Edger blade steel?

[jonathan creason]

Been making a few knives from edger blades for fun.  They seem to take a good edge, and hold up fairly well, although to be fair none have really been abused so I don't know how good they really are.  I've gotten some requests from a couple of folks for a knife, though and if I'm going to do it for someone else I want to make sure I do it right.  So, can anybody tell me what steel is used for edger blades so I can try to get the heat treatment right?

Thanks

[Bryan Bondurant]

What kind of edger blades? Is it something newer off the shelf or something old out of a barn? The basic rule on scrap is to "Spark Test" it to try and determine the carbon content. There is a bunch of information on spark testing around the internet.

Do you already have a good handle heat treating steel?

[jonathan creason]

They're off the shelf.  I like them because I can cut 2 knives from a single blade.  The sparks are bright orange-ish I'd say.

I'd say I have a decent handle on heat treating.  Not enough experience to say I have a good handle on it yet, but with these I do manage to get a good seemingly sturdy edge.