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Blew out a shoe on a simple trot-out because i was forging too hot
Was doing a standard reset on a OTTB last tuesday and the whole shoe just collapsed when i hit it with the hammer. Been forging for about 6 years now and always just cranked the forge to max and got it done fast. My buddy jim watched me and pointed out the metal was sparking too much and i was basically burning the temper out of the steel. Now i keep it at a lower temp and take an extra 45 seconds per shoe and the fit is way better. Anyone else figure out the hard way that slower heat makes a tougher shoe?
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the_anthony3h ago
That whole thing about grain structure makes sense but it reminds me of something totally different. @rubyshah mentioned the old-timers watching color, and that's exactly what my grandfather used to do with his woodworking chisels. He'd heat them to just the right shade before quenching and if you went past that dark cherry color you'd ruin the edge in seconds. I never connected that to horseshoes but now it seems obvious the same principle applies to any metal that needs to flex without snapping. Your extra 45 seconds is nothing compared to having to re-shoe a horse halfway through a week because the nail holes cracked out. I've been guilty of rushing through resets and paying for it later with popped shoes and grumpy owners.
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rubyshah3h ago
That grain structure thing nobody talks about is the real issue with overheating - you're literally changing the molecular alignment of the steel, making it brittle and prone to sudden failure under impact. A buddy of mine who does metallurgical work explained it to me once, said forging at a cherry red instead of bright orange keeps the carbon from burning off and preserves the metal's elasticity (which is why the old-timers always said to watch the color, not the clock). Your extra 45 seconds is probably saving you from shoes that crack at the nail holes after a week, which is way more common than people want to admit.
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