Another introduction...

J

JTM

Joined
Jan 23, 2007
Messages
7
Hi my name is Jed and I've just recently begun poring over the posts here and a few other places. I live in Northern VA and am interested in meeting with any bladesmiths who are interested in showing a newbie a few tricks... like how to get started forging without having my own space.

I'm more interested in the forging aspect of bladesmithing due to the physical aspect of the creation process. I'm willing to accept a few burns and cuts for a quality product.

I've attended one of the Potomac Blacksmith Guild's meetings and was not terribly impressed, though I may not have given them enough of a chance. Do you think that is the right place to start, or is there some other advice you might bestow?

Thanks for making everyone feel so welcome here. I look forward to participating further as I find reasons to write. :-)

--
JTM
 
Welcome to the BF.
No info in your profile (it would be nice if you will fill it out), so it's hard to give specific suggestions, but here are some possibilities.

Give decker a PM and see about going to the Central MD guild .It is a couple of hours at most from you. They have superb facilities (four stainless steel coal forges and every smithing tool you can think of), excellent professional members, several knifemakers, and a lot of folks who will welcome you into their shops to learn. They have a hammer-in every year in May. It is a great experience.

The hammer-ins in Ohio, NC, and on up to New England hosted by the ABS and others are also superb learning experiences. The one coming up in Winston-Salem,NC this October is a good way to learn. Classes Fri, Sat, Sun. You can come untrained and leave with a blade you forged yourself and a whole lot of knowledge.
Stacy
 
bladsmth,

Thanks for the information. I filled a bit of my profile out; I'm a little unsure what to put in there, so I just put in what I think may be relevant to this forum.

From what you say regarding ABS hammer-ins, they are open to anyone who is interested, though "classes" implies there may be a fee. I see the fees listed for the Texarkana school -- are they similar for the hammer-ins? (http://www.americanbladesmith.com/absschoolschedule.htm) I'll definitely look at getting to one of those soon!

I don't see a listing for a hammer-in in North Carolina (http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ABS_Events.htm) so if you are able to provide further details about that I would very much appreciate it.

-Jed-
 
Jed, ABS Hammer-ins generally run $85. You get a whole lot of instruction and all for that. They are almost always Fri-Sat-Sun events. I just sent Tommy McNabb an email about the show this year. It may not have been rescheduled. There are many others available . I'll let you know. Stacy
 
Jed,

Welcome from another Virginian (land of the $3000 speeding ticket)! I'm located down by Dumfries and although just a newbie myself, wouldn't mind sharing some info that I've gathered. I just recently found info about the Potomac Guild and thought about trying to hook up with them. Would like to hear more on your experience. There's a big get together coming up in September in Ashokan, NY that I and my gf plan on attending. 26th annual get together and supposed to be a must see. Check this link http://www.cashenblades.com/Ashokan.html and drop me an email. Glad to have you here!
 
Hey Jed,

Stacy is right, our guild up here is mighty fine! :) We just had our monthly meeting today. I've not been down to the BGOP shop (at Kinder Park if I recall correctly), but I can say that Chris Holt (british chap) is a FANTASTIC 'smith and knows his stuff pretty well. I'm not certain how much of a knifemaker Chris is, but I do know that he's mentioned to me that he'd like to get more knifemakers in their guild. In any event, I'm certain that you can learn a LOT from him.

If you'd like to check out some more info on my guild, you can check it out at the guild website. You're more than welcome to come up and check out a meeting, see the facilities, etc. Drop me a PM or email if you have any questions or if you're coming up, etc.

Welcome!

-d
 
JTM, Welcome to ShopTalk. Im another one that feels the profile is important, thanks for editing it.

Stick around and ask a ton of questions.
 
Welcome, JTM!


NoVa is a great place to be! I missed you by a few years (left the MD/DC/VA area in '04)...lived in Dale City for a while.

There are quite a few good knifemakers around...just need to ask!

What kind of stuff are you interested in?
 
Daniel Koster said:
NoVa is a great place to be!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the welcome. That's what I'm finding as read more of the forum.

Daniel Koster said:
There are quite a few good knifemakers around...just need to ask!

What kind of stuff are you interested in?
Click to expand...

My goal in bladesmithing is to produce functional, personalized blades intended for display more than use. I prefer long-ish blades -- my personal favorite, for mainly stylistic reasons, is the kukri. I also have a French 1832 Foot Infantry short sword that has a few dings on the blade I'd like to clean up, fix the scabbard, and place on my wall. That's the fate I foresee for many blades I create.

The idea of forging a blade is very compelling to me. I've read a few of the grinding vs. forging arguments and have decided that, regardless of actual blade-quality (I'm not implying anything here), I prefer the idea of forging due to the physical energy that goes into the creation. I have seen some beautiful ground blades and would like to try that after having a go at the forging process.

-Jed-
 
Got a reply back from Tommy McNabb. No hammer-in this year in Winston-Salem. Guess I'll have to make other plans for the fall.
Stacy
 
JTM,
A big Blade Forums welcome to you.:thumbup:

Attending the knife shows is a good way to both look at forged knives and talk to smiths about what they do, to make them, and how they do it.

Take your time and enjoy the learning process.

Fred
 
bladsmth said:
Got a reply back from Tommy McNabb. No hammer-in this year in Winston-Salem. Guess I'll have to make other plans for the fall.
Stacy
Click to expand...

Stacy your welcome to the necka H/I this fall in Mass.
also I'll be heading for another Navy reuoinon in Va Beach in Oct, maybe I'll get to drop by this time to see you..


welcome aboard JTM
also take a look at the how too's here
http://www.knivesby.com/knifemaking.html
(make your own forge)
and the sticky about Shop talk
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=452465

and the many other places for info
it'll take a year to go through all the info to be had.... :)
 
The Kukri is one of the more complex knife styles to replicate. Many knifemakers attempt it (myself included!) but I have seen very few that can pull off a traditional kukri...most are "interpretations"....including the very nicely done kukri in your link.


Forging is an interesting art...there's no guarantee that the more time you spend on something, the better it gets. Only that the more knives you make, you will get better at it.
 
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