Material for trade points

[Fred Arnold]

For you guys making your own trade points where are you getting your metal from. Will any old steel work OK or do you have a preference. I've got some old circular saw blades and a couple of broken down old spades that I was thinking of cutting up and trying. Also some left over re-bar from when we reinforced and poured the shop floor. Can that be heated and pounded out or would it be too soft?

[Pat B]

Circular saw blades makes good trade points. It is soft enough to cut but hard enough to hold an edge.

[JW_Halverson]

If you have some old homesteads around look for barrel hoops.  The old barrel hoops were often used to make everything from trade points to knives and even hair decorations. 

[Fred Arnold]

JW, I've seen some of those old barrel loops around and might even have some in an old dump area on the back of the property.
Pat, can those saw blades be cut with a bandsaw or do you have to use a torch?

[carpentertimw]

a dremel with cutting wheels works very nicely for cutting blades if you spray the wheels with water frequently to cool it.

[crooketarrow]

  I use old saw mill blades it's 1095 steel a good edge steel. There use'lly 1/8 thick the smaller ones 15 to 18 inchs are a little thiner 3/32's.  You can cut them out as is but to do this it this way it's much more tuffer and takes alot longer. I aneal mine takes out hardness and temper. So it's alot easyer to work. You can reharden the VEG. OIL and retemper in kitchen oven. But sharpen to a edge before you retemper.
   I have gotten a couple at yard sells. Put I pick mine up a flea markets mainly. I've paided anywhere from $5.00 to $ 30.00 Which really not to bad when you see how many knife blanks and trade heads you can get from one 2 foot blade. I've bought them 3 and 4 foot.
  I also pick up every cross cut saw I can find these are uselly 16 th but make great knives and trade points. These are made of different steels the mill blades and most can't be retempered in the over. It won't get hot enough. With either one when harden and tempered right there never any roll back. I've stuck more then 1 in a cinder blocks. Hit rocks on miss's. Your arrow destorys in peices long before the trade point will.
  Most of the circler saw blade that you can buy only have the teeth tempered.
  But it you forge just about any steel can be shaped and used then tempered. EXCEPT STAINLESS Then you need to use a plamas arc. or shear. Stainless is 10 TIMES HARDER TO WORK but indestrutable when finished.

[osage outlaw]

I have made scrapers from circular saw blades and they worked great.  I've only had to put a bur them once.  I plan on making some trade points out of them this year too.

[stringstretcher]

If you know of anyone who works in concrete and has a concrete saw, those blades make great knives, trade points, scrapers or just about anything.  They are already tempered from the use.  Just a thought.

[gudspelr]

Fred-

A number of steels will work for your application, as already mentioned by others.  I suppose a great deal of what you end up using depends upon the tools/resources you have available.  Some of the old saw blade steels are great as they are.  For those who don't want to worry about quenching and tempering, hardened steels can be cut and ground out, but care must be taken not to heat up the steel, which can cause the hardness to be lost.  Just go slow and have a little "dunk tank" with water nearby to keep sticking the steel in to cool it as you go.  On the other hand, if you have a torch setup and want to, you could certainly quench and temper your points without much difficulty at all.

Some may not agree with this, but I've heard of guys using soft steel (hasn't been quenched and tempered) for their points.  Just because it hasn't been hardened doesn't mean it won't take an edge.  That being said, when you hit a rock or something else hard, it will obviously damage that edge.  But, a sharp point only HAS to be used once on that critter and cut nicely, that one time to get the job done.  If it did it's job and your arrow is still useable, check and see if the head is too and just put another edge on it.  I haven't done it that way, but can understand the logic behind it.  Just my $.02  .


Jeremy

[Fred Arnold]

gudspelr, appreciate the input.
My Dad was an old meat cutter and now guess I'm old enough to say the same. I do like steel.
My preference runs towards carbon but I've had some nice stainless (if you take care of them)steel.
Never made a steel knife blade or point but think it would be a nice task. If I can get it formed properly, think I might be able to sharpen the damn thing.
What I'm trying to accomplish is the old lazy man approach of finding the cheapest, easiest blade material to start with.
I've got a grinder and now a  bandsaw, other than hand tools to work with. I can start a fire that will probably get things hot enough to burn, other than that I'm pretty primative and mostly primative~~~~   

[Pat B]

You can use side grinders, metal bandsaw, hacksaw or cold chisel. All work well.  I've had my best luck with a cold chisel to cut out the rough shape and files to make the final shape and add the edge.

[_Jon_]

Old spoons work well.  Just hammer them flat and shape with a grinder or file.

[crooketarrow]

   Gudspeir solf steel dose work fine. But really don't sharpen you can put a good edge on them. But I've found out it there not a least 1/8 thick. Thinner will roll back even on bone. Killing pentration and pentrations the name of the game when it comes to self bows. Yes you can cut points from almost all harden and temper steels and if your only make 2 or 3 it's ok. But I make for myself and a few other people every year. So when I do it's uselly a couple dozzen at a time. So it pays to ANEAL the steel. and much easer to cut into shape even if your only makeing a double.
  Into day's archery world most people are steping backwards and have factory points the GRAIN thing stuck in there mines. So when there thinking broad points there thing factory made matched set. And if you wish to have a matching set or beleive there's no way you could shoot heads that are a couple grains different. you need to remember your not shooting compounds anymore.
  BUT IT YOU JUST WANT QUICK,EASY,CHEAP. Go to any carpenters job site and ask for their old saw blades just cut them out and tie them on. They'll differntly kill what you hit.

[Pappy]

I use band saw blades[cut off saw] I get from a buddy in maintenance at the Niss. Plant here in TN. it's 50/000 thick and turnes out a blade about 160 grains at the size I make about 2 inches long by 1 inch wide at the base. Sharpens good also.
   Pappy

[kurogane_84]

the only steel heads ive made was from 1/8 inch thich, by 1.5 inch wide and 3 inches long, it weighs alot but would have a great penetration if i shot at big game, i would like to get some thinner metal or even get some .45 ASP spent shells to make blunts