Why was steel of decades ago so much better quality than today?

[Industrial Toys]

Sometimes that ODD stuff in the mix helps. My Dad told me a number of times how just small amounts of copper in the scrap add greatly to corrosion resistance of the steel.

 

[sixdogs]

I'm the OP on this and it's more than about the corrosion resistance of old steel vs new. The old stuff cut better, bent better and the threads were cleaner, sharper and stayed that way.

 

[dmccarty]

You might like this link too.

That is really interesting. The forge they are using does not look that different from the force the modern smith used to make the crucible steel...

The bit about silicon in the iron to minimize rust on boat parts was also interesting.

Later,
Dan

 

[k0ua]

That is really interesting. The forge they are using does not look that different from the force the modern smith used to make the crucible steel...

The bit about silicon in the iron to minimize rust on boat parts was also interesting.

Later,
Dan

Like you I am fascinated by these ages old methods. Now the question I always had, who was the first Viking to look at that greasy slick on the bog, and think.. "you know what?, I think there might be iron nodules in that decaying plant matter..hmmm I think I will cook some up and get me some iron to make a sword out of" Now just who was that smart, fella, and what led him to experiment in this manner?

 

[dmccarty]

Like you I am fascinated by these ages old methods. Now the question I always had, who was the first Viking to look at that greasy slick on the bog, and think.. "you know what?, I think there might be iron nodules in that decaying plant matter..hmmm I think I will cook some up and get me some iron to make a sword out of" Now just who was that smart, fella, and what led him to experiment in this manner?

My guess is that they were burning peat and found the nodules. :confused3:

Later,
Dan

 

[k0ua]

My guess is that they were burning peat and found the nodules. :confused3:

Later,
Dan

Probably. Many of the worlds greatest discoveries were happy accidents.

 

[hillbilly century]

ever heard of " sweet iron " I have a log chain made of it & theres no comparison w/ the modern steel....I've seen a lot of good theories on here & maybe some that don't ring reasonable....yes something to be said bout extra ingrediants in modern steel....the quality blame...I like the bean counter theory...why did we have to give up pride in both manufacture & good workmanship-answer=big business hired the bean counters & efficiency expert nerds....in ww2 there was a world effort to make incredible amounts of steel,& lots of the best ore was used up- making the last of the sweet iron...germans were famous for knives out of Solingen-their secret-same as james bowie's knife made in Washington ark.....they were all made from meteor ore...the german knives from meteor fields in Sweden...then the world reknown Swedish steel...I'm thinking-the purity & quality of the ore is a very big factor....

 

[Egon]

Like you I am fascinated by these ages old methods. Now the question I always had, who was the first Viking to look at that greasy slick on the bog, and think.. "you know what?, I think there might be iron nodules in that decaying plant matter..hmmm I think I will cook some up and get me some iron to make a sword out of" Now just who was that smart, fella, and what led him to experiment in this manner?

It may have been imported knowledge.

 

[SPYDERLK]

Because were just seeing the steel thats lasted to compare to.