Vent: My leaf spring punch cracked after a water quench

I forged a center punch from an old car leaf spring last week. It split straight down the middle when I cooled it too fast. What's the safest quench for spring steel to stop this from happening?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_shane23h ago

Man, that's the worst sound when it cracks. Been there with spring steel. You gotta slack quench it in warm oil, not water. Heat your canola oil to like 130 degrees first so it's not a shock. Dunk it fast, swirl it for a few seconds, then pull it out and let the leftover heat in the metal finish the job. Water is just way too violent for that stuff.

umaf202h ago

Brine quenches crack spring steel even faster than water.