So, I felt like making a dagger!

A good while back I had started a project that I left to linger next to the forge for a few months, staring at me every time I would work out in the shop saying "I'm still here, you know". We had acquired an abnormally long jackhammer bit, so at one point I had flattened and drawn it out in the shape of what I would consider a "leafed" dagger blade. I thought it would be really cool to make a fully functional, semi decorative dagger that could hold a pretty keen edge. The other week, I dug this blade in the making back out again, only to lay it down for another few weeks. Finally, last night, I decided its time to knock this out and get it finished. Part of the reason I have yet to make a lot more progress on this knife is simply because of the roadblock I have seem to crash face first into. I can't decide where I'd like to take this dagger. Half of me would like to polish it up, make it really pretty, and put nice fixtures on it. The other part of me wants to leave it raw, have it look old, like it just came out of a medieval grave from under a London parking lot (see what I did there?).

Whether I know where I am going with this project or not, I started working on the blade, handle, and scabbard last night. Previously I had thinned the tang, forged and split the eye for the cross guard, and formed a slight bevel. However, last night I realized that entirely the blade is still too thick. In response to this problem, I fired up the forge last night to thin the blade a bit.

I had a few different routes I could take for this task. I could thin the blade and move the metal in the shape of my bevel by using a regular cross peen hammer, or I could use a rounding hammer and possibly move the metal with more speed and control. The only thing I don't like about the rounding hammer is when polishing, it can be quite a pain to get the texture from the blows to come out of the metal. I ended up using the rounder to thin the blade. I made quite a bit of progress, too. I then moved to the handle, in which I measured to my desired length, cut down, and then took to the drill press. Once the pilot hole was drilled, I hit it with a bit bigger drill bit, and from there was just work with a rather aggressive round file. Still have some more to do, as I don't quite have my fit I want yet. I would really like to re-do the cross guard out of bronze or brass, mainly because I want to work with materials that I haven't worked with before, but I'd have to order most of those materials in (except for the brass, I could get that here in Evansville). I still have much to finish on the the blade, though. More filing, more shaping. Many hours left, but that's the price you pay for doing all by hand... I'm okay with that, though. 

But really, let's cut to the chase. What I'm most excited about is the scabbard. I saw a technique online that I really liked, and I hope I can produce something that is 10% as effective as this guy did. I started with two cuts of black walnut. I've traced the blade, and now I'm working with relatively dull wood chisels and relief carving tools to carve out the shape of the blade. Then, glue and press, and finally move on to shaping the exterior of the sheath. I'm very, very excited about this. I just need some sharper tools! 

Sharing the Trade

Recently, there has been a lot of buzz within the blacksmithing community concerning drawing the line between "traditional blacksmithing" and metalworking/fabrication. One could argue this topic until they're blue in the face, but let's face it... it all comes down to perspective.

The allure to a more traditional style of blacksmithing for myself is the mentality that I have had a majority of my life: doing things that people have done in the past and thinking "I wonder if this is how [insert person of interest here] did it so many years ago?"

I enjoy doing things the old way, especially blacksmithing. That is not to say that I never use a power tool, I do because there are many procedures and techniques in the blacksmithing world that I don't yet have the skill for. I definitely practice towards those skills, though. I like using old things. I like using things that were passed down to me, and use them just as my dad, step dad, or grandfather used them. It gives me a sense of pride, accomplishment, and comfort to know that the hammer I'm swinging to make something was the same hammer that my great grandfather used at his forge on the Frisse farm. I get these senses, or feelings, when hammering out a knife (in a coal forge), filiing, polishing, and sharpening the blade by hand, and cutting the handle out all by hand. The railroad spike ax I previously posted about, for example. Other than using a gas forge, that baby was crafted entirely by hand. There was no power tools involved. Hammer, tongs, anvil, hardy, file, stones, wood, and a draw knife. For me, its the coolest sensation when I'm hammering and I think "I wonder if a Scandinavian smith was making a bearded small ax this same way so many years ago?" Granted, he probably wasn't using a railroad spike as stock.

I believe that many of these traditional values are what help facilitate the growth of this... this... whatever you wish to call it, trade, art, skill, lifestyle, etc. I've had many inquiries from friends asking me about how I do things, and many of them say the same thing. "I've always wanted to smith, but I don't have the space, time, or the utilities". This is a common problem, and one can get their start in this trade without having access to all of the old style equipment. One can obtain that old world, old style feel of blacksmithing with some simple things that can be found relatively easy if one looks in the right places.

