Where to buy bolt release lever

[charlie b]

I was thinking something like 1060 steel, hot pressed or heat treated. It would look like that when snapped.

[Dave Hoback]

I have to disagree Charlie. I’ve worked extensively with 1060, 1080/1084, 1095 and several other of the 10xx steels. Nothing special, they are simple Carbon steels, and all very much alike, as the last 2 numerals simply represent the Carbon content. (Is., 1060 having 0.60% Carbon in solution.) While the grain structure among these will differ slightly depending on heat treatment, it has a distinctly different look than Powder Metallurgy or MIM.

Here is a typical simple Carbon blade broken after having had Austenization heat treatment & oil quench. While fairly heavy grain structure, it still keeps the faint “shiny” appearance of steel. Not that dry, powder look of steels we’ve heard of as Sintered, Powder Metal, MIM & even POT metal, all of which denoting a very low quality of steel. (Which it usually is.)

[sharpshooter]

The sears are stamped from 1018, then carburized to 56 Rc. The carburazation goes all the way through because the metal is so thin.

[Dave Hoback]

Fancy word for Case Hardening. The part is baked in a temp. controlled oven at above 1700f for many hours. But it’s also dependent on the existing Carbon content. Anything under .50% is considered Low Carbon steel. In 1018 steel content is under .20%..very low!. Case hardening in 1018 can reach maybe .060”, so it is possible for such a thin part to be completely hard. Although, 56 Rockwell on the C-scale seems very hard for a gun part. That’s above Sword hardness, and even approaching the low end for knives. Gun parts tend to shatter at those levels. Of all the 1911, hammers, Sears, disconnectors I’ve set up, they were typically around 50hrc, even in the mid 40’s.

I do know the model 110 Sears are stamped 1018. They also don’t have a reputation for snapping as the Axis Levers apparently do though, so I don’t know. And unless that first picture I posted is suffering from some serious optical illusion, it doesn’t have that Powder Look to the grain as Robin pointed out. Which again, simple Carbon steels, including 1008/1018 & A36, don’t have that appearance. I think maybe Savage found a new supplier of cheaply produced Sears, unbeknownst to some. But who knows. I’m merely speculating… Albeit, based on photographic evidence & a heightened knowledge of Metallurgical types & processes. LOL!

I do hope others find this stuff as interesting as I do. If not, I do apologize. I just have an extreme fascination with Elemental & Compositional Metallurgy, as well as Ceramics & Polymer composites to a lesser degree.

[charlie b]

Kinda what I thought.

I only know a little about steels, mainly due to testing them in various failure modes. The higher carbon content steels tend to look like the sintered stuff when hot formed and failed. Many are not tempered, which changes the look a lot.

[Dave Hoback]

Kinda what I thought.

I only know a little about steels, mainly due to testing them in various failure modes. The higher carbon content steels tend to look like the sintered stuff when hot formed and failed. Many are not tempered, which changes the look a lot.

You may be thinking of Cast Iron, which is actually simple steel with too much Carbon. Typically over about 2% the steel will become Cast Iron with very large carbides. It does have that look when broken. 2.00% or more Carbon is only used with other Alloying Elements in various High Alloy, High Speed steels. For instance, Crucible’s CPM REX 121 uses 3.4% Carbon.. Yet it also has 10% Tungsten, 9% Cobalt, 9.5% Vanadium, 4% Chromium & 5% Molybdenum! Talk about a full plate! The tremendous amount of Carbon is needed for the isolation of carbides in solution. While REX121 is brittle, it still makes an outstanding cutting blade, & not nearly as brittle as Cast Iron which is useless as a cutting tool. (Or any tool for that matter.)

[charlie b]

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[prdatr]

You may be thinking of Cast Iron, which is actually simple steel with too much Carbon. Typically over about 2% the steel will become Cast Iron with very large carbides. It does have that look when broken. 2.00% or more Carbon is only used with other Alloying Elements in various High Alloy, High Speed steels. For instance, Crucible’s CPM REX 121 uses 3.4% Carbon.. Yet it also has 10% Tungsten, 9% Cobalt, 9.5% Vanadium, 4% Chromium & 5% Molybdenum! Talk about a full plate! The tremendous amount of Carbon is needed for the isolation of carbides in solution. While REX121 is brittle, it still makes an outstanding cutting blade, & not nearly as brittle as Cast Iron which is useless as a cutting tool. (Or any tool for that matter.)

I find the discussion of steel to be both interesting and very informative as I have little knowledge of it. I have purchased a few knives from Bucks custom shop over the last few years and have ordered the S30V.
I never bothered to look into it until I recently heard about S35V and found that S30V was sintered, which I found interesting. I realize these are still production knives but I expected a better finish on the edge coming from the custom shop. I can see quite of bit of "chatter" along the edge and can visually see that the bevel is higher on one side than the other. I will say though it is as sharp as the dickens.