Rashelle

A pattern book of tools and household goods: centaur forge and amazon, I think I originally got mine from amazon, a quick google search would give you your answer.

Y'all are welcome. Neil hit on an important part. Get it hot. You'll wear yourself and your striker out if not. There are options like most everything else. When working alone for the touchmark I'll use a parallel sided drift, as it's smaller and I can balance it to stay still while I hold the touchmark and hit it with my other 2 hands, heehee. Sometimes you can use a slitting chisel if your eye hole is angled forward/back to open up the closed parts. Other times you can use either a small butcher or the flat tip of a drift like a slot punch if you have a side to side angled pass through at the eye. Sometimes like life it can seem an exercise in problem solving. It's all good. The only way to make anything is to try, if you don't try you'll never make it. It can be a good idea to practice. Some steps can be done different with experience also. I've eyeballed the hole in candle light during a lantern tour demonstration, my striker was talking to the public. So remember this is a guide not a bible, do what works for you but try following someones guide till you get a handle on things so you can make educated changes rather then random changes.

Notice the light touch when first starting the hole. Then at 39 seconds rotating the hammer in the tongs. Again at 58 seconds. Cooling the punch near 1:20. Hump tools at 9:37 seconds. He fullers the cheeks in a different order then me. I do then at the same time as working on the faces. It's all good, same end result. 10:40 he hardens the hammer. Around 12:16 he has a hot drift inside the eye tempering the hammer head. 13:29 pictures of nice hammers.

Ok now that the punching is done, they cheeks are fullered out and the faces are in shape. Use your hammer tongs holding the hammer lengthwise in the eye. The tip of the tongs acting as a stop Fuller in the troughs, to your aesthetics. Place drift back in and on the top area make your mark. Clean up and wire brush. Hot rasp as needed for clean up. (Remember I do most of my stuff as if it's 1845 so I don't use power tools usually.) Normalize and do file clean up. Clean up inner edges of eye so they are rounded. Make like your are shining a shoe with a strip of sand paper such as from an old sanding belt., When happy with clean up. Heat to non magnetic and quench in water. There are a lot of ways to temper hammers. You can place in oven at home, heat a drift or three and watch the temper colors move out from center to yellow on the faces. Use like Frank Turley a heated bent bar that fits around the hammer face. Sometimes after hardening my hammer face in water when in a hurry I'll dip it in a peanut oil that burns off at 400 degrees supposedly and put it back over the fire till the oil smokes off. Cool it, dip in oil again and pace back over fire again. Note this may be a little soft for some people on their hammer face so you may be better off using your oven as 4140 and 1045 are not the most hard steels in the first place. Clean up and handle. I prefer slab handles. In sizing the handle once ready I dip the end in a little oil the drive it on for the last time. Drive the wood wedge then the hand made metal wedge. Use a little more peanut oil and oil the handle. There an hammer in a short story form.

Oh boy. I did a 7-11 typed page pamphlet with drawings on how to make a rounding hammer. It's A way of making it based on Brian's teaching. It's not the only way, and in fact I had changed some things to fit me. For example my hump tools are L shaped with the smaller leg of the L being rounded and sticking up. They don't fall over that way but are harder to make. So for the steps in short form using a striker, as I'm not typing out several pages of description trying to cover options and everything that can go wrong: For a 2 lbs rounding hammer I started with 4.5" of 2.5"Round 4140 or1 045, work with what you have, others work well also this is just easy to come by. For a 4 lbs hammer use 4.5" of 2" Round. Note you will lose some weight due to scale, the plug, and clean up. Take a good measurement and set a sliding square or a compass to center for the length of the bar. Get a good heat, I usually use a flatter and a striker one good blow each side mark 4 sides, 2 of them to indicate opposite sides top and bottom, the other two give me a slightly better place to grip using Habermann style hammer tongs. Line up top and bottom straight, have your striker use the measuring device to find center in your top slightly flatted area. Line your eye punch straight up and down there. Have the striker just touch the struck end of the punch with the sledge, just a pin prick. Remove the eye punch and LOOK for straightness and centered. If good hit harder if not straighten it out before driving the punch. Once straight and good start driving the punch removing the punch between blows, rotating the stock between blows. I use wax to cool the punch as needed, usually impregnated with coal dust, sometimes sprinkling more coal dust in the hole if the punch starts to stick. I usually go approx halfway through a side. I then go and start from the other side again just a pin prick to align and get going. If you are doing bad on one side, finish punching from the other side, that will help even things out. If your eye is sloppy make a top tool instead of a hammer. There are ways to correct things going wrong. Once the eye is punched: Using your hand hammer drive the drift till it's tight on the sides, Place cupping tool in hardy, or swage block whatever you're using, use a flatter on the back with what will be the round face of the hammer in the cupping tool and the flat face being flattered. I start some on the faces, then go to working they cheeks, by driving the tapered drift by hand then working up the drift with top and bottom fullers driving the cheeks from center up towards the smith up the drift never down the drift as that closes the eye. Drive drift from other side on next heat, keep repeating working cheeks up the drift and using the cupping tool to release the drift, alternate using the flatter on the peaks of the cheeks and the fullers to make the flat have valleys. Using cupping tool to release. Use the hump tools to support the work as you develop the cheeks so you don't gall them over the hardy hole while driving the drift. Bear down on the drift when driving it to prevent bouncing.

There are a lot of ways to go about making a hammer. Part of it depends on the type of hammer you're making. You have a lot of options available. For example you could use a hammer eye punch that has a slight sharp tapered tip like Brian Brazeal with a striker to punch the eye, Mark Aspery uses a flat slot punch (which is probly the easiest to see what's going wrong for a first time punching large stock, Brent Bailey uses a slitting chisel on his videos. When having a striker I usually use a tong held eye punch, shaped like Brians handled eye punch. When by myself no striker I have used a slitting chisel, slot punch and hand held eye punch at different times. It depends on tooling. You could use a tapered drift for the whole thing or a parallel sided drift. Pick a way of doing the hammer and make the tools for that style of doing it. Practice punching on some larger mild scrap first though unless you think you can do it as the eye is the easiest place to get things wrong fast. You could even get a discussion started as to who thinks their way is best. But in the end it's which way is best for the person making it and the type/style hammer you are making.

It's not a hammer it's a top tool that is struck by a hammer.

When trying to communicate a concept to someone who is not understanding the "technical language you would use" you end up using words and wording that they do understand. Or pantomime or whatever. So the use of the word die comes out and when explained that way you can see peoples face light up as the phrasing clicks and they understand the answer to their question. Not everyone communicates the same even speaking the same language. So without talking down to others, who are not understanding what you are saying, (especially if you have to use technical jargon) how do you explain a concept that is foreign to them? You use words and phrasing that they can relate to. Or pantomime, whatever. The bulk of you tube users are not blacksmiths, so using technical terms is out. The bulk of the public that comes into national parks are also not usually blacksmiths, technical terms are again out. You can watch someones face and see their struggle to understand as you try to explain a concept, you can also watch them as they do understand at least a little. So then the next time someone is not understanding you use the same phrasing and wallah you see