Mower blades

[Michael]

A neighbor of mine who knows that I am scrap metal junkie gave me a couple of worn out mower blades. Any one know what kind of steel they are made of? Could they be used to make springs?

Michael

[Acer Saccharum]

I hope you can read this? This is from the North Texas Blacksmith Association:

[Mike R]

I have read that mower blades are typically 1080, which can be used for forging knife blades and I guess could be made into springs as well.  One source called the steel "spring steel", another "mild carbon tool steel"...but 1080 has plenty C in it...

[Ian Pratt]

 Michael - the list says "mower knives", those are different than a mower blade. The knives are the triangular cutters on a sickle bar or the cutters for a flail mower. Mower blades are often a much lower carbon steel, only way to really tell what you have is to test your material. A simple spark test would get you in the ballpark if you know what to look for.

[northmn]

From my days in metal shop spring steel is 1065.  1080 may be getting a little brittle.  Would make a good knife. 

DP

[Jim Kibler]

From my days in metal shop spring steel is 1065.  1080 may be getting a little brittle.  Would make a good knife. 

DP

Northmn,

Springs can be made of material with a carbon content of .5% or slightly lower to over 1%.  The key is to adjust the tempering temperature for each material in order to get the desired hardness.

Jim

[J.D.]

Well, the quality of steel in lawnmower blades is kinda like adult diapers, it depends.

In my experience, older blades are made of hardenable steel. New blades, especially those from the big box stores, are made of low carbon steel, and really aren't worth working with.

That said, I was recently told that the blades for high end mowers are still made of medium carbon steels.

IMHO, a spark test would be a good place to start, then harden a piece and break it. If it does, indeed, break, then it's made of something you can work with.

God bless

[The other DWS]

What kind of mower.  the typical modern consumer rotary power mower blade is generally designed to be A) cheap, B) impact resistant, C) lawyer-proof.   Longevity, actual wear resistance, ability to resharpen, are  undesirable qualities.  They want to sell you new ones as often as you can tolerate.  they are stamped out off-shore out of cheap recycled steel.  Maybe the commercial mower blades are better quality, or if you found a mower repair shop that has old blades that were from 15 or 20 years ago you might get some decent steel in them.   Large golf-course-sized reel mower blades are probably pretty good steel,  maybe even an old yard sale push/reel mower would give enough for springs and maybe a knife or three

I think that if I were ever to take up blacksmithing and wanted to make my own springs I probably buy the best high quality spring steel I could get.  too much work would go into fabricating a lock and a rifle to bugger up the springs
JMHO of course

[rich pierce]

I'm impressed that Ian knows what a mower knife is.  I had to rivet a good many of them in place back in the day!

[keweenaw]

Nice straight, not rusty, surface ground spring steel is so cheap and the work of making a complicated spring is so exacting and time consuming that it seems extremely poor economy to use some unknown steel to make one.

As for section knives, a good use for them is to nail one to a shelf in the shed to use to cut binder twine, of which everyone needs a roll, to use for all sorts of things.  I loved going into the feed store when I was a kid.  All the feed was loose in bins and the guys weighed out however much you wanted, put it in a paper poke (that's bag for you sprouts) and tied it with a piece of twine he cut off on the section knife nailed to the shelf with the twine.  Using a miller's knot of course.

Tom

[Ian Pratt]

  Rich - Back when I had a real job I spent many pleasant hours lying in mud underneath various pieces of equipment soaking up oil with my Carharts while blood ran out my knuckles and rain water funneled down both sleeves. I guess you could say I was in the business of making soup - but perhaps sometimes even a soup maker learns something about carbon content

[Roger Fisher]

 Rich - Back when I had a real job I spent many pleasant hours lying in mud underneath various pieces of equipment soaking up oil with my Carharts while blood ran out my knuckles and rain water funneled down both sleeves. I guess you could say I was in the business of making soup - but perhaps sometimes even a soup maker learns something about carbon content

Now more of us know why young Pratt got into easier work ie Blacksmithing gun parts

[beleg2]

Hi,
Very good info!
I beg your pardon but I do not know how do you call those steel discs used to saw wood.
We call them "sierra circular" circular saw.

Thanks
Martin

[KNeilson]

I have the same list that Acer has posted. For most of the metal I scrounge (saw blades, old springs, bearings, car axles etc) it has proved relatively accurate. I dont think a cheap chinese mower blade is what they have in mind tho. I would use material that started as a spring, the older "truck" coils are really good. Older means 60-70`s, apparently the newer ones are alloyed as opposed to just carbon steel. Ive found the best way to sort carbon amounts is to learn how to read a carbon spark, and keep a couple known steel bits to refer to... FWIW........  Kerry

[rich pierce]

Harrow blades, etc, any old ag steel tends to be great for tools and knives. 

Ian, nothing like a mixture of chaff, grease, blood and water to make a young man want to be off at the swimming hole with the gal next door instead of under a broken piece of farm machinery.

[Jim Kibler]

I agree 100% with what Snyder says.  In order to heat treat a part to full advantage, you really need to know what your dealing with.  You may get close by guessing or with a spark test, but to minimize chances of failure and to produce  quality, profesional work, you are further ahead to start with good quality material of an identified grade.

[Ian Pratt]

  Amen to that.   Elvis has left the building  The Eagle has landed

[JBlk]

If I was going to look for some scrap to make springs from, I would look for some old pitchfork tines or some old dump rake teeth.Look for the type of material that was used for a application that had to be springy.Some of the Early B&S lawnmowers had a windup starter spring that if properly annealed would probably make all of the springs you could use in many years.