Faggoting (metalworking)
Encyclopedia
Faggoting or faggoting and folding is a metalworking
technique used in the smelting
and forging
of wrought iron
, damascus steel
, and other steel
. Faggoting is a process in which rods or bars of iron
and/or steel are gathered (like a bundle of sticks or "faggot") and forge welded
together. The faggot would then be drawn out lengthwise. The bar might then be broken and the pieces made into a faggot again or folded over, and forge welded again.
Wrought iron which had been faggoted twice was referred to as "Best"; if faggoted again it would become "Best Best", then "Treble best", etc. Faggoting stretches chemical impurities within the metal into long thin inclusions, creating a grain
within the metal. "Best" bars would have a tensile strength
along the grain of about 23 short ton
s per square inch (317 MPa
). "Treble best" could reach 28 short tons per square inch (386 MPa). The strengths across the grain would be about 15% lower. This grain makes wrought iron especially tricky to smith, as it behaves much like wood grain—prone to spontaneous splitting along the grain. In old, very rusted pieces of wrought iron, the grain is revealed, making the iron bear a striking resemblance to reddish-brown wood.
Blister steel
that has been faggoted was known as shear steel; if faggoted twice, as double shear steel. Steel that was intended to be treated this way was usually carburised
, presumably because it was slightly decarburised in the course of faggoting.
Metalworking
Metalworking is the process of working with metals to create individual parts, assemblies, or large scale structures. The term covers a wide range of work from large ships and bridges to precise engine parts and delicate jewelry. It therefore includes a correspondingly wide range of skills,...
technique used in the smelting
Smelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
and forging
Forge
A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
of wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
, damascus steel
Damascus steel
Damascus steel was a term used by several Western cultures from the Medieval period onward to describe a type of steel used in swordmaking from about 300 BCE to 1700 CE. These swords are characterized by distinctive patterns of banding and mottling reminiscent of flowing water...
, and other steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
. Faggoting is a process in which rods or bars of iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
and/or steel are gathered (like a bundle of sticks or "faggot") and forge welded
Forge welding
Forge welding is a solid-state welding process that joins two pieces of metal by heating them to a high temperature and then hammering them together. The process is one of the simplest methods of joining metals and has been used since ancient times. Forge welding is versatile, being able to join a...
together. The faggot would then be drawn out lengthwise. The bar might then be broken and the pieces made into a faggot again or folded over, and forge welded again.
Wrought iron which had been faggoted twice was referred to as "Best"; if faggoted again it would become "Best Best", then "Treble best", etc. Faggoting stretches chemical impurities within the metal into long thin inclusions, creating a grain
Crystallite
Crystallites are small, often microscopic crystals that, held together through highly defective boundaries, constitute a polycrystalline solid. Metallurgists often refer to crystallites as grains.- Details :...
within the metal. "Best" bars would have a tensile strength
Tensile strength
Ultimate tensile strength , often shortened to tensile strength or ultimate strength, is the maximum stress that a material can withstand while being stretched or pulled before necking, which is when the specimen's cross-section starts to significantly contract...
along the grain of about 23 short ton
Short ton
The short ton is a unit of mass equal to . In the United States it is often called simply ton without distinguishing it from the metric ton or the long ton ; rather, the other two are specifically noted. There are, however, some U.S...
s per square inch (317 MPa
Pascal (unit)
The pascal is the SI derived unit of pressure, internal pressure, stress, Young's modulus and tensile strength, named after the French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer, and philosopher Blaise Pascal. It is a measure of force per unit area, defined as one newton per square metre...
). "Treble best" could reach 28 short tons per square inch (386 MPa). The strengths across the grain would be about 15% lower. This grain makes wrought iron especially tricky to smith, as it behaves much like wood grain—prone to spontaneous splitting along the grain. In old, very rusted pieces of wrought iron, the grain is revealed, making the iron bear a striking resemblance to reddish-brown wood.
Blister steel
Cementation process
The cementation process is an obsolete technique for making steel by carburization of iron. Unlike modern steelmaking, it increased the amount of carbon in the iron. It was apparently developed before the 17th century. Derwentcote Steel Furnace, built in 1720, is the earliest surviving example...
that has been faggoted was known as shear steel; if faggoted twice, as double shear steel. Steel that was intended to be treated this way was usually carburised
Case hardening
Case hardening or surface hardening is the process of hardening the surface of a metal, often a low carbon steel, by infusing elements into the material's surface, forming a thin layer of a harder alloy...
, presumably because it was slightly decarburised in the course of faggoting.