Found some wrought iron...maybe

[zampilot]

Can't tell, it doesnt have the striated,stringy grain. This was sawn and bent. The dark areas are the cut.

 

[Tumblernotch]

Harder to tell from the end if it's stringy. Looks like it broke before it bent very far. Put a piece against a grinder and do a spark test. If there are fewer, darker sparks that do not appear to split or "sparkle" you probably have a very low carbon content and it's a good chance it's wrought. If you have a milling machine or heavy grinder you can also work down the side of a bar to expose the grain and find any slag inclusions. If it's American made wrought iron you'll find some, I guarantee. If it's Swedish steel it might be harder to find. A round piece can be turned in the lathe and checked easily.

I used to think that I would rather work wrought iron, mostly because of its ease in forge welding. While it does weld easily in most cases, the low quality of most American iron ( along with its fibrous nature) makes it harder to forge for me anyways, into certain shapes because it tends to split, especially at the ends. I have to work it a lot hotter and slower. I good quality WI with fewer and smaller slag incusions can be a pleasure to work. Unfortunately I haven't seen much of it.

 

[rich pierce]

Good advice above. For pictures look here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spark_testing

 

[gmarc]

Do you know the metal's origin?

 

[LaBonte]

Good advice above. For pictures look here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spark_testing[/quote]
Spark testing is good to learn no matter what and is best done by having known steels to compare with.
On teh hand while it is generally considered that WI is under .3% in carbon it can fool you - I and others very familiar with WI (such as Rick Furrer, IMO "the man" when it comes to period steels) have had some tested out at at as much as .6% carbon which is considered high carbon.

When I get "crappy" WI such as most wagon wheel rims I generally refine it by heating and beating several times before making anything out of it - that's how double and triple WI was done.

While the outer skin of the OP's pic looks a bit like WI the break doesn't - normally WI will not snap, but just bend and striate.

 

[zampilot]

Thanks LaBonte.
It's a wheel rim, been heated and cooled.

 

[BillinOregon]

I just bought a nice big wheel rim myself, but the wife saw it and wants to decorate with it.

 

[Tumblernotch]

Just now noticed that I wrote Swedish steel in my earlier post. Should have read Swedish iron. I remember several years ago while coin shooting in my Grandma's yard I found an old iron tire all bent up with tree roots growing around it. Couldn't dig it out. It's still there. Wonder if my neighbor who bought the place would let me do it now? Probably would. I just doubt that th effort would be worth it, especially since I still have several pieces in the shop.