Let us look at it from this stand point - someone is interested in getting started in smithing, but doesn't want to dump a bunch of money into procuring everything in case they don't enjoy it as they thought they might. Harbor Freight is pretty hard to beat when looking at starting from that angle. They have most of the things needed to start out on a budget. You can get two sizes of hammers and a 55lb caste iron anvil for under $60. Forges... those are a little more complicated to come across, which is why many make their own. Seriously, people, you can make a forge from an old grill, or even push mower body. Check out my friend Terran Marks great article on making your own forge found here. His blog can give you insights to do-it-yourself blacksmithing better than most you can find on the internet.

It is easier than most think to share this trade and share the knowledge that accompanies it. A 200lb anvil from 1862, a Buffalo coal forge, and a rack full of hammers aren't needed to get started in this community. Lastly, one can still obtain that old world feel of "traditional blacksmithing" in the back yard with a Harbor Freight arsenal and a forge made from a lawnmower that fried when you hit that concrete garden gnome of your neighbors two summers ago.

Railroad Spike Axe - Round 1

A Saturday spent forging is a good day. Many days throughout the week, I look forward to being able to wake up, enjoy a hot cup of coffee, stroll out to the shop, and fire up our gas forge. Most mornings, dragging myself out of bed takes no less than a tow truck, but on Saturday mornings, I'll spring right out of bed.

This weekend, I had my mind set on a project I had found on anvilfire.com. As one can tell from most of my recent posts, I've contracted a mild to moderate form of ax-forging fever. I can assure you, it is one of the best illnesses one can contract. Previously I had tried to make a few knives out of spikes that did not work out. I had heard of people making hatchets and tomahawks out of railroad spikes from my good friend Heath, but that was the extent of the matter.

I stumbled across a step by step guide to forging an ax out of a railroad spike, written by Bill Epps. It can be found here. I had meant to take pictures of this process step by step... but my phone was dead and so I will post a step by step process supplemented by photos later on.

I was really excited to do this project, because it was going to require Wayne and I to use tools that I had never used before. I had split metal, but never split an eye on something before, nor had I really used a drawing block on an anvil. I usually used the horn or some other fashion of drawing. So, we started the process by, like Mr. Epps states in his walkthrough, upsetting the tip of the spike. Upsetting is a nifty technique, being able to thicken the metal where you need to, especially if you know how to control your heat. I should note here: before you start this, forage around and find some good tongs to hold onto spikes with. None of ours really fit well nor were we able to make some this weekend. Luckily, we had some that worked, but one person had to hold the tongs and spike while the other hammered.

Once you have the spike upset to a little shy of 1'x1' inch square, it's time to move on to the punching and drawing of the eye for the handle. We used this set of punches: Big Blu - we punched most of the way through on one side, then moved to the other side, finding our hole by the "black dot" that forms when punching through something. High heat seems to be key, here. You're just going to wear yourself out if you do not have a high heat on your spike (or you'll wear your punch out and dull your tip). Once we were able to get that through on both sides, we then moved on to widening the hole. As mentioned by Mr. Epps, the key is to open the eye ALMOST to the perfect size, then shape the blade portion, and once your blade shape is done, then finish the eye. Your eye will distort (as we found out, quite considerably) as you shape the blade.

Now, on to the blade portion of the project. The guide states that thin is not a bad thing. If a tomahawk blade is being forged, this is true. A thicker blade won't still in much. My last ax I forged, intended to be a little kindling/forging ax (as can been seen through previous posts) is pretty well utterly useless, as it is too thick to do anything with, despite the decent edge I put on it. I started with a fullering hardy, the one shaped like a Pringles can cut in half longways. I widened it out a bit on both sides, and then moved to the crosspeen side of my hammer to fan it out and thin it more. Now, here's where the variation of our project turns away from Mr. Epps. Once I had the blade fanned out a bit, I hammered the top of the blade down, to where the ax started to take on a bearded look. I then moved on to a rounding hammer because I wanted to really thin the blade and have the rounded hammer blow texture to the blade. I thinned the ax blade quite considerably, I'd say down to a little less than 1/4'', and that really seemed to be needed in order to get the length and shape needed for the head. I think it's really important to mention the working of the metal with the rounding hammer, here. With the 36oz Diamond Rounding hammer, I was focusing on drawing the blade in the shape I needed. I was drawing the blade toward me with glancing blows. I wasn't killing it, I was taking my time and care in my hammer blows.

