Prometheus, I guided you over here for a conversation because someone took
umbrage with me for making a comment without a picture on the woodworking
picture newsgroup.



You said:



"Now I *know* that turning is as bad as a crack habit! Since when does A2
cut "fairly easily" with a bandsaw? Even using a CNC bandsaw with a
..60"x1.25"x16' Lenox 4/5 LXP Trimaster blade, A2 still has the
tendency to cut teeth off the saw when it gets to the burr at the end of the
part! Not to mention the horrendously slow going it takes to cut the
stuff... Anyhow, good for you! It's always cool when someone makes their
own tools."


You probably know a world full more stuff dealing with steel than me. But we
used a metal cutting bandsaw and cut the 12" piece of steel lengthwise twice
plus two small cuts on the end of the 1 1/4" wide piece to go into a handle,
taking about 20 minutes. There were no broken teeth. Just a bimetal blade.
Maybe we were lucky. While at Pacific Machinery and Tool Steel, I watched a
guy cutting a 24 inch cylinder with a bandsaw. One of theirs had broken and
I took it home to have for making knife blades with (carving).

Thanks for adding the two places you mentioned for the A2 steel. I know it
can be had from several Internet sources but I don't know if you can walk in
and rummage thru their scrap pile.
--

Bob Darrah
West Linn, Oregon