On Tue, 21 May 1996 Ryan75@aol.com wrote: > I've also heard of a cryogenic procedure performed on all sorts of items > that increases toughness and wear resistance; I wonder if this would work on > aluminium cylinder heads... The cyrogenic treatment of tool steels is well documented to increase toughness and wearability. It's been used since the '30's, at least. The effects of the process depends on the material being cold quenched. For aluminum, the main effect is stress relief. Toughness and wear resistance isn't affected. The best results are obtained from high carbon tool steels, where you can get toughness without brittleness and the increase of 2-5 times in wear resistance. You can probably do it yourself, if you like to play. You take a styrofoam cooler outside, put your drill bits, and Craftsman tools in the bottom, go to your local oxygen supply house and get some liquid nitrogen (you have to rent the flask), pour it into the cooler, put the cover on, and walk away. After the nitrogen boils off, you should have some better, longer lasting tools.
******************************************************************************* Dirk Wright wright@uspto.gov "I speak for myself and not my employer" 1974 Porsche 914 2.0 "A real hifi glows in the dark and has horns" *******************************************************************************
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