how do you shape a trade point without screwing up temper?

[recurve shooter]

i have alot of old sawmill bandsaw type blade at home. id like to try to make some trade points but i dont know how to cut and shape the stuff without getting it to hot and screwing up the temper, or would steel like that even be tempered to hold an edge? 

[Josh]

Go Slooooooooow.  Also, I like to keep a cup of water on hand to douse the trade point in to cool it off.  As long as you don't get it hot enough to glow i think you will be fine. 

[El Destructo]

Or you can do the same as when making a  knife blade....heat it red....let cool very slowly....then shape it.... file your bevel on it...then heat it red again...quench in peanut oil...or any oil for that matter...then  put it in the oven at 450 to 500 for a few hours...and then shut off the oven...and let the pieces cool  slowly to lock in the temper....

[mullet]

 I cut mine out with a hammer and chisel. Then file the edges to straighten and sharpen them.

[agd68]

Heat treat as El Destructo discribed or go old school and use a file. Dremel tool cut off discs work good too  but are fragile so go slow.

[uwe]

File? Hard to do! I did it with an angle grinder and very thin blade on it (about 1mm). So it doesn`t get too hot. If you think cool it with water while working on it. first I did it with these bigger sort of metal shears (sorry don`t know the word for it) leverage metal shears???
Problem doesn`t work so exact and depending on from which side you cut it rounds up, which is later to be flatened.
Hope this helps!
Uwe

[Granite Mtn]

Use angle grinder to cut out and rough in angle, temper, a map torch will work to temper no need to get fancy its only bone you have to shoot through.  I use old skill and table saw blades.  Make very dependable heads and super sharp!  Just a tip, I only rough in blade then mount then finnish the angle with a 1in x 36in belt sander this allows you to straighten the tip up if you mounted the broad head slightly off.  The sander removes metal with out changing the temper.

[Little John]

I have used circular saw blades from a saw mill, by the time I got them cut out with a hand held angle grinder they were too hard to sharpen with a file and had to be annealed with heat. I used to keep the stoick quenched while cutting but now dont bother. I think just try and see where you end up and then make corrections to your process if nescarry. A 4 1/2 inch side grinder with the thin cutting blades works good.   Kenneth

[crooketarrow]

   I also use saw mill blades.I use a grinder and go slow when it starts to get warm have a cup of water and keep in cool.
  Or I have tempered mine before by heating cherry red then dip in water with ice. What ever you use it will give you different Rockwell hardest.Water different oils etc.

[PeteC]

I know this does'nt answer your question recurve,but,I cut my points out on a chop saw,(mostly old bandsaw blades),bevel the edge,then heat cherry red and quench in motor oil,3 times.It seems like they hold an edge better. JMHO God Bless