Tried quenching a railroad spike in used motor oil instead of water last Saturday

I figured it'd be a cheap experiment, but man the smoke was insane. The spike came out way harder than when I use water though. It also left this weird crust I had to grind off for 20 minutes. Is the extra hardness worth dealing with that mess, or stick with water? Curious what you guys do with salvage steel.

2 comments

2 Comments

jason_fisher45d ago

The smoke is no joke with motor oil, that stuff gets nasty quick haha. But you are right, it does give you a harder surface on the spike compared to plain water. A lot of guys I know swear by using a mix of water and a little bit of dish soap to get something in between, less smoke and still good results. That crust you mentioned is basically burnt carbon and impurities from the oil, grinding it off is a pain but it protects the steel underneath while it cools. Water is just way too fast for some of this salvage steel, it can crack or warp if you are not careful.

dixon.daniel5d agoRising Star

Buddy of mine tried the water and dish soap mix on an old railroad spike once... worked pretty good until he got distracted and let it cool too slow, ended up with a weird soft spot that wouldn't hold an edge. He went back to straight oil after that, just dealt with the smoke and the crust. Sometimes the old ways are the best even if they're a pain in the ass.