Ladder pattern damascus - affect of the initial cuts on the pattern

[Stew]

Hi,

I have a billet of pattern welded steel that I have cut alternating slits in, ready for flattening out to make a ladder pattern.

Before I do anything more to it, I was wondering if I should be taking the top corners off each of the slits.

I'm wondering if they will cause me trouble when flattening it out if left on (my forging experience is very low) or if by removing them, it will make the pattern go a bit wishy-washy.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

 

[EdCaffreyMS]

Those edges CAN cause issues if your not careful. When I produce ladder pattern I tend to roll the edges of those cuts. It will slightly alter the pattern, but the alternative is to leave the cuts with square edges, that will sometimes fold over (especially at the edges of the billet) as your forging the billet down, and create cold shuts. If you get those "fold overs", the only way to get them out is to grind them out. The problem is that by that point in the process, your probably at your desired finished thickness, so getting rid of them can cause you to run out of material.

 

[Stew]

Thank you Ed.

That makes me feel better about asking the question - I think I shall be getting out my big triangular file and running it down each slot.