Craft · 6 pages · 12 min

Why tempering follows a quench

Tempering reheats quenched steel so it loses a little hardness and gains toughness.

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From the opening

Tempering is a second heat, lower than the hardening heat, applied after the quench has made martensite. It lets the brittle structure relax, drops the hardness somewhat, and gives the steel enough toughness to be used without snapping. The opening covers martensite is hard and brittle, a lower heat trades hardness, and straw and blue mark temperature.

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Inside

Martensite is hard and brittle
A lower heat trades hardness
Straw and blue mark temperature
Soft steel has nothing to temper
Where the idea stops applying
A distinction worth keeping

Sources

Tempering of quenched martensite
Temper colors on polished steel

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Why tempering follows a quench

From the opening

Inside

Sources

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