On 2016-11-26, wrote:
On Friday, November 25, 2016 at 5:51:35 PM UTC-5, DoN. Nichols wrote:
On 2016-11-25, wrote:

[ ... ]

In theory, 1070 will get as hard from quench-hardening as any higher
carbon steel. But in practice, it doesn't, supposedly because of the way
carbon is distributed in the iron. 1090 (0.9% carbon) comes close but
music wire runs up to around 1.2% carbon. That will draw to very high
hardness, but I'm told it doesn't quench-harden any more than 1090.
'Dunno, I've never tried it, and I no longer have access to a Mitutoyo
hardness tester, anyway.

I've recently gotten some music wire at about 0.060" diameter,
and boy is that nasty to cut. Compound leverage wire cutters with
carbide blades (Starrett) can do it -- but it is still sudden when the
cut occurs. :-)

I use a thin cutoff wheel on a Dremel. It's the only way I've ever
found to cut it clean, and it works great.

Well ... this was a clean cut -- if you like chisel points.
Maybe that for one end, and the cutoff wheel for the other end to make
watchmaker's chisels. :-)

Music wire is plain carbon, with an extremely high percentage of
carbon. Most brands use a proprietary stock material, but it's usually
1.0 - 1.2% carbon.

With other weird alloy components for their desired effects?
Sort of like the flat spring stock used to make accordion reeds. (For
that matter, English concertinas started out with "brass" reeds, which I
think were an alloy really called "reed bronze", and no longer available
as far as I know. (Probably, BeCu would be excellent for the task,
except for the hazard to those tuning the reeds, which is done either by
filing or by grinding -- neither of which is desirable to breathe
around. :-)

It isn't heat-treated. It's just work-hardened from drawing the wire.
In the thinner pieces, the tensile strength can reach 300,000 psi and
the hardness is comparably 'way up there.

Hmm ... how close to what is needed for the "space elevator"
project? IIRC, even carbon fiber is not yet strong enough.

For that matter -- do we have anything yet which is strong
enough for the same project on Mars (once we get there?) With the lower
gravity, that should be easier. And even easier for the moon, assuming
that the Earth's gravity would not perturb the stability of something
like that on the moon.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Remove oil spill source from e-mail
Email: | (KV4PH) Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---