Andrew Smith

Thanks for all the references. Hey Bob, I have heard of Conroe but I can't think of where it is. I live in Van, It is about twenty minutes west on I-20 from Tyler. Just Curious, What kind of instrument(s) do you play. I am really into music myself.

Here are some pictures of one of my tomahawks and a couple of rr spike knives. I have been blacksmithing for about a year and a half and I have only made spike knives and tomahawks but I am finally getting used to it and getting them looking good. what are some of your opinions and things I could do to make them look better. -Andrew

I started blacksmithing when I was fifteen also. I have only been blacksmithing for a year and half so that just makes me a few months short of seventeen know. When I started I just made rr spike knives and ball pein hammer tomahawks, and.....well..... they looked like crap to . All that I have been doing since then is perfecting the tomahawks and spike knives and I am finally getting pretty decent at it. One thing is just don't get discouraged. If you start to get burnt out or discouraged, then do something that you know you can do like forge something simple or piddle around in your dads woodshop, that's what I always did. If you burn yourself out completely then you will probably drop the hammer for good. I don't have a whole lot of experience, however, I was just sharing it with you, and hopefully it helps. -Andrew

Thanks for all the info. I am going to be buying a couple of books soon. What is Mark Aspery's website?

I was wanting some opinions about good blacksmithing books. The only things I know is from trail-and-error and from reading this forum all the time. About all I can do is forge a couple of rr spike knives and ball pein hammer tomahawks. I would like to make more things like decorative ironwork and learn more about alloys and heat treating and such. I have heard Mark Aspery has good books. I am also wanting something that covers the basics to, there is a LOT that I don't know. Thanks guys

Thanks guys, I will start checking into this asap. I am still new to knife making. I have not made much other than ball pein hammer tomahawks and RR spike knives. Kinda wanting to expand to other stuff.

I am not sure if you started yet but... When you make the handle for the ax you want to make sure the fit is very tight- that may sound profound.....but anyway. I am not sure how you plan on making it, If you are making it like a tomahawk where the handle gradually gets bigger at the top then it is wedged in place or if you are going to put pins in it. One thing I do is leave extra length on the wood you are using so you can have room to mess up a little bit. The main thing you want VERY tight is the fit from front to back of the ax. The sides are important but not quite like front to back as this will receive the most stress. If the tight is not very snug from the front to back then it will be very hard to keep it from moving, even with pins in it. Hope this makes sense. Post some pictures of your work, I would love to see how it turns out.

Here is the plane that I was going to make http://www.shopnotes.com/issues/079/extras/brass-body-block-plane/ I have seen the ones with dovetailed sides and all but I thought this one might be a little easier for a first. I am completely open to any suggestions. You can tell me whatever you want or call me whatever you want......just don't call me late for dinner .

Thanks David, I am going to look there right now.

I need steel for making knives and hawks and stuff like that. My problem is that the scrap yard closest to me doesn't sell their steel . The only scrap yard that I know of is about an hour away, which is not very practical for me. I have only made tomahawks from ball pein hammers and knives from rr spikes. I was trying to make more stuff other than that.

I am wanting to make a British infill block plane out of brass. I need a saw blade for my table saw to cut the finger joints in the brass. I figured this would be faster than filing it. . I know that they make those kind of blades but I just don't know where to get them. The only ones I have seen are those black carbide blades.

We used to live in Longview. I really liked it there. Dallas is only about 45 minutes from our house, depending on where your going. Maybe I will take you up on your offer one of these days and drop by. In south Louisiana you just go by your friends house whenever you feel like, I mean without calling or nothing, you just show up. If you don't do that for about a three week period then your friends will come by your house and make sure your not mad at them or nothing. Just so you know, I won't just stop by your shop without warning, I'll call first. :P

A.....well.....I.....uh guess I can quite the hair dryer thing. You think I can still use my forge blower Down here in Texas nobody (including me, except for when I am forging something)likes the cold. There is a couple I know that is from Canada. They are used to the cold but they can't stand the 100F temperatures. It is fun forging in that kind of heat. (not really)

You seem like my best supporter so far . That fan is really cool. Did you make that yourself or did you buy it. We used to have a fireplace like that, just a little bit bigger, in a huge Victorian style house.

I don't know a whole lot about fire boxes but one thing I do when I get frustrated is just set that project on the back burner for awhile. I have had stuff on the back burner for as long as two years!! Also I am kinda like you "Dan W" If I get bored with one thing I can always move over to woodworking or leather crafting. I have had (and currently have) worse forge problems myself but I lack two things, Money and a Welder. If I need anything welded my neighbor is a welder but he doesn't do it for free. I am going to get me an arc welder soon though .

I just got through forging a tomahawk and I read this and saw that I have some supporters and several who say I'm just goofy. Well I just have a few comments, 1) If you think I am goofy then I forgive you because I'm a forgiving fella, also you can call me whatever you want, just don't call me late for Dinner. 2) I never heard of the burn down method, It really was neat. I am going to try that next time we get a cold front down here. It was in the fifties or sixties today, no need for a fire. 3) A hairdryer is the handiest thing I had around, I didn't feel like getting my blower. I have been blacksmithing for about a year and a half, I just modified an old electric motor into a blower. It spins on both sides so one side has a squirrel cage blower and the other side has a buffing wheel attachment a little odd combination huh!

Does anyone have the same problem as me? Trying to make the fire in your house fireplace HOT and poking it every other minute and even using a hairdryer every now and then to make it hot. My family kinda laughs at me and tell me I just like to play in the fireplace . I hope I am not just a goof ball that plays in his fireplace.

There is a really big trade show about 15 minutes from my house (First Monday Trade Days in Canton Texas- in case you heard of it). During the fall and spring time when the weather is nice they sometimes get 400,000 people in a day. The market is so big it would literally take you the hole weekend to look at everything. I am most likely going to start selling there this fall.

Thanks, I love IFI !!!

I think that I have where I live. I live in Van Texas Ya, the name of our little town is Van. It is about twenty minutes west of Tyler Texas. It doesn't even have a red light, just a caution light. I was ordering something over the phone the other day and I thought the guy on the other end was going to laugh when I told him that I lived in Van.

I have been on the black smith forum a little and posted a little but never really got into coming on here often, pretty much just read and posted a little here and there. I am currently a Student and pretty much if I think I can make something then I just go for it. My Dad used to be a contractor and my grandpa knows almost everything under the sun, so ever since I was younger I have had access to tools and good help. About a year ago I was talking to a cabinet maker of mine and he told me about a video on-line where someone was making a RR spike knife. I just went for it. I have only made knives and tomahawks but I really enjoy doing it. Hope to learn a lot of stuff on here. By the way, Is anybody from East Texas?

Really Nice hawk. I really like those RR spike knives. I have made a few tomahawks and spike knives but I am still a beginner blacksmith, They don't always turn out that nice. What kind of finish did you use on that maple to get it that color.

I am a beginning blacksmith and all that I have made is a handful rr spike knives and tomahawks. I am wanting to try to make some Damascus. I already have a garage door chain but will it work good or do I need something like a chain saw chain. Also how do I heat treat and temper it?

Thanks for the help. I was kind of debating with myself on whether to send it off or not. I checked into it and Texas knife supply only charges $5.50 to heat treat and temper 440c stainless. I will post some pictures when I am through.

Thanks for the help, I have one more question. This might sound stupid but I am 100% noob with this kind of stuff, How do you heat treat and temper 440c stainless steel.