Steel

[Janne]

While in Norway, I did a little bit of "search and explore" of German WW2 coastal defence remains around the village I go to.
The locals of the correct age were not much of a help, so I had to put my mind of how the German military would have thought.
On one if the sites I found a drill bit, about 4 feet long. Used to make holes in the bedrock. It is one of those tips where one ( unfortunate) guy holds the bit and one or two hit it with sledge hammers. The other end of the tip has those splayed flattened areas after the hammering. The weight of it is about 7 to 10 kilos..

I know with certainty it is WW2 German as I could mate the bit with holes in the bedrock nearby, and I know that after dismantling and removing the artillery pieces they blew up the rest of the sites. ( found debris after the demolition)

My question is, do you guys think a such steel would be good to make knife blades from?
It is frifghtfully hard.

Anybody interested in trying?

 

[Dave Budd]

it's likely to be a medium carbon steel, something in the EN9 range. t would be fine for a knife, if not the most amazing edge holding, certainly should be a tough blade though! If it's big enough, then maybe think about making axes and the like from it

 

[Janne]

i will weigh it when I go back in August and see how much I have. I left it in my house as I was already overweight with the fish.

When I tapped it against a piece of railway track I found ( used to transport ammo for the coastal guns I guess) it rang like a bell.

Another pieces that are left are the huge, and I mean huge, steel rings that the guns sat on and some kind of vibration dampeners (?) with really big nuts.

 

[Tor helge]

Guess you`ve been to the unfinished MKB 2/514 Olenilsøy. The fort was never ready and the guns (four 17cm SKL/40) never mounted.

Know nothing about the drill bit steel though.

 

[Janne]

Spot on. Thanks for the info, very grateful! I only got info from the net, that says the Reine battery (6 guns) was never operational ( no guns) but that the Olenisøy was. I have found no definite traces of the Reine batteries, even if the area where they could have bern placed is small.


Do you know the function of those heavy steel rods below the huge steel ring?

You know that area well, are you local to it? Is it ok if I PM you with a couple of questions about that area?