newcomer question

Joined
Mar 2, 2001
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16
What is the advantage in making a blade by forging rather than from flat stock and shaping while soft? Do many folks buy ready made blades and assemble the handles or is that only newbies that do that? thanks, willp58
 
It's faster, it improves the grain (open to argument), it takes talent. There are others but these are the most often used.
 
Oh boy, here we go....
One advantage to forging is that the smith has more "control" over his finished blade.

With forging, more skill and knowledge is required. If a smith doesn't know how to properly heat treat, then the blade is no better than anything out of a toilet! The same with a stock removed blade.

My recommend to anyone that is going to start forging is to, if at all possible, find a smith in your area to bring them along or go to one of the courses offered by the ABS in Texarkana.

As far as kit blades. It is a very good jumping off point to get into knifemaking. I started there about 7 years ago, then started stock removal and I am now just starting to forge. Its a progression I guess.

C Wilkins

[This message has been edited by C L Wilkins (edited 03-11-2001).]
 
Also to add to what has already been said,one benefite to forging is that you can use scrap materials like my Harley kickstand blade to make your knives out of and you can make Damascus of your own design instead of just buying it from a supplier...
Bruce

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Bruce Evans Handcrafted Knives
The soul of the Knife begins in the Fire!!!!!
Member of,AKTI#A000223 and The American Bladesmith Society
asmallpicofbruceforforums.jpg
 
Here are a couple of graphic examples of the difference, as it pretains to grain structure in materials that have been stock removed and forged.........

forgedblade.jpg

forgedcrank.jpg


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Ed Caffrey "The Montana Bladesmith"
ABS Mastersmith
www.caffreyknives.com

[This message has been edited by Ed Caffrey (edited 03-11-2001).]
 
Thanks very much for the explanation, I can see why people would go the forging route now. I ask because I am a tool maker by trade and have any machines I need also a very good heat treat facility and am thinking about attempting knife making. A Forging setup we do not have tho. With tool steel flat stock and good heat treat, wouldn't that be the best way to go? Thanks, Bill P
 
Given your present equipment Stock removal is the way to go for now.

I do only stock removal and make some pretty tough knives so don't think that forging is the only way to produce a good knife. There are more knifemakers out there making knives by stock removal than by forging so it must be a valid method,

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george
www.tichbourneknives.com
sales@tichbourneknives.com




[This message has been edited by george tichbourne (edited 03-12-2001).]
 
What about the CMP process? Do those steels still have a grain like the one in the picture above? If I buy a piece of 3V and grind away will it have the "stock removal" grain type or some other different grain type?

I figured it would be better to ask this in the thread since it it very pertinent to the original question asked.

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"Come What May..."
 
Cra......
Anytime steel is "drawn" wether it be hot or cold "rolled", the grain will tend to follow the pattern in wich it's been drawn. CPM is not nearly to the extent as those pics indicate, but there will be some manipulation of the grain down the long axis of a bar, that is if indeed it is rolled at all. (I'm not up to speed on the entire CPM process. I still want to get some time to forge some of the CPMs and see how they do. One of these days there is going to be something that beats the overall package you can get from 52100 (forged that is), and I suspect it will likely come out of that CPM family of steels. Only time will tell!
 
Very interesting post.Am especially impressed with the picture showing the grain structure. Very impressive. Makes more understandable Ed Fowler's recent articles in Blade.

Am surprised to learn that forging is faster than stock removal. I know that diffent levels of forgers get their forged item a variety of percentages from finished shape. I know once I read the 70%. Would it still be faster to forge to 70% and grind the rest of the way than to go with grinding entirely?



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Asi es la vida

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