Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1903-07-02
MAKES STEEL CUT STEEL
Oreson Man Discovers New Tenn
perins Process

An Oregon toolmaker has rediscov-
cred the lost art Of tempering steel,
and yesterday astonished many be.
holders by the feats he performed in
his shop in the Suburban Coal & Ice
Company's yard at Fonrth and Everitt
streets. His name is b. ]. Casterline,
and he has just removed to Portland
from Corvallis, where he has been
working for some time to perfect his
secret process.
By what means Mr.. Casterline gives
steel the wonderful hardness and
toughness which makes his tools rival
the famous Damascus blade with
which Saladin cut in two feather
cushion he had tossed in the air, he
alone knows, ana he will nottell.
When the Oregonian reporter called
at his shop yesterday afternoon he put
three razors in an ordinary forge,
brought them to red heat, then
opened box standing beside him,
in which was small tank full Of
liquid, and dashed them into it.
After again heating them, he dipped
them in water, then ground them,
honed them on an oilstone, and shaved
some hair off his wrist with them. One
blade was so thin at the edge that the
heat curled it up like shaving and
he ground it down by holding the
edge at right angles to the grind
stone. An ordinary blade treated thus
woold have flown 20 pieces, but he
brought this to an even edge, then
ground and honed it.
Then he showed what can be done
with steel tempered by this process.
He has made drawing knife, and.
fastening a l6-penny steel spike in a
vice, with this tool he took shaving
off it. He handed the knife to the
reporter, who felt the edge and found
that it had not been turned in the
slightest degree; in fact. it was i'm
possible to tell with which part of the
blade the shaving had been made. To
further prove that the edge was not
affected, he took the same knife and,
without having sharpened it, shaved
some hair off his arm with the great
est ease. All over his arms and the
backs OF his hands are bare spots which
he has shaved in testing his tools.
Then he took pocket knife having
blade tempered by himself and cut a
shaving from the nail with it. He
drew it three times across the nail,
with the edge at right angles, making
distinct cut each time, and in,medi-
ately shaved little bunch Of hair
from his arm or hand with the same
blade. He repeated this test four
times making in all 10 notches in the
nail, but the knife shaved bis hand as
easily the last as the first time.
He has an ak which was taken to
him with the edge ohipped all the
way along, so that it would hardly cut
mud. He has tempered it so that il
cuts steel and is still better AK than
it ever was before he tempered it.
He took bar of tool steel, secured
it in the vice and then brought down
I the edge of the ak upon it with al
the power of both his brawny arms
He made cut in the steel at least 9
sixteenth of an inch deep The re-
porter felt the edge of the AK, and Il
had not been turned in the slightest
degree. 1t is safe to say that b,
could go ON chopping that steel bal
with that AK until it was cut through
and the AK would still split WOOD
better than any AK that was evei
made.
Having seen these things, the re
porter's incredulity was disarmet
when he was told that Mr.. Casterlin,
had made a coldchisel with VIII ich h,
could cut a saw to pieces, and that III
could make bit which would bore I
hole through a saw. He showed I
set Of horseshOers' nippers which wa
brought to him with the edges al
Clipped and jagged, but he has pu
such fine edge ON them that tn,
same pair can be used for cuttinI
nails or hoofs. He showed lette
from the Benton County FlourinI
Mills of Corvallis testifying to tn
good work he had done in temperinI
sack needles He said that at thi
mill T. sack needles had been broken II
, one week in sewing -four sacks, bu
one needle which he had tempere,
had been In use for nearly tw
months and was as good as ever
He now undertakes to temper an
kind of steel tools, but will not sto
n at that. He will undertake to max
A such strings that they will neve
0 break, and will next apply his discov
cry TO armor-plate He proposes /
apply it to small piece OF armor
plate and endeavor TO render it I'M
pertious to shot and shell. II sue
cessful, and he has no doubt, after til
success he has had With other thing.
he will try it on a larger scale.
There is only one secret in th
process, and that is in the chemical /
which he dips the steel after bringin
it to a red heat After that is don,
he again puts the steel in the fire an
draws it to the hardness required fc
different kinds Of work. There al
three Of these degrees Of hardness
Of which he judges by the color Of III
heated metal For this purpose a goo
light is needed, in order that he ma
judge accurately Of color.
'' In what manner Mr.. Casterlar
will apply his invention he has NJ