My first forging (railroad spike content and questions)

H

H0tR0d

Joined
May 9, 2009
Messages
61
Alright,

a few weeks ago I visited the Kelgin Co-Op in PF, TN. Steven Ball helped me do a railroad spike knife and learned quite a bit, now that I'm home using my own forge (forced air venturi) I'm having a few troubles with getting the hammering down. I'm using a 3 lb. shop hammer, and a welding pick hammer (to dimple and then use the larger hammer to push the metal outwards..) As you can see, not good at symmetry yet, nor can I make the metal go where I want it to.

Comments, etc. greatly welcome...also, the tip/edge is too thin on this piece and won't last during the HT so it's a trash piece..

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Thanks,
Christopher A. Ford
 
OK, first, go to the hardware store, or order one online,... but get a forging hammer ( blacksmiths hammer). It should have a cross peen on one end and a standard face on the other.
Work the steel at forging temperature. The term,"Strike while the iron is hot", refers to only hitting the metal while it is in the forging range. It should be orange-red to start, and you should stop when it gets dark red. Don't hammer when the steel has no red. If it is hot enough it should move easily. If you are beating the heck out of it, it isn't hot enough. Rail spikes need to be hot.
To draw out the metal, use the peen and "stretch" the metal the direction you want. After enough metal is drawn, work out that area with the hammer face. If the edge gets out too far, hammer it back toward the spine. This is called "upsetting", and is when you push the metal back into itself to make it thicker/narrower/shorter. It takes practice, so don't expect it to do what you want the first attempts. Using a piece of clay or Play-Dough, and a wooden forging hammer, is a good way to practice.
 
Thanks,

To be honest, I've been waiting till the metal was almost yellow before pulling it from the forge. I definitely need a cross peen though.
 
Yellow=Too Hot!:eek: thats almost welding temp! go to a welding store or online and get something called temple sticks. you mark your work with them, they will melt when a temperature is reached they are a good guesstimate but you shouldnt rely on them. a digital multimeter with a thermo couple attachment will give you an accurate reading that you can then "tune" your forge to the proper temp...
 
Also i would recommend stepping down to a 2lb hammer when you get a crosspein hammer. Your controll will greatly improve, and you wont fatigue nearly as fast, and you'll find you can get just as much work done as with a larger hammer. A common mistake people make is to assume they need to use as big a hammer as they can swing when they start forging.
 
Thanks for the advice, I'll look into the smaller cross peen and I'll keep things orange :) I read Kevin Cashen's article on forging late last night and used some of his techniques this morning with good results on the tip, but ran out of gas...go figure.
 
I hope you didn't toss this piece of steel. If I were you I'd remove the part that is bad and give it another go. There are certain advantages to hand forging a blade. One is second chances. When I first got interested in forging blades internet was just getting started. There were few books out that had very little on the subject so what I learned was mainly from trial and error. Lots of errors. Just try and learn from your mistakes and don't expect to much to soon.
It will come but it just takes some time.
 
I will interject a short story told to me ( and many others,I'm sure) by Bill Moran :

"When I was trying to figure out how to make damascus, I tried 180 ways of doing it......I found 179 that won't work." - Bill Moran 1925-2006

It takes practice and trial and error to learn some things. Forging is one where you have to do it a bit until all of a sudden your brain and hand start working together to move the steel where you want it. Raymond is the king of taking any piece of steel and re-shaping it into a blade with nearly zero loss of metal.

Colors are very subjective, and most new smiths have the steel too hot or too cold. You can "feel" the hammer move the steel when the temperature is right.
 
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