CUTLERY. Though cutlery, in the gene ral sense, comprises all those articles denominated edge-tools, it is more parti cularly confined to the manufacture of knives, forks, scissars, penknives, razors, and swords. Damascus was anciently famed for its razors, sabres, and swords. The latter are said to possess all the ad vantages of flexibility, elasticity, and hardness. These united distinctions are said to have been effected by blending alternate portions of iron and steel in such a manner, that the softness and te nacity of the former could prevent the breaking of the latter.
The Germans, it appears, were ac quainted with the art of making various cutlery, previous to such manufacture being known in this country. The steel employed for cutlery in Germany is im mediately made from the crude iron into bars, without requiring afterwards to be converted. It is generally of great tena city, but does not take a good polish, and in consequence has been long supersed ed by the artificial steel of this country, made from the bar-iron of Sweden and Russia.
All those articles of cutlery which do not require a fine polish, and are of low price, are made from blistered steel. Those articles which require the edge to possess great tenacity, at the same time that superior hardness is not required, are made from sheer-steel. The finer kinds of cutlery are made from steel which has been in a state of fusion, and which is termed cast-steel, no other kinds being susceptible of a fine polish. See the article STEEL.
Table Knives are mostly made of sheer steel, the tang and shoulder, or bolster, being of iron, the blade part being at tached by giving them a welding heat. The knives after forging are hardened by heating them red hot and plunging them into water ; they are afterwards heated over the fire till they become blue ; they are then ground upon stones of large diameter, for the purpose of making their sides flat, since it is the disposition of small stones to make the sides concave. The blades are finished upon an instru ment called a glazor, which consists of a circular piece of wood covered with leather, and coated with glue and emery. The handles of table knives are made of ivory, glassed horn, bone, stag helm, and wood, into which the blades are cemented with resin and pulverized brick: and for ivory, instead of the latter, whitening.
Forks are made almost altogether by the aid of the stamp and appropriate dies. The prongs only are hardened and tempered, by a method similar to that employed for the knives, being required of about the same degree of hardness.
The shank and bosom of the fork are ground upon a thin stone, which is round upon the face ; it is of very rough and open texture, and is employed in the dry state. The prongs are ground upon a stone, which is broad and flat upon the face ; they are finished upon glazors coated with emery and glue ; the insides of the prongs are dressed by means of a thin leathern strap, coated with glue and emery; for this purpose the fork is plac ed in an horizontal position, and the strap drawn backward and forward. Silver forks are a distinct branch of manufac ture, being confined to the silversmiths: they are cast into moulds of fine sand, and finished in a manner similar to that of other silver goods.
Razors. Almost all razors are made of cast steel, the quality of which should be very good, the edge of a razor requiring the combined advantages of great hard ness and tenacity. After the razor blade is forged, it is hardened, by gradually heating it to bright red heat, and plung ing it into cold water. It is tempered, by heating it afterwards till a brightened part appears of a straw colour. Though this is generally performed by placing them upon the open fire, it would be more equally effected by sand, or what is still better, in hot oil, or fusible miT ture, consisting of eight parts of bismuth, five of lead, and three of tin ; a ther mometer being placed in the liquid at the time the razors are immersed, for the purpose of indicating the proper tempe rature, which is about 500 of Fahrenheit. Razors are ground crosswise upon stones, from four to seven inches in diameter, a small stone being necessary to make the sides concave. Razors, having the con cave form, have been thought to shave with more facility ; but if it be remarked that the canal formed by honing the ra zorsis a portion ola wedge, the length of which is equal to the breadth of the razor, and of a thickness equal to that of the back, it will be readily seen that the concave form cannot possess any other adVantage, than that of saving time in sharpening the razor, owing to the small surface exposed to the action of the hone or the strap. After the razor has been ground into its proper shape, it is finish ed by two processes, one called 'aping, or glazing, and the other polishing. The lap, or glazor, is formed of wood, faced with an alloy of lead and tin ; after its face is turned to the proper form and size, it is filled with notches, which are filled up with emery and tallow. This instrument gives to the razor a smooth and uniform surface, and consequently a fine edge. The last process is that of polishing; the polisher consists of a piece of circular wood Punning upon an axis, • like that of the stone or the glazor. Itis coated with leather, having from time to time its surface covered with crocus mar tis. The surface of the polisher, when in motion, moves at the rate of 75 feet in a second. This is slow, when compared with the velocity of the stone and the glazor ; the surface of the former mov ing at the rate of 576 feet in a second, and the latter with about twice that velo city. The handles of high priced razors are made of ivory and tortoise-shell, but in general they are of polished horn, which are preferred on account of their cheapness and durability. The horn is cut into pieces and placed between two corresponding dies, having a recess of the shape of the handle. The dies are pre viously heated to about 530° of Fahren heit, and placed with the horn in a pro. cess of such power, that allowing the man's strength to be 2001b. it will be equal to 430001b. By this process the horn admits of considerable extension ; if the horn is not previously black, the handles are dyed black by means of a bath of logwood and green vitriol. They afterwards require to be dressed, first with sand and water, and lastly upon a buff, which is a species of glazor, covered upon the face with buff leather, and smeared over with rotten•stone and oil.