Lost Art Press

How to Heat-treat Your Tips

Posted on by Lost Art Press

If we had a company motto, it would be something like this: “If it were easy to do, then every idiot would do it.”

It’s something we say to ourselves when we’re fighting to find enough cotton cloth for a run of books, or a vendor for hinges for our dividers, or looking for damn Chicago screws without a burr on the underside of the head that has to be machined off and who does that and why am I not able to finish this sentence like a normal person?

And so we look to Craig Jackson for salvation. 

Craig is the machinist we use for a lot of parts. He’s like if Matlock and Columbo had a baby. He’s easy to underestimate because of his Kentucky accent, and you do that at your own peril.

Anyway, for the last few weeks, we’ve been wrestling with the tips of our Crucible dividers. They have been getting bent in transit, and we’ve tried lots of strategies to stop the damage. All through the process, Craig kept saying: I can show customers how to heat-treat the tips at home.

But we ignored him. At our peril.

Finally, we came up with a solution with the CNC mill that would strengthen the tips. Craig said it would work, but he also sent this message:

“Heat treating the tips now.”

OK, because we live in a litigious society I have to say: Don’t do this, you fool. It’s a joke. You will hurt yourself badly (but please tell us if the tips increased in Rockwell hardness).

— Christopher Schwarz

43 thoughts on “How to Heat-treat Your Tips”

        1. What? You mean, like hitting Rockwell 85 or summat like that?!

          But yeah. I once forgot to unplug a lead from the wall before cutting it off with a pair of side cutters … Thankfully, the fuse blew instantly, and the cutters had plastic-covered handles, but still … ouch.

    2. I did it with tweezers when I was a kid… It’s more difficult to do these days with the tamper resistant receptacles.

      1. I did it with my mother’s hair pin. Had third degree burn on my hand the shape of the pin.

  2. Ha – well that is one way to harden steel. One of many ways to accomplish the desired result.

  3. I wouldn’t have posted that- lots of people don’t read anymore they’re to much of in a hurry- reckon they might get slowed down?

  4. Well, I think it is at least pretty clear what those smiley-face wall sockets think of the idea … in particular ol’ Scarface, top right!

  5. Having been an electrical inspector for the last 28 years people are always asking me why Codes require receptacles to be tamper resistant as well as GFCI and AFCI protected which adds considerably to their costs, always told them you never know what kids will try to plug into them, apparently you and Craig are still kids at heart.

  7. Tried it. I don’t think the tips got any harder. But, I did get a free trip across the room!

  8. I don’t remembered what happened! There was this flash of light and when I woke up the tips were gone.

    1. I can confirm that surprising amounts of metal melted every time I have done something like this — inadvertently, after the first experience. Even hardened metal melts in the area of arcing. If the breaker works, the arcing current is the crude equivalent of low-power welding gear.

  9. Maybe consider putting the disclaimer before the pic? The internet has a bad habit of reacting to pictures without reading what comes after.

    On the other hand, it would cull the herd….

  10. LAP well I tried that electric trick, it did not change the Rockwell hardness, but what little hair I have left I i can now just snap off

  11. That floor looks dry. I have heard you get better results if you stand in a puddle.

  12. Can Craig machine a nice hinge for a sector? How much? Anyway, with that sense of humor we can have a beer together.

  14. I find this post shocking! when I was a kid, the phrase “get bent” meant something entirely different. and Rockwell’s best song was “I always feel like Somebody’s watching me”

  17. I eagerly await the heated discussion about the relative merits of 50 Hz versus 60 Hz for hardening purposes before I give it a go myself.

    1. That’s easy. 50hz is superior because while you are busy hardening your dividers, you can revel in the auditory bliss of a syntonic comma every time your daughter lands on the tonic note of her favorite G major scale. (For anyone wondering, a syntonic comma is 2 musical notes that create a frequency ratio of 81/80. It is without a doubt the most hideous musical sound you’ll ever hear).

      1. Oh, so that’s the sound that every string orchestra makes. Always wondered what that was called.

  18. So yeah, I tried this and I didn’t feel anything happen. It was just the tip though; do I need to wiggle it around? Does it need to go in deeper or maybe faster? Help would really be appreciated guys – I really want to make the tip harder.

  19. Brilliant. The electrical flow heats it up, and while you’re flopping around on the ground, you stab yourself with it, providing a perfect quench with your own blood.

    There’s some legendary sword-making technique that involves quenching the blade in the blood of a virgin, but we probably shouldn’t go there.

  20. Brilliant. The electrical flow heats it up, and while you’re flopping around on the ground, you stab yourself with it, providing a perfect quench with your own blood.

    There’s some legendary sword-making technique that involves quenching the blade in the blood of a virgin, but we probably shouldn’t go there.

  21. I notice the receptical looks like a 20 AMP, should work better than the 15 on the left or was he doing it in stages?

  22. I think joule find the potential for a lot of resistance to conducting this experiment.

  25. I did something just like that when I was three years old. Twice actually. Lots of tears. I was a slow learner then because I didn’t know what electricity was. I have since done all the wiring in more than one home; at least a mile of wire and about 50 circuits in the most recent one for my son – everything can be controlled remotely wherever you are anywhere in the world if internet is available.

    1. thats the Top secret Crusible tools 1/2” dowel plate, which doubles as a third leg for the dividers with the optional 3rd leg attachment kit for only $19.99, turning ordinary dividers into Trividers for 3 legged stool layout.

  30. A kid read it, and the kid tried it, end of the story (for the kid).
    Very clever.

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