After the blade was shaped, I finished shaping the eye with a handle mounted mandrel, and then let it cool. I left this rough, I did not want to polish the whole thing because I like a rough look on my work. This thing was hand made, I want it to represent being hand made (besides, it's an ax. It will be slammed into tree stumps... and zombies if that ever comes to pass). Mildly sharpen it by file and thin the edge a bit more, and you're ready to harden, temper, and hone. I heated the cutting edge up to cherry red and then quenched into used motor oil. I then cleaned it up with some emery cloth so the edge was relatively clean of the oil residue and slag. That's important, the clean up, because you have to see your color for tempering.  I held the edge on the outside of the forge, where some of the fire, or "dragons breath" was coming out of the ports, and watched the colors dance across the ax edge. I watched it turn yellow, gold, blue, purple, and then between a purple and peacock blue, yanked it away and quench back in oil. Many will quench in water for the second quench... but I'm scared to for fear of cracking. So I'll hit it in oil again. Clean it up, sharpen it, whittle or buy your handle, mount it, and wedge it and you're ready to go. I carved the handle on this the same as I did Kindling (see previous posts) out of a 1.5in sq board of red oak with a draw knife. If you get the hardening and tempering right (which I think I did. Time will tell) along with thinning your blade enough, this baby will take an edge quick and hold it.

Here's some pictures. Happy hammering!

New Rounding Hammers - Diamond Rounding Hammers - 24oz & 36oz

So, after a total of 37 years, it was time to retire our old Diamond Rounding hammers. Wayne had bought them in the late 70's while he was attending Midwest Horseshoeing School, and they've lasted this long! That brings me to a couple of points that I think need to be examined. First, that shows what kind of quality products that Diamond makes. Ours didn't have a single chip, crack, or blemish in them. The rounded side of the hammer just wasn't quite as round as it used to be, and the handles were wearing out. Second, these hammers (evidently they were back in the 70's and still are now) are at a great price point. We bought these for Wayne for Christmas from Stockhoff's and they were only $37.99 each before shipping. However, it's all about preference. These rounders are great, but in my opinion,when it comes to cross peen, Big Blu Hammer is the only way to go. They're a bit more pricey, but they're also made in the USA and they back their product with a lifetime guarantee.
These hammers just feel great. They don't roll on you and they have a nice long handle that is gauged for just about anybody. I got a little creative tonight, instead of working on blades and axes non-stop, I figured I'd mix it up a bit. We've got more 3/8in square stock laying around the shop than we know what to do with. First, I rolled the end to a point, moved the metal so there was an inch overhang on the end of the anvil, and used the rounding side of the 36oz to draw out the metal thin and round. You've got to keep rolling the metal as you hammer! The result in this is a tear drop shape on the end, with a thin stem. This is a great way to make key chains and the such. Usually, I'd hammer out the tear drop shape using the round end of the hammer and glancing blows, but instead, I repeated the process, which gave me two tear drop shapes that were connected by a thin "stem". Then, just hammer the tear drops flat, take a cutting chisel and add some veins on the top one, and on the bottom, use the cutting chisel to split and make some leaves (this didn't work as well for me, our cutting chisels have all had their better days). Rub some beeswax on it to keep it from rusting, and you're done! Wallah!

First Time Tooling Leather

All of these knives I'm working on wouldn't be complete without something to carry them in. A few months ago, my grandfather gave me a set of leather working tools. They were in this nifty little rolled up fabric full of pouches and chrome tools. I've been chomping at the bit to use them, and I finally had my opportunity the other night. I acquired a large knife sheathe leather kit from Tandy Leather and put these tools to the test. Overall, I'm pretty pleased for my first time using these tools. Now, I just have to find some good oil or similar substance to put on this sheath to darken it up. 

Axe - Completed. Knife No.2 - Almost!

The forge was hot, and the motor oil was there thick here at Hall Ironworks Friday night. Along with my friends Heath and Colin, we had one mission that night. We were going to bravely attempt to harden and temper some blades for the first time. We had three specimens that were to be subject of our trial and error. I had my second knife blade along with my hatchet/axe ready, while Heath had his knife ready. A little background about the knife my good friend was making, if I may.

