wraping wire around lock parts . . . .

[holzwurm]

when colorcase hardening locks, I think I read somewhere that wrapping wire around the part will enhance the colors.  I have some thin wire but it's corroded after laying in the drawer for several years. Anyone have experience using this wire technique and did you treat your parts any differently in the process?

[smart dog]

Hi Holzwurm,
I believe Jerry Huddleston probably introduced that technique to this forum.  I use it regularly when color casehardening.  I wrap the part with steel wire with wide spaces between each wrap but I make sure the wire is pressed down onto the surface of the part.  My understanding is that the change in metal thickness where the wire touches the part causes a change in color.  It seems to work, however, I found the most important trick is to make sure the whole pack falls into the quench intact so that none of the parts are exposed to air before cooling.  I attached some photos of locks that I color casehardened using a wire wrap.  I don't think that wire discolored by corrosion would cause any problems as long as it was not actually so bad that it was flaking off rust.

dave

[Metalshaper]

As I was told?? the wire or mesh technique, causes steam to be generated between them as the quench flows in. this steaming effect helps in causing the part to differentially cool resulting in more variation of the developing colors.

follow this link  http://www.marlin-collectors.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=3732
and you'll see one guys efforts in color case hardening.

Hope it helps!

Respect Always
Metalshaper/Jonathan

[Paddlefoot]

Very nice work there Smart Dog. Did you experience any warpage to the lock plates in hardening them?  J Kelly sent me the Gaddy articles out of "Double Gun Magazine", he was holding the pack close to his parts with plates drilled to allow water to flow in somewhat in the areas he wanted the most color. He was also very specific about how long the drop was into the quench. It's great info.

[holzwurm]

Smart Dog - I think how you forced that border color around the edges of the plate and cock is really neat. How did you achieve such control?

[satwel]

I have color case hardened two flintlocks. A large Siler and an L&R classic. I used the wrapped wire technique on both. I was very happy with the results, similar to Smart Dog's Model 1803 Harpers Ferry lock in the first photo. I'm not exactly sure why it works but I think it has something to do with steam being trapped between the part and the wire during the quench.

I also blocked the lock plates with a thick piece of steel to prevent warpage. I have since read that if you mount the lockplate backwards, with the outside facing in, with a little less than a 1/4" of space in between, you will achieve even more dramatic colors.  Same principle as the wire wrap. I also wrapped the cock, top jaw and the pan on the Siler with wire. Where ever I pressed the wire close to the surface, there is a burst of color.

[44-henry]

It definitely does make a difference in the to wrap the parts in wire. The corrosion shouldn't be a problem, I always wipe the wire with alcohol to remove any grease that might be on it and that will take care of most minor rust. I had a student today that was curious and placed a thin sheet of copper on the back of a part he was casehardening and when we pulled it from the quench the entire area covered by the copper was a deep blue. I don't think the copper itself had anything to do with it, but anything touching the parts is likely to cause color changes. The more wire you wrap the part with the more blues you are likely to get.

[Dphariss]

when colorcase hardening locks, I think I read somewhere that wrapping wire around the part will enhance the colors.  I have some thin wire but it's corroded after laying in the drawer for several years. Anyone have experience using this wire technique and did you treat your parts any differently in the process?

I think there is an excellent chance this is unnecessary work.

Dan

[Kelhammer]

The Machinery Handbook has a few different recipes for pack material, for color case hardening.  Has anyone ever tried them?  I want to learn to do this well, and was going to start there.  I had not thought about warping the parts.

Andrew

[David Rase]

when colorcase hardening locks, I think I read somewhere that wrapping wire around the part will enhance the colors.  I have some thin wire but it's corroded after laying in the drawer for several years. Anyone have experience using this wire technique and did you treat your parts any differently in the process?

I think there is an excellent chance this is unnecessary work.

Dan

Even though I have never used the wire wrap method, I agree with you Dan.  Here is a picture of the last lock I case color hardened.  No wire was used.

DMR

[Dphariss]

The Machinery Handbook has a few different recipes for pack material, for color case hardening.  Has anyone ever tried them?  I want to learn to do this well, and was going to start there.  I had not thought about warping the parts.

Andrew

While warping is a possibility experience can reduce/eliminate this. Though antique parts, even those from the 19th century, can have various "issues", I have not personally seen this in pack hardening. The really bad stuff I saw was from cyanide process hardening which is a far different process than pack hardening. Pack hardening does not allow for the mass production that cyanide can.
If you want to learn the trade you really need the help of someone with a lot of experience.

Dan

[Rasch Chronicles]

Hello friends!

Now... I read that the coloration has to do with the amount of agitation the quench has. In other words, if I understood correctly, if you have an airline to the quench tank, with a multitude of different sized holes, the colors will be very varied. I think i read that in Double Gun Journal quite some time ago.

Best Regards,
Albert “Afghanus” Rasch
The Rasch Outdoor Chronicles™
Best Hog Hunting in Florida!!

[David Rase]

Albert,
I am not picking on you but I just love all these things people read about needing to do to get color case hardening to work.  I went through the same drill when I first started my case color hardening journey.  What I found out after "actually case color hardening various parts" is that most case color hardeners want you to think that case color hardening is some sort of black magic, e.g. wire wrapping parts, peach pit charcol, agitating the water, brining the water and the list goes on and on.  Go get 2 buckets of charcol from Brownells, a heat source you can control, a 32 gallon trash can to quench in, some sort of container to pack your pars in and a toaster oven to draw out the parts once they are hardened.  Back your flat parts so they don't warp, monitor the temperature while heating, make sure the parts don't get exposed to oxygen prior to hitting the water and make sure they hit the water edge first and you have case color hardened your parts.
DMR