larry harley
BANNED
- Joined
- Mar 19, 1999
- Messages
- 516
this yr its june 12,13 14
if u are interested in helping or participating let me know
harley
The weekend of June 20-22, 2008 saw the first of what is hoped will be many American Bladesmith Society sponsored hammer-ins created especially for young men and women under the age of 21. Held near Sevierville, Tennessee at Smoky Mountain Knife Works, on the stretch of land between the main building and the French Broad River, the event was deemed successful by any standard one might choose. This event provided the young attendees with the opportunity to try their hand at forging knives, with one-on-one instruction under an experienced bladesmith. First, of course, there was a talk about safety, and another about the history of steel, where it comes from, and how it is made. Other chalk talksover the course of the weekend included knife nomenclature and design, basic blade forging, Joe Keeslars unique approach to integral guard blades, heat treating using the edge quench method, mounting handle material and how to sand and finish a blade by hand. In addition to the knifemaking activities, participants were given a guided tour of the National Knife Museum, located within Smoky MountainKnife Works. But just as everyone preferred it, both students and instructors spent most of the weekend at the forges. Students were taught to first form a point at the end of a long bar of steel using the hammer. A distal taper was then hammered out and the point was profiled. The choil was pulled down and the cutting edge then formed. At this point, the blade was cut off of the bar and the full tang tapered handle drawn out. When the hammer work was over with, students were taught the importance of controlling grain size by normalizing the blade three times, and the blades were hardened using the edge quench method. Blades were tempered, rough-ground and made ready to accept a set of slab handles by the instructors. This process was repeated as often as each student was able. A total of 16 students completed the program, and each went away with at least one blade that was hardened and ready to finish. Some were really productive in total, the students made 50 blades and all but the very last ones forged were prepared so that they could be finished at home without any special equipment. Students completing the program were: Matt Barker, Walker Boyles, Benjamin Clark, Daniel Clark, Michaela Crenshaw, Billy Hubbard, Christopher Jones, Michael E. Lewis, Allyson Lisenba, Caroline Lisenba, Parker Meadows, Ariel Smith, Aaron Smith, Emmalynne Whitesides, Stelliemay Whitesides, and Tyler Wilson. On Sunday afternoon each was presented with a certificate of participation, an ABS membership pin, and a one year membership in the ABS. Smiles were the uniform of the day, and those smiles were equally shared by the parents and grandparents who spent the weekend watching the young bladesmiths gain confidence and knowledge right before their eyes. Deserving special recognition for their efforts are Kevin and Chase Pipes of Smoky Mountain Knife Works, who went above and beyond the call of duty to host, promote and make this event a reality; Pete Cohan of the National Knife Museum, and of course the volunteer bladesmithing instructors
if u are interested in helping or participating let me know
harley
The weekend of June 20-22, 2008 saw the first of what is hoped will be many American Bladesmith Society sponsored hammer-ins created especially for young men and women under the age of 21. Held near Sevierville, Tennessee at Smoky Mountain Knife Works, on the stretch of land between the main building and the French Broad River, the event was deemed successful by any standard one might choose. This event provided the young attendees with the opportunity to try their hand at forging knives, with one-on-one instruction under an experienced bladesmith. First, of course, there was a talk about safety, and another about the history of steel, where it comes from, and how it is made. Other chalk talksover the course of the weekend included knife nomenclature and design, basic blade forging, Joe Keeslars unique approach to integral guard blades, heat treating using the edge quench method, mounting handle material and how to sand and finish a blade by hand. In addition to the knifemaking activities, participants were given a guided tour of the National Knife Museum, located within Smoky MountainKnife Works. But just as everyone preferred it, both students and instructors spent most of the weekend at the forges. Students were taught to first form a point at the end of a long bar of steel using the hammer. A distal taper was then hammered out and the point was profiled. The choil was pulled down and the cutting edge then formed. At this point, the blade was cut off of the bar and the full tang tapered handle drawn out. When the hammer work was over with, students were taught the importance of controlling grain size by normalizing the blade three times, and the blades were hardened using the edge quench method. Blades were tempered, rough-ground and made ready to accept a set of slab handles by the instructors. This process was repeated as often as each student was able. A total of 16 students completed the program, and each went away with at least one blade that was hardened and ready to finish. Some were really productive in total, the students made 50 blades and all but the very last ones forged were prepared so that they could be finished at home without any special equipment. Students completing the program were: Matt Barker, Walker Boyles, Benjamin Clark, Daniel Clark, Michaela Crenshaw, Billy Hubbard, Christopher Jones, Michael E. Lewis, Allyson Lisenba, Caroline Lisenba, Parker Meadows, Ariel Smith, Aaron Smith, Emmalynne Whitesides, Stelliemay Whitesides, and Tyler Wilson. On Sunday afternoon each was presented with a certificate of participation, an ABS membership pin, and a one year membership in the ABS. Smiles were the uniform of the day, and those smiles were equally shared by the parents and grandparents who spent the weekend watching the young bladesmiths gain confidence and knowledge right before their eyes. Deserving special recognition for their efforts are Kevin and Chase Pipes of Smoky Mountain Knife Works, who went above and beyond the call of duty to host, promote and make this event a reality; Pete Cohan of the National Knife Museum, and of course the volunteer bladesmithing instructors