Forged Blades. Why so little interest?

UffDa

UffDa

Gold Member
Joined
Sep 11, 1999
Messages
42,596
I have noticed that there doesn't seem to be much discussion on forged blades or bladesmiths. (Except for a few comments about Randalls.) I wonder why. It has always seemed to me that the bladesmith has more control over his final product then your average knife maker.

I'm not totally convinced that forging imparts any special quality to the steel, but the bladesmith can heat treat his blade anyway he sees fit and some of they're techniques are pretty sophisticated. I have read about a few tests where two blades made of the same steel and given the same heat treat performed about the same. (One was forged and one was just ground.)

There is much discussion on the toughness of blades. If that's what you are looking for I think a forged blade may be the way to go.

I'm not going to harp on this subject. I'm just curious about what you all think.

Dennis
 


First of all I think most guys on this forum are less than 40 years old. Forged stuff is almost too "old timer" for those just getting into knives.

Second more than half the interest here goes to folders, and most folders people buy are factory stock grounds.

Which brings me to the third point. Factory knives have taken over in a big way. It used to be all factory knives were crap. No more. And they tend to be cheaper too. Not everyone can drop a few hundred dollars for a knife.

And finally, the fashionable steels today tend to be stainless, highly alloyed, air cooled steels. These don't forge very well. Bladesmiths tend to look down on steels that can't be oil or water quenched.

Personally I think there is something to forging. After all that whole preheat, anneal , normalize and smack procedure is a kind of heatreat. It's got to do somthing to the steel that a grinder cannot.




[This message has been edited by tallwingedgoat (edited 01-27-2000).]
 
tallwingedgoat - I'm 31 years old and gaining an interest in forged knives. I'm in the process of paying for a san-mai damascus bowie from Ed Caffrey; I'm planning on taking a forging class in July that's being taught by Bill Moran; and I'm almost finished reading Ed Fowlers book, Knife Talk. I find the whole process fascinating, but you're probably right - younger people in general don't seem to share that same interest.

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Kelly

SenatorsPlace.com
AKTI Member #A000289

Deo Vindice


 

Hey!!!!! I'm 28 and I started forging 6 years ago, so bite me
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<jk>

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KSwinamer
 
Dennis, there are quite a few forged blade fans here in the forums including myself. I have collected Dan Winkler, Jim Crowell, and Jerry Fisk knives. I have a number of forged fixed blades made by lesser known makers.

I love forged blades. I think there is something special about the process of hammering the metal to shape, controlling all of the complicated metallurgical processes involved in forging, quenching, and tempering, and making the blade mostly by hand. I like thinking about my knives as Art. And as tools.

Are they Better than other knives? It Depends. It depends on who you ask, what you mean by 'better', and what you are going to do with the knife, among other factors.

Read the shop talk forum to learn more about forging. The topic comes up in the Custom forum from time to time. Ed Caffrey wrote a couple of awesome reponses to questions about blade metallurgy I asked a few months ago ('blade mysticism' and 'forged blades are better than stock removal') in the custom forum. Search the threads up.

Sadly, I have to agree with a lot of the statements by several above. Tactical folders made by stock removal equipment from high tech steels dominate the high end knife market and dicusssion here in the forums. Especially in the general forum. But there Are quite a few forged blade fans here including several makers.

Paracelsus
 
If we are talking high carbon steels maybe
not including the CPM variety with the
experiments that I have done personally and
several others the forged blades out perform
stock removal even of the same steel. I'm still experimenting on forging different steels including the CPM variety.
The mind set I see is " I can't afford to spend $250 to 300 on a custom forged knife that will last me a life time." "but I can afford to spend $600 on several production knives that won't stand up or that I will be happy with" BEEN THERE DONE THAT!! I bought
a couple of custom stock removal knives also
in the process that just wouldn' do the job
that I wanted. If I had found one of the
good forged knives that are available today
I probably wouldn't be making knives today. The other thing is that some people just like to buy new toys every now and then. One knife just ain't enough.
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That's why I have customers that have 3 or 4 of my knives.
Only 2 or 3 of my customers are collectors.
wish I had a hundred.

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http://www.imt.net/~goshawk
Don't walk in tradition just because it feels good!!!!!
Romans 10:9,10
Hebrews 4:12-16
Psalm 91

 
Uffda, there is quite a bit of interest in the forged blade. I have even made a few liner locks with the 52100 and some of my twist damascus for blades. It does take longer to make and without a surface grinder, some times too long for what you can sell it for. It is still something that you can be proud of. The market for the forged blade is getting better. As more people find out the advantages of the different heat treats for different applications of use and become more knowldgeable about knives, they go for the forged ones.
I started out forging, went with stock removal for a while and went back to forging about 3 years ago. I really don't know for sure whether a forged knife will out cut a stock removal knife of the same material or not. What matters to me is that when I hammer out a piece of steel for a knife from a solid round bar that is 1 3/4" in diamenter, The story of the knife was born. Add my history, throw in a little local or national event at the time of forging, and make it a special shape for a very good friend. These are the ingrediants of a special knife that you can't buy at the store.
I guess you have heard about the first Bowie knife that was thrown across the road and when it was picked up, it was still ringing. (I really did hear that story).
I don't know if the age of the person buying the knife matters, it may be the stories they have heard and want one like it. Who really knows why we buy some of the things we do any way. That is what makes us all a little different. God Bless All of Us.

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Ray Kirk
http://www.tah-usa.net/raker
 
I certainly am a forged blade admirer. There are much fewer forged folders than fixed blades and I have a disproportionately high number of fixed blades for that reason.
 
i love a good forged blade. have quite a number of forged fixed blades made by local craftsmen [ and my friends ] Terry vandeventer, Bobby Howard, and Max Goodman. Nothing like those "heaters and beaters"
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Oh, And I'm less than 40!!
 
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