Green horn at your mercy

M

micko

Joined
Oct 24, 2005
Messages
5
Hello to All,
I attended my first open forge night last Thursday and I've been hammered by the bug! My two sons got wind of what I was up to and they're interested also in attending the next forge night in Dec. At one night a month, it's going to take me a year to finish this knife I've started. But in the mean time,
I found this forum and see that it will be a great help in the future.
Well the items in mind for making, are knives and more knives, and some do-dads for mama to hang her bird feeders from in the yard this winter.
I believe I've got a line on an anvil, and for a forge, I'm thinking of the Forgemaster 2 burner. What do you think?
My question for today is, what type of hammers (design and size) do you suggest one obtain for knife making and general pounding?
Tongs?
Then there's the grinder issue. And I thought photography was an expensive hobby! Now I'm a firm believer that I should only buy a good tool once. Don't want to keep traveling that learning curve and having to upgrade tools every couple of years just because I've learned to do something new. Besides, when I'm dead and gone my sons can either sell the tools, or be darn glad the old man had a little foresight and sprung for the best!
That Bader B-3 really catches my eye. Just ain't figured out why a guy would need so many different size wheels!
Geez, I sound like a green horn holding a big bag of money with an itch to spend it! Well, this equipment thing will all come together over time, but I'd like some good advice now so that I can do some proper planning ahead.
I appreciate any advice you can give me on the proper tools and set-up needed in establishing the mimimum needed tools for a knife and do-dad workshop! Thank you,
Rick
 
Welcome.

You might be better served to also be in the Blade Forums; Knifemakers Forum.
 
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The Bader III is a good grinder.....I've got one, but there are several other good ones too. Get the flat platen, an 8" wheel, and a small 1" wheel, and you'll be covered until you can (and you will) get them all.

A great place to shop for supplies is at a place run by Uncle Al, the Knifemaker's Pal:
http://www.riversidemachine.net/productCat0.ivnu

One of the good things about knifemaking is: you can always think of "just one more" piece of gear you HAVE to have.
Good luck.
By the bye, where do you live?
 
OH M Y G O D :eek: ! You are asking all the right questions, and no doubt the bug has bit! The manufactured gas forges are fine, but expensive. You can build a good propane forge for a lot less. Depending on your shop site, a coal or charcoal forge may be a viable option. (certainly nothing wrong (and many things right) with starting out with a coal forge.) You don't have to spend a lot on tools, Keep it simple till you get the basics. But any grinder is better than nothing, and sometimes quite good. Lots of folks have used ho'made grinders to take most of the "elbow grease" out of knofenaking. (which is especially good for us with no elbows left. )
 
Buy Wayne Goddard’s books, epically The $50 Dollar Knife Shop and look at Ron Reil's page about forge design. If I can build a forge anyone can, I am finding that I enjoy making tools and equipment almost as much as knives. Don Fogg’s page also has a lot of low dollar tips and tricks.

Todd
 
i'm not knocking down the bader but i find the KMG from beaumontmetalworks.com to be one hell of a machine and rob frink does a kick a$$ business. its onehell of a good product for the money. and you have the option to buy a motor seperate, like a lot of us have done. check out Daniel Koster's info on getting a KMG running on a shoestring budget on kosterknives.com
as far as the forge i would say if you have access to a drill press, welder, and some oxy/acetylene torches, build you own. they're very simple check out indiangeorgesknives.com he's got a nice forge set up and its very in expensive, and very efficient. you can run 4 PSI of propane and get welding temps easy. and for the rest of it check out jeff higgins top ten machinery picks thread. he's got some good ideas on nice machines. some that a guy who forges really won't need though. basically ou need a cheap drill press a grinder and a forge (hammer, anvil and tongs of course)
good luck to you. try to find a local smith that'll let you stay close and learn from him
 
Rick, where you at?

Finding a local guy you can talk to, and hang out with who's like minded and has been in the game a while will shorten the curve considerably.
 
Rick,
For making "the do-dads for mama", due to the size/shape of the work, a coal forge might be a better idea. I use a home built propane forge for all of my knifemaking and heat treating, but I fire up my old coal forge for ornamental ironwork and general blacksmithing. I started with a 2 lb. cross pein hammer, and have just added on to the collection when I saw a need for a different size/shape(I kind of got a bug for collecting hammers from this, so be careful. I have at least twenty that I've never even hit anything with.:rolleyes: ). Right now I use a 16 oz. ball pein, the 2 lb cross pein, and a 4.4 lb. cross pein the most.

Hope that helps some.

Todd
 
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