hi
i want to recarburize a catana blade which is made of soft low C steel . the blade is 3 mm thick and i want it carburized to 1 mm dept and 0'8 to 1% C. I may use natuarall charcol as packing medium. how many hours of heating is needed? have you some better idea of other medium as charcol?
regards
and happy new year
yes

That is quite a depth to carburize, I do not think you will have much flexibility when it is finished.


Do you have a temperature controlled furnace? If not, you may wish to try a product called Kasenit.

A long time ago when I was forging for a living I had better luck using old leather as a source of carbon rather than charcoal. Wrap blade in leather, coat with thick layer of clay, bake in the forge for a couple hours. I think there was more luck involved than what I wanted to admit at the time.

It's not worth trying to carburize a blade .There are many problems with it and to do it properly would be difficult .I don't feel like going into a long explaination about it but it would save you much time and money to buy a new high quality knife !!