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Posted by Jeremy [12.69.64.194] on Friday, September 14, 2012 at 14:18:14 :
In Reply to: hardened steel posted by Jerry in Idaho [69.59.83.175] on Friday, September 14, 2012 at 13:58:09 :
Depending on the alloy, yes. You can heat it to ~500F or so until a bright (sanded or ground) section of it turns color from yellow to blue and into grey. Then place it in vermiculite or some other insulator and let it cool fairly slowly. The only problem is that it will now be soft until it is re-hardened - and then re-tempered to make it less brittle. If the softened steel is going to work for you, that's fine and you don't need to worry about hardening and tempering. If not, the art of hardening and tempering is a bit more tricky but it can certainly be done. It is possible that you may better be served by either getting drill bit designed for hardened steel or finding a buddy with a plasma torch.
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