Hello. Just a noob but looking for help and advice.

Trout MaGee said:
most i find say vintage and they want an arm and a leg for em.
Click to expand...
Yeah, thanks to the antiquers and collectors, the price has skyrocketed in the past 20 years. I once went to a patient's house a number of years ago who had about 15 anvils lining her walkway and in her garden just sitting there rusting. It would have been unethical for me to ask to buy one, but during the course of treating her, it was clear that she wouldn't have gotten rid on one anyway.
 
For forging a single burner is mostly all you need but it's nice to have a double for things like longer blades and if you want to get into damascus
If you build a simple venturi cost isn' much to make two
Check out dcknives blog.easy how to builds on most tools you'd need
 
weo said:
Yeah, thanks to the antiquers and collectors, the price has skyrocketed in the past 20 years. I once went to a patient's house a number of years ago who had about 15 anvils lining her walkway and in her garden just sitting there rusting. It would have been unethical for me to ask to buy one, but during the course of treating her, it was clear that she wouldn't have gotten rid on one anyway.
Click to expand...

Bahhaha... Some people eh. Would rather have them rust than be used. Oh well. Im hoping to find something nearby. Was even thinking of seeing if the amish around here have any cheap ones to offer. Thanks
 
John mc c said:
For forging a single burner is mostly all you need but it's nice to have a double for things like longer blades and if you want to get into damascus
If you build a simple venturi cost isn' much to make two
Check out dcknives blog.easy how to builds on most tools you'd need
Click to expand...


Sweet. Thanks. Yeah i will probs stick with a single burner for now. Maybe upgrade later. Ill definitely check out the blog
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
I would recommend a gas forge. A tank of propane will last a good while. Coal isn't that easy to learn on.
I also recomment using steel that you KNOW what it is. Just because is is free doesn't mean it is good. Some "found" things can make good knives, but start with known steel and when you know more, you can experiment with stuff from the junk pile.
Click to expand...

Hello Stacy. I am about to purchase a gas forge and noticed in a different thread i believe u were talking about the Atlas Graham forge.... I found it online and was thinking of purchasing it. Unfortunately it says out of stock and no reply back about availability. Would the mini atlas be equivalent or should i maybe wait. Just curious as to your opinion on this. Thanks again.

https://www.majesticforge.com/2-Burner-Knifemaker-Deluxe.html

Was also looking at this double burner forge from Majestic... Good option or better off with mini atlas.? .. Wich is a bit cheaper
 
The Graham is a much better forge than the mini. If you are just wanting to start forging and will be doing smaller knives, it will work. You will eventually outgrow it, but you may do that regardless of what forge you buy. IF you like the Graham, I would buy a mini and order a Graham. When the Graham is ready (right now Charles is backed up until late 2019), you can probably sell the mini for 75% of what you paid.

The Majestic is a popular type of box forge. It has two big hot spots, but for general forging and damascus it will be fine. I don't know how good HT in it is. FIF certainly has made it popular, and they do HT in one. The Graham is a better forge that the Majestic, IMHO.

I use a three burner NC Whisper Lowbow most of the time, which is also a box forge. I have no problem with HT in it for simple carbon blades. It will do most any type forging.

When you outgrow whatever forge you buy, you will likely want to build your own and have exactly what you want. By then you will know a lot more about forges, too.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
The Graham is a much better forge than the mini. If you are just wanting to start forging and will be doing smaller knives, it will work. You will eventually outgrow it, but you may do that regardless of what forge you buy. IF you like the Graham, I would buy a mini and order a Graham. When the Graham is ready (right now Charles is backed up until late 2019), you can probably sell the mini for 75% of what you paid.

The Majestic is a popular type of box forge. It has two big hot spots, but for general forging and damascus it will be fine. I don't know how good HT in it is. FIF certainly has made it popular, and they do HT in one. The Graham is a better forge that the Majestic, IMHO.

I use a three burner NC Whisper Lowbow most of the time, which is also a box forge. I have no problem with HT in it for simple carbon blades. It will do most any type forging.

