nizing
heat the result will be as shown at _B_. This gives a core that is
coarse-grained and brittle and an outer case that is fine-grained
and hard, but is likely to flake off, owing to the great difference
in structure between it and the core. Reheating this work beyond
the critical temperature of the core refines this core, closes
the grain and makes it tough, but leaves the case very brittle;
in fact, more so than it was before.

REFINING THE GRAIN

This is remedied by reheating the piece to a temperature slightly
above the critical temperature of the case, this temperature
corresponding ordinarily to that of steel having a carbon content
of 85 points, When this is again quenched, the temperature, which
has not been high enough to disturb the refined core, will have
closed the grain of the case and toughened it. So, instead of but
one heat and one quenching for this class of work, we have three
of each, although it is quite possible and often profitable to
omit the quenching after carburizing and allow the piece or pieces
and the case-carburizing box to cool together, as in annealing.
Sometimes another heat treatment is added to the foregoing, for
the purpose of letting down the hardness of the case and giving
it additional toughness by heating to a temperature between 300 deg.
and 500 deg.. Usually this is done in an oil bath. After this the piece
is allowed to cool.

It is possible to harden the surface of tool steel extremely hard
and yet leave its inner core soft and tough for strength, by a
process similar to case-hardening and known as "pack-hardening."
It consists in using tool steel of carbon contents ranging from
60 to 80 points, packing this in a box with charred leather mixed
with wood charcoal and heating at a low-red heat for 2 or 3 hr.,
thus raising the carbon content of the exterior of the piece. The
article when quenched in an oil bath will have an extremely hard
exterior and tough core. It is a good scheme for tools that must
be hard and yet strong enough to stand abuse. Raw bone is never
used as a packing for this class of work, as it makes the cutting
edges brittle.

CASE-HARDENING TREATMENTS FOR VARIOUS STEELS

Plain water, salt water and linseed oil are the three most common
quenching materials for case-hardening. Water is used for ordinary
work, salt water for work which must be extremely hard on the surface,
and oil for work in which toughness is the main consideration. The
higher the