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After ruining another blade at the end stages of grinding, this is one of those days I'm ready to throw in the towel and concede defeat. But I'm not a quitter, and I will figure this out one way or another! But any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I've been making knives for a number...

Agreed! Thanks for the feedback.

I think you are right about it probably being wrought iron. Just performed the water quench test Chris suggested. Not much of a difference, meaning low carbon content. It does seem to be hard and sharp, based on my chopping and slicing exercises, but with low carbon, it may not hold the...

Great suggestion. The easier it is to break, the more carbon content? Thanks for the encouragement.

That's what I was thinking, but I've been looking at other knives on the web made from wrought iron that shows the same wavy lines. Those also had some serious pitting on the blade, which mine surprisingly do not have. I've tested the edge by chopping and hacking through 2x4's and there's no...

Thanks! Yes, I agree with the risks of using mystery steel in knife-making, but every now and then I like to experiment with old steels just for the nostalgic value of taking something from history and transforming it into something new.

Interesting. Could high tensile steel produce those markings? The plow is probably over a hundred years old. A tree had literally grown around and through parts of the plow!

I forged this blade from part of an old plow I found out in the woods. Not sure what type of steel it is, though it produced a fair amount of sparks while grinding. After etching, I ended up with this curious pattern similar to Damascus though there wasn’t any other forge welding done. Anybody...

I forged this blade from part of an old plow I found out in the woods. Not sure what type of steel it is, though it produced a fair amount of sparks while grinding. After etching, I ended up with this curious pattern similar to Damascus though there wasn’t any other forge welding done. Anybody...

Did an initial install on the tooling arm with spacers to align with drive wheel. I need to bring the wheel over 1/4” to align properly so will add some washers to bring it over. Still need to add shim to the bushing and trim the end down, but a very successful dry run!

Excellent idea on the foil. I’m attaching some photos of the bushing and wheel with and without 1/2” bolt. You can see the bushing extends through the wheel just a bit, but I can sand that down flush to wheel no problem. I still need to attach to tooling arm and align with drive wheel, but from...

Hey John, The bushings came right on schedule. One is a tad loose in it's fitting in the wheel, and the other is a tad tight exactly as you had designed. You talked about shaving the one down to fit, but what about wrapping a few layers of plumber's teflon around the smaller one first just to...

Thanks again!

John, here is my address: John Spice. 44 Theodore Dr. Bella Vista, AR. 72715. As a token of my appreciation, may I PayPal you for the postage at least? Thanks So Much!

John, you are incredible! I can’t thank you enough. Your generosity leaves me speechless and most grateful!

The wheel came with bearings, with an ID of 30mm.

The tool bar idea is also a very good idea. Could be a plan B if the bushing doesn't work, but I see no reason why it shouldn't.

Wow! That is very generous. The wheel is 2" wide. The bore of the bearing is 1.18" (30cm). The tooling arm has two holes tapped at 1/2"-13, and 5/8" -16. I'd think an OD of 30mm turned a few thousandths over like you suggest would be good, and an ID of 1/2" would work well, with a width of 2"...

Well, you are right on finding the right size bearing. I need to find a bearing with 1/2" or 5/8" id, and 62mm od, which I don't think are even made to those specs, or anything close that might fit a shoulder bolt. Gee, if you have the tools to turn out a 30mm aluminum round stock drilled out to...

The bearings with the 30mm inner race are already in the wheel. I’ve never replaced the bearings in a wheel. I take it they are pressed in. Is that a difficult job?