I’ve got quite the interest to do san mai with an aeb-l core for straight razors. I gave some thought to just getting some aeb-l in 1/4” and just doing stock removal but grinding stainless is about as high on my list of things I love to do as stubbing my toe.
My question is, do i need to dissolve the chromium carbides after forge welding to redistribute them, austenitize and quench then do a temper anneal for grain reduction and preparing the steel structure for machining and hardening?
I am having an incredibly difficult time finding the info, hoping someone here has experience they’re willing to share.
Part 2 of my question, assuming that no one has an answer, is there a good way to shop test to see if my carbides are nice and small without having access to test equipment?
Due to the extreme hardenability there should be less of a problem with proeutectoid phase collection in the grain boundaries. Also, true normalizing will not be a thing here, heating to normal austenitizing temperatures and air cooling will simply result in hardening, accompanied with grain refinement.
Grain size is relatively easy with fractured end examination, however, carbide condition will require metallographic examination, i.e. the proper microscope, and very specific reagents to reveal the structures in that alloy. I have had acceptable results using HCL/FeCl based reagents.
