The Armour Archive

I have been learning to raise recently and loving every minute of it. Now its time for me to leave the nest and get my own raising stakes. I hear all the time how ideal ball bearings on a stick are, due to thier (usually) excelent shape and metal quality. I also heard/presumed this was also due to thier hardness.

Now I have heard that the Bearings/balls should be anealed to protect hammers, and prevent cracking.

My worry is that a sofened ball stake is like armouring with lead, it will eventually flatten and deform like a very viscous liquid.

So am I wrong? Is the wonderousness (new word?) of ball bearings solely due to its superb steel, not its hardness? Should stakes indeed be anealed to protect from cracking?

I'm getting mixed messages as I question everyone and his dog over this dilema. Please fellow archivers, help solve this mistery. (by beating the correct answer into my head)

Mike.

If you could provide your head at a mutually convenient location, I am willing to ply a variety of large, hard objects in the beating of the aformentioned appendage!
Seriously, the stakes I've made with bearings are all anealed (I heat the bearing to a bright cherry in the forge before welding it on the shank, it uses a LOT less O/A)and I've not had any deformation problems. A-6 is pretty damn good hard or soft.

Alail/Scott

Where does one fing bearings in these sizes??

Hot or cold raising?

Mild steel stakes may flatten a bit eventually, but by that time you'll probably have a collection of other stakes anyway.

I recently forged a saddle stake, for shrinking a pair of greaves. Just (mild?) steel of junkyard composition, forged to shape without any particular heat treat. It hasn't deformed a bit after two greaves.

Eric Thing uses a mild steel 3 inch T-stake, for hot work.

Good quality ball bearings will hold up well as stakes even in a softened condition. If you find that you want one hardend you should anneal it before you weld it to the shaft and then reharden it. Welding hardened ball bearings can be dangerous as the stress from the welding can cause them to shatter--always anneal before welding!