Recreating The Lost Art Of Damascus Steel

YouAreFatMan writes "The Chicago Tribune has an article about two researchers -- a metallurgist and a blacksmith -- who have apparently been able to reproduce the legendary Damascus steel. 'Islamic artisans used it for centuries to make swords that spurred envy and myths among Europeans--including the legend that a Damascus blade could slice a falling silk scarf in midair.'"

Comments

Pickup Truck Fenders and Amateur Metallurgy

[BigBlockMopar]

The solution? "You heat it up really hot and beat on it really hard," Verhoeven said.
This works for computers too!

So, like, this guy in a Honda Accord misses his exit, and stops dead on the freeway. Now, in most big cities, if you maintain a proper following distance while driving, you get cut off by people who see it as an opening into the lane. So I was closer to Accord than I should have been - a one second following distance.

I sullied my *perfect* driving record by using my 1976 Dodge Ram pickup truck to push his taillights into his back seat. As a result, I got to spend all of Sunday panel beating.

Rule number one in metallurgy: They don't make 'em like they used to.

Rule number two: 1/4" thick plate steel frame rails, with sufficient velocity and inertia, will cut through the rear end of a modern car like a hot knife through warm butter.

Rule number three: When you've dented a piece of steel, you've stretched the metal around it. In order to be able to beat it back into submission, the panel's affected area should be rested on a canvas bag filled with sand. A blowtorch should be used to heat the dented area, and a shrinking hammer (which looks like an iron version of a meat tenderizer) gets used on the hidden side of the panel.

Rule number four: While it looks and sounds easy, you quickly gain an appreciation for the artisanship of an old-school auto body man or a blacksmith and after you've managed to make the fender look like it's got the mumps, you realize it's about time to stop wasting blowtorch propane and knuckleskin and buy the $72.99 new reproduction fender you find online. Because it isn't easy. In fact, it's about as difficult as locking down a Windows 2000 box well enough to make it suitable for a production environment.

My kudos to anyone who is a blacksmith. It's an art.