One of the biggest allures of modern blacksmithing today is the idea of reusing old things to make something new. Just pick up an issue of The Anvil's Ring or The Hammer's Blow published quarterly by the American Blacksmiths Association of North America and you'll find guides, articles, and photos on how people have turned something old, rusted, decayed, and decrepit into a new thing of beauty. My step-father, Wayne, got his start in the ornamental blacksmithing/fabrication world by doing the same thing. He started out by making my mother a 6ft tall sunflower made from an old plow disc off of a tractor. He then used a plasma cutter to cut a few petals into the steel, heated the petals up, hammered them out, and welded it to a 3/8 in round stock rod and stuck it in a coffee can full of concrete. Oh, there were stems and leaves coming off of it, too. It was really a simplistic thing of beauty. Many of my mother's friends saw them and wanted one. Salvage, re-use, re-purpose. It's really big right now, and that's great because it helps the art flourish. You'll find that many smiths do enjoy conversing with each other and sharing little tips and tricks they've found. 

This knife that Heath is making, it's very much the same thing. It's a beast of a knife, longer than 3 and a 1/2 inches for sure, but that's not the most striking feature of it. The most striking feature of the blade is that it is cut out and hammered from an old farrier's rasp. By old, I mean probably pre-1950's at the latest. Those old, thick rasps make great knives and tools because they have a high carbon rating. The higher the carbon rating, the harder the steel, the better edge it holds as a knife or the less likely it is to break being used as a tool (that's a REALLY watered down explanation, mind you). Heath's knife is beautiful, especially for someone's actual first knife. He and I have tinkered around, making a few knives out of horseshoes, rail-road spikes, and so on. However, this is his first knife that will actually be tempered and hardened accompanied by a nice wooden handle. It's fairly common for people to make knives out of old rasps, utilizing the beauitful texture left behind once the rasps have been hammered down and flattened. I only have one picture of his knife, and it's after we tempered it. You'll be able to see some of the really cool texture below in the attached photos. 

My second knife that I have previously posted pictures of is now nearing completion. I'm fiddling with the brass pegs currently, trying to get a nice snug fit (but not so snug that they crack my handle). My original intention with this knife was to have a nice polish on it, but not a mirror finish. I wanted it to have a rustic, rough look. Many knife makers have a theme, and quite frankly that's the theme I like. I like things that are old, look old, and feel old in your hands. Our first heat for hardening was truly breath taking. Granted, Heath and I were probably nerding out (don't you love that term?) so bad that it would have been truly embarassing if anyone besides Colin were around. My knife had been polished with a 120 grit emery cloth quite extensively. When we opened up the gas forge, fired it up, and set my knife on the edge to regulate the heat, we were awed. Because of the finish of my knife, we could see the colors rolling across the blade and handle quite extensively. First a yellowish orange sheen literally rolled its way across the knife, then a light blue, dark blue, and finally a purple-ish blue before turning to red hot for our quench. After that step, we tempered them all, and watched the colors dance across the metal again. When the blades reached that pretty purple-blue, we quenched them in oil again. After this process, my knife held these colors really well, and the handle turned jet black. I really liked these colors, especially the dark colors against my greenish/gold poplar handle. So, I've decided to leave it that way. Can't wait to get it sharpened. That's my dad's gig. My dad, Fred, can put an edge on pretty well anything. He sharpened my hatchet by hand and put an edge on something that was probably considered pretty difficult to sharpen due to its thickness. 

My hatchet is a unique little thing. It's folded and forge welded out of 1 1/2in x 1/4in flatbar (It may have been 3/8) with a tool steel insert for the edge. It's not meant to be a big, bad, tree felling forest conqueror. It's a nifty little axe made for making small kindling and maybe a bit of rough carving. It's a prototype, really. The handle is hand carved and drawn out of an 1 1/2in x 1 1/2in x 36 in red oak board. I cut it down to about 12 inches (I eyeballed it, really) and then took a draw knife to it and shaped it. I like draw knives, gives you a nice control over how much you're taking off and where. I think rubbed about 4 coats of mineral oil on it to bring out some of the color. The handle and the head have a rough look, and yet again, that's what I wanted. Hopefully these pictures don't bug out and disappear like the ones on my last post did. 

Oh, and here's a picture of Colin's first attempt at doing Scrimshaw. FIRST ATTEMPT. Pretty awesome, right? It's on a synthetic wales tooth that comes with most beginner's scrimshaw kits. 

Cheers, 

Benton 

Knife No. 2

My next knife is almost finished. It has a far different look than the first, as it is a little fancier. I added some file work on the top and bottom of the tang that will be visible between the pieces of the handle. I'll be tempering the blade tomorrow, along with my little craft axe. The handle is pretty cool, it started out as a green poplar and after about 6 coats of tung oil, it has a pretty greenish/gold color. I'm excited to piece this one together. This is my favorite yet!