Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

fearn · 13th February 2005, 12:29 AM

Hi Jens,

That's something I think. I'm having fun contemplating magnetism in blades for a couple of reasons:

1. It exists.

2. It exists in folded blades,

3. It exists in tempered blades.

1. is self-evident (and I'm enjoying reading these accounts). As for 2., well, if a sheet of magnetized steel is folded over itself, doesn't it cancel out? What about if it's folded over itself a bunch of times? 3., What happens to magnetization when a blade is differentially heat treated? Since the crystal structure is getting deformed, I'm still puzzling out whether this would affect a magnetic field. Basically, I don't see a straight route from magnetite to a blade without remagnetizing the blade after it's manufactured.

Balanced against all this skepticism are the observations people are reporting here. Perhaps there's a way for a hunk of magnetite to retain its magnetism after it's been folded, tempered, heat treated (and possibly alloyed). Personally, I think the magnetic field came later. As Nechesh points out, it's quite easy to do. As to where those asymmetric fields up and down blades came from, I think that an experiment with some magnets and a non-magnetized sword are in order

Fearn (not Fern, thanks!)

13th February 2005, 12:29 AM	#11
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Hi Jens, That's something I think. I'm having fun contemplating magnetism in blades for a couple of reasons: 1. It exists. 2. It exists in folded blades, 3. It exists in tempered blades. 1. is self-evident (and I'm enjoying reading these accounts). As for 2., well, if a sheet of magnetized steel is folded over itself, doesn't it cancel out? What about if it's folded over itself a bunch of times? 3., What happens to magnetization when a blade is differentially heat treated? Since the crystal structure is getting deformed, I'm still puzzling out whether this would affect a magnetic field. Basically, I don't see a straight route from magnetite to a blade without remagnetizing the blade after it's manufactured. Balanced against all this skepticism are the observations people are reporting here. Perhaps there's a way for a hunk of magnetite to retain its magnetism after it's been folded, tempered, heat treated (and possibly alloyed). Personally, I think the magnetic field came later. As Nechesh points out, it's quite easy to do. As to where those asymmetric fields up and down blades came from, I think that an experiment with some magnets and a non-magnetized sword are in order Fearn (not Fern, thanks!)