gonefishin

I'll take a picture tomorrow and post it. Im thinking it's the clear coat. Im pretty positive that this hammer should and will last me a long time if not until I die.

I just received my first Peddinghaus hammer in the mail today, the Nordic model. I layed it on my bed and when I sat down, another hammer barely (and when I say barely I mean hairline touch) hit my new Peddinghaus on the middle top. I noticed it kind of dented it a little bit, not much but a little. Is this normal? I mean I know hammers get worn but for a very small touch to dent it, is that bad? I couldnt tell if maybe it just dented the coating over the steel rather than the steel itself. For me being new to everything and Peddinghaus being a great brand im probably over-reacting to it eh?

Yes, I read it. I just didn't know if it was possible to not do anything to the hammer and be able to use it. I read on how to dress it.

That's what I was thinking, what would you say about the face of it though?

Viking hammers, bound to tire us out Well, I went to some yardsales and got some nice old blacksmithing hammers, already dressed of course. But I do still have that Nordic one on its way in the mail. Since Im probably going to be using these old hammers to start with, when I get the know how of everything, does the Nordic hammer still need to be dressed? Or can it be used without dressing it. Im talking someone with experience using that hammer, would they absolutely need to dress it?

I love reading all I can but $60.00 is a bit much for me to spare, im already loosing quite a bit of cash on the equipment needed to start up. Thanks for the reference though man, later down the road I probably will end up looking into buying that book.

How exactly would I dress it and everything, im not really sure what to do other than sand off sharp edges.. Im not great with blacksmith terminology yet.

Yeah I have no idea of alloys or anything. Im completely new to this like I said, and believe me when I say I have no knowledge of it, I mean it. Haha. Im not really sure how I would go about testing or knowing how to do it all. Im looking into finding a mentor but if that doesn't work out then im not sure how I will learn. Everything I read online just says something completely different.

Alright so the method above will work then, cool. I'll make sure I use a metal bucket and stick a heated rr spike in it to get it warm. And when you say a lid to cover my tube, you just mean a lid to cover the bucket when not in use?

How would I go about crowning both ends? So basically sand off any sharp edges and flatten the back of the hammer (the little V part?

Thanks for the tips bruv', it's good to know all of this and recognize mistakes beforehand. Im looking forward to firing up my forge for the first time.

Having no knowledge of Blacksmithing other than reading about it and not having easy access to a class, im in a bit of a bind. If anyone knows of any places around St. Louis, Illinois where someone can teach me, by all means let me know. I would love to take a class, I've just been unable to find any. I live 15 minutes out of St. Louis. Im wanting to learn how to Smith blades if that matters, im sure any blacksmith could head me in the right direction though. It's just going to be hard to teach myself something such as this.

The blade looks beautiful mate, nice work. How did you go about getting your signature stamped into the blade? The "A" that is in your avatar.

Again im entirely new to the craft. I have read so much on heat treating blades that it's just so hard to know which would work. I know some ways are of course better than others, but after speaking with a Bladesmith this is what I got, Will this method work... - Forge the blade - When blade is shaped, give it a heat until it's in a non-magnetic state then quench in motor oil - File the blade to what you want it to look like/finish it off - Put blade is kitchen oven on 375-400 degrees for 1 hour then let cool to room temp. - Clean blade with soap and water - Put back in kitchen oven for another hour on 375-400 degrees then let cool slowly to room temp. For a rough idea, would this method be an ideal way to heat treat a knife?

To start off with, I don't have any experience Blacksmithing thus far. Im in the process of ordering my equipment and so on. So a question I had that some may be able to help out with. Www.Blacksmithsdepot.com/ It's a familiar site to all of you here im sure. Im wanting to be a Bladesmith (Knifes, bowies, etc.) and what I was stumped on, will this hammer work? http://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/Templates/cart_templates/cart-detail.php?theLocation=/Resources/Products/Hammers/Nordic_hammers I know it's a queer question since hammers are all based on personal preference, but will that hammer do the job with practice or is that one impractical for Bladesmithing? It was between that one or the German one that they sell, but after speaking with the sales person the Nordic sounded a bit better. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I already ordered the Nordic so im hoping to hear that it is in fact possible to smith a full blade from just that hammer.

I go by Ox. Im a glass-worker. I write for Metaleater magazine. I just recently got into wanting to learn Blacksmithing. I joined the forum, hopefully I'll learn from the best and get to where I want to be, It's good to be here.