Forging tools...

Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
11
Hey guys. Long time follower, first time poster. I have done a few grind-only\kit knives (pics), and am looking to make the leap up to forging. I have read the FAQ and stickies, but they seems to detail grind-only knives more so than forging (unless I missed something?). Anyway, I am looking to put together a list of basic forging tools for an order at Kayne and Sons. Any input is appreciated, especially in the tongs area.

What I have:
125lb William Foster anvil
Eye protection (full face shield)
DIY forge in progress
Borax

What I think I need:
German Hammer (Cross-Peen, 1kg)
Cutoff hardy
Tongs (Suggestions?)
Tomahawk drift (or some sort of drift)
Anything else?

Thanks,
Chob
 
I don't know much about heat and beat, but here's a suggestion.

Your profile gives NO info as to where you are.

If you can find a local blacksmith association, the good ones have a library of hundreds of books, dvd's and how to's
then try and find some in person instruction.

I forge Iron is a good site full of forging info.

and there are others

I have watched Ed Caffrey's Basic Bladesmith video and it helped me.
there are many many more
 
I'm in Columbus, Ohio. There are some cool places around here like the Columbus idea foundry that offer blacksmithing classes. I was still hoping to get a jump on forging since I missed their last set of classes.
 
For what it's worth, I find that my most used hammer is a 1.5kg. I do occasionally use a 1kg (and a 2kg), but 95% of the time I find that the 1.5kg is the right amount of moving metal, without having to swing as hard as I do with a 1kg. I am not a particularly big or strong guy either.
 
I'd also recommend trying to meet up in someone's shop and try a few hammers as I've found that it takes using several to know what feels "right" to you. If you just started with one hammer you'd never know the difference.

As far as tongs, for general bladework some of Glen's tongs are nice. http://gstongs.com/
Maybe a pair of wolf jaw tongs.
I'd seriously suggest lessons too. I am still learning, but lessons I've taken have made a huge difference.
I'd suggest a height gauge and granite plate too. It males finding the center line on a forged blade easier.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have to do more research on the granite block and height gauge. I've seen it featured in a shop walk-thru on youtube, but not how to use it.
 
A set of wolf jaw tongs are a must have, beyond that, its a matter of preference, how you forge and what kind of stock you forge from.

A flatter is also a must in my book. Hammer is a preference thing, but there are some arguenents to be made for which styles are most efficient. You'll probably be best to find a style of cross peen that you like, but will eventually evolve to something else if you get serious about moving metal efficiently.

A tomahawk drift is a tool that replicates a shape that should occur naturally from the way tomahawks were/are traditionally forged. Smiths didn't historically drift hawk eyes with a teardrop shaped drift, forging the cutting edge distorted the punched/drifted hole to that shape. Whether or not that matters to you is a personal question, but I would encourage you if you're interested in cultivating proper technique, to learn how to correctly punch and drift.

Interacting with accomplished blacksmiths is one of the best ways to learn how to forge correctly, and you can learn basic thought proccesses that'll keep you from having to unlearn a lot of bad habits later from just "winging it". Beat enough bar stock and you'll eventually learn how to forge knives, but it will encourage a linear attitude toward forging methodologies that will hold you back from ever really knowing how to masterfully manipulate hot steel.

I know this, because I've experienced it. Having spent time with some "serious" smiths, I realize how much better off I would be, if someone had shown me the right way to do things in the first place.

That may not matter at all to you though, many knifemakers I think prefer to figure out their own way to do things, and are less concerned with how they get there, than the end result. That's a perfectly valid approach, and produces some of the best work out there. Personally, the process is more interesting to me than the end result.

Brian Brazael told me that he loves forging because it's a thinking man's game. I never thought about it that way before, but watching him work is like watching a Chessmaster play. Most of us are just out there beating steel into submission, but each blow from his hammer is part of a multi step plan that sets up the transformation of the base stock to its final form, in an evolution that's far from linear or obvious. That is, until you think about it, and learn the language of moving metal.
 
You are right to get a cutoff hardy, that's essential. For hardy tooling, I'd add a spring or guillotine type fuller. It's very useful for knocking in that double shoulder at the tang/ricasso junction on hidden tang blades. I use one all the time for integrals, too.

Flat jaw tongs from 1/8" open to 3/8" open will be useful, and I like to have a couple of round/square bolt tongs from 1/4" to 1/2" end.

You may find an anvil hold-down tool to be useful from time to time. Some are a bent bar that goes in the pritchel hole, some are a strap mounted to a spring under the heel mounted on the anvil block.

A work stand at anvil height, next to the anvil can also be handy for long work- more non-blade stuff, like making tongs and hardware.

I suggest that you go to Anvilfire.com and to Iforgeiron.com and thoroughly look through all of the demos and tutorials there. Anvilfire has a lot about basic tooling.

You'll need tools such as punches and chisels that you can make from coil spring over time.

I use a stump near my anvil and a wooden mallet for tweaking the profile of blades at forging temps- it keeps the spine or edge from getting hammer marked, and really helps if you have to adjust a blade with already hammered bevels. The stump has a concavity in the center, cut in with a chainsaw bar nose. You could probably use another method to hollow a stump top if you don't have a chainsaw. The wood burns and sears a bit from the blade, but not bad.

Keep a lookout for a post vise. They are pretty common on ebay.

I see you are protecting your eyes, but if your anvil has much ring at all, get some hearing protection. I like the ear-muff style ones, the little foam plugs are wasteful and grimy.
 
Back
Top