When you outgrow whatever forge you buy, you will likely want to build your own and have exactly what you want. By then you will know a lot more about forges, too.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the great info Stacy! Good call. I will most likely be getting the mini atlas. They have option for thermocouple combo i think i will go with. Until i am able to read the color of the metal better i think this will help me. Thanks again.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
The Graham is a much better forge than the mini. If you are just wanting to start forging and will be doing smaller knives, it will work. You will eventually outgrow it, but you may do that regardless of what forge you buy. IF you like the Graham, I would buy a mini and order a Graham. When the Graham is ready (right now Charles is backed up until late 2019), you can probably sell the mini for 75% of what you paid.

The Majestic is a popular type of box forge. It has two big hot spots, but for general forging and damascus it will be fine. I don't know how good HT in it is. FIF certainly has made it popular, and they do HT in one. The Graham is a better forge that the Majestic, IMHO.

I use a three burner NC Whisper Lowbow most of the time, which is also a box forge. I have no problem with HT in it for simple carbon blades. It will do most any type forging.

When you outgrow whatever forge you buy, you will likely want to build your own and have exactly what you want. By then you will know a lot more about forges, too.
Click to expand...

So I emailed Atlas forge thru their contact info saying i was interested in buying a Graham forge and wondering if it would be available .. I got a response from:
Charles Steffes-Clayton..... Saying the following..... Just this morning.....

"The Atlas mini is a much better forge for knifemaking. Continuation of
the Graham is under consideration, but it just isn't as good."

So now that left me a bit confused... Hahah.. Atlas Mini it is i guess
 
OK, Charles says he just isn't happy with the way the Graham is preforming. He feels it should have more BTU output from the burner. He is working with some folks to change a few things and make it run better. If he gets the bugs worked out, he will continue to make and sell the Graham.

For the mean time, the Mini is still available and is a good forge.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
OK, Charles says he just isn't happy with the way the Graham is preforming. He feels it should have more BTU output from the burner. He is working with some folks to change a few things and make it run better. If he gets the bugs worked out, he will continue to make and sell the Graham.

For the mean time, the Mini is still available and is a good forge.
Click to expand...


Ok thanks a lot for contacting him and letting me know the situation. Awesome i will be ordering the mini atlas and will add pics eventually.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
OK, Charles says he just isn't happy with the way the Graham is preforming. He feels it should have more BTU output from the burner. He is working with some folks to change a few things and make it run better. If he gets the bugs worked out, he will continue to make and sell the Graham.

For the mean time, the Mini is still available and is a good forge.
Click to expand...
Going to order my atlas mini today. Just wondering if it is worth the extra 35 dollars for the thermocouple..... Its 295...without.... 330 with it. . Thanks any advice is much appreciated.
 
The TC setup isn't bad to have. It isn't all that great for telling you much when forging, but when doing HT it will help. If you use a Muffle pipe, it will be a big help if you stick the TC in the pipe with the blade.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
The TC setup isn't bad to have. It isn't all that great for telling you much when forging, but when doing HT it will help. If you use a Muffle pipe, it will be a big help if you stick the TC in the pipe with the blade.
Click to expand...
Hello again Stacy... Well i received my forge in the mail today and am very pleased with it... Unfortunately I did not receive my thermocouple that i paid an extr 35 dollars for. I place d the order through Amazon and messaged the seller about it.. Wondering if there is a different way to contact him... Not sure if i will hear back quickly since its Amazon.. I am sure it was a mistake and not worried about wether or not he will remedy the situation... Just want to get it figured out... The sooner the better. Thanks again for all your help. I cant wait to get started!!!
 
Trout MaGee said:
Hello again Stacy... Well i received my forge in the mail today and am very pleased with it... Unfortunately I did not receive my thermocouple that i paid an extr 35 dollars for. I place d the order through Amazon and messaged the seller about it.. Wondering if there is a different way to contact him... Not sure if i will hear back quickly since its Amazon.. I am sure it was a mistake and not worried about wether or not he will remedy the situation... Just want to get it figured out... The sooner the better. Thanks again for all your help. I cant wait to get started!!!
Click to expand...
Well i sent message and heard back from him within 5 minutes. Everything is squared away.. Great customer service.
 
Trout MaGee said:
Well i sent message and heard back from him within 5 minutes. Everything is squared away.. Great customer service.
Click to expand...
If you haven’t yet bought a Anvil? The local Amish sould be a great source of not only anvil, but tongs and every other blacksmithing tool along with possible lessons on basic black smithing and I’m sure they know how to make knives, Chat up any you may know & look around on the webs for any knife maker Hammer Ins in your area!:thumbsup:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top