current plan I think is to save up for a decent multi-process welder. Then use that to make a welding cart and table for practice, followed by using it to make a heat treat oven.

THEN use that and one of the cheaper air cooled tool steels to make parallels...

Pretty sure that's how it is going to go
Click to expand...

I do a bit of blacksmithing and have started making a few blades so I keep an eye out for tool steel drops at the local steel supply places. One of them has a pretty good selection, so I stop there regularly since it changes all the time. I've bought a number of pieces that were 2-3ft long from them several times that I haven't used. I think I may have some O-1 that would work for what you're considering, but I'd have to check when I get home.
 
I went through my tool steel stash and found I have two pieces of A2 that are 20 x 2 x 1. one is a fraction under 20" long and the other a fraction over. I get drops like this by the pound and I have something like $40-45 in the two...round it up to $50 and pay shipping and you can have them. I'd rather see them be turned into parallels than get cut down into smaller pieces to make blades....I can always find smaller chunks of A2 at the place I got these, but not always the longer sections.

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G-ManBart said:
I went through my tool steel stash and found I have two pieces of A2 that are 20 x 2 x 1. one is a fraction under 20" long and the other a fraction over. I get drops like this by the pound and I have something like $40-45 in the two...round it up to $50 and pay shipping and you can have them. I'd rather see them be turned into parallels than get cut down into smaller pieces to make blades....I can always find smaller chunks of A2 at the place I got these, but not always the longer sections.

View attachment 361533
Click to expand...
That's awesome, I'll take them! Send me the total after shipping and how you want money, and I'll send it asap.
 
So, G-ManBert hooked me up with some A2 that'll work perfectly! Instead of getting a welder, I found a pottery kiln locally for a decent deal. It seems to "work", but I likely need a better controller.

Based on a quick look, it is a pretty nice one, it ships with 2 channels/zones, but has 4 sections to it that seemingly are wired internally.

At the moment I'm thinking of a cheap PID controller setup from ebay, then upgrading to a soak /ramp controller in the future if I use this enough. Anyone do something similar in the past? Any suggestions on controllers?
 

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I mean this in the kindest of ways. Folks that will pass on buying $200 parallels to buy the metal for $50, and then buy a kiln to harden them, are my kind of people. We are a special kind of insane, aren’t we?
 
My Johnson furnace and draw pot both use set point controllers, you set the temp with a movable hand and start the furnace, when the point is reached, the burners go on low fire for the soak at heat.
 
I would contact Cress for an owners' manual. Did a quick check on the web and only found the newer ones. You really don't need a controller for metal. You do need a good pyrometer, about $80-100. You ramp up in small increments watching the pyrometer for what temp corresponds to the dial setting. When you get to desired temp, you just set a timer for soak. When done pull item and quench or turn off and walk away. I have three kilns, one of which is straight manual used when the primary kilns acted up. Mostly a bad relay. Used as explained above, but we have to manually ramp down over hours. The other two do all the fancy stuff. Was used for making glass beads. The kiln ramps up (1200 degrees?), sits there for hours with my wife feeding hot glass beads into it. When done she hits the button and kiln sits there for 1 hour and then ramps down over several hours. Your not that critical with metal. I am repurposing the larger kiln for heat treatment this summer to do bigger things then with a torch.
The kiln is capable of doing a whole bunch of things if you want to spend a lot of money. Wait until the kiln runs away and burns a hole in it. After you fix the hole, then you buy an over ramp controller and spend several hundred more. Best way is to start in the morning and do all the heating while you are around and watching. Cheap and effective!

You are sure you just don't want to by a set of ready made parallels????
 
Chewy said:
I would contact Cress for an owners' manual. Did a quick check on the web and only found the newer ones. You really don't need a controller for metal. You do need a good pyrometer, about $80-100. You ramp up in small increments watching the pyrometer for what temp corresponds to the dial setting. When you get to desired temp, you just set a timer for soak. When done pull item and quench or turn off and walk away. I have three kilns, one of which is straight manual used when the primary kilns acted up. Mostly a bad relay. Used as explained above, but we have to manually ramp down over hours. The other two do all the fancy stuff. Was used for making glass beads. The kiln ramps up (1200 degrees?), sits there for hours with my wife feeding hot glass beads into it. When done she hits the button and kiln sits there for 1 hour and then ramps down over several hours. Your not that critical with metal. I am repurposing the larger kiln for heat treatment this summer to do bigger things then with a torch.
The kiln is capable of doing a whole bunch of things if you want to spend a lot of money. Wait until the kiln runs away and burns a hole in it. After you fix the hole, then you buy an over ramp controller and spend several hundred more. Best way is to start in the morning and do all the heating while you are around and watching. Cheap and effective!

You are sure you just don't want to by a set of ready made parallels????
Click to expand...
Hah, well, I AM that special type of person that likes to have tools so I can do more stuff! For about the cost of the parallels I got a kiln, and the steel, and now a project to do :)

I might do as suggested above and pick up a pyrometer and just use that with the dials at first. I can heat treat during a day of doing other things.

At the moment, the switches are crusty and the bottom one has so much corrosion on the terminals that it doesn't turn on, but the coils are good at least.
 
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