Quick Question

The quick answer is yes. The longer answer is that it is possible and most of us have done it, to build a knife with much less than that!
 
And is it also possibe to learn the art of bladesmithing only by trial and error, and on one's own?
 
My first couple years, that's how I learned. I had the David Boye book and a very hard head. This forum and all the great folks on it were also a big, big help to me (and still are). I'd never even been to another's shop until I'd done a couple shows. You can definately make knives by trial & error but, if you can get help, take it.
 
cwlcgk said:
And is it also possibe to learn the art of bladesmithing only by trial and error, and on one's own?
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1. Read a couple books and look at a some videos.
2. Put your real name in your sig.
3. Ask anything you want here and we'll clarify it as best we can. :)
 
J still has a very hard head, but he gives good advice. ;)

Get your hands on some books, I'd suggest "How to Make Knives" by Barney and Loveless and "Wayne Goddard's $50 Knife Shop" by Wayne Goddard(of course).

Also, read through everything you can find on here. We've had discussions about just about everything related to knifemaking here, and many experienced and talented makers have contributed to these discussions with their experience and knowledge.

A bunch of tutorials on various aspects of knifemaking here:
http://www.customknifedirectory.com/CKD_TutorialFrameset.htm
http://www.knivesby.com/knifemaking.html
http://www.engnath.com/public/manframe.htm

Homemade refractories for building your forge here:
http://www.backyardmetalcasting.com/refractories.html

List of suppliers here:
http://www.internetbusinesslinks.net/SupplierList.html

Steel FAQ here, to give you a rundown on the various steels to choose from:
http://www.knifeart.com/steelfaqbyjo.html

Several tutorials on sheath making from our very own Wild Rose(and a lot of previous links were from others here, credit to whoever deserves it on them)
http://wrtcleather.com/1-ckd/tutorials/_leatherstitch.html
http://wrtcleather.com/1-ckd/tutorials/_stitchpony.html
http://wrtcleather.com/1-ckd/mexloop/_mexloop.html


Those links, the information in this forum,a nd a couple of good books, such as those mentions, will do amazing things towards cutting down your learning time.

And at least as important, just enjoy yourself.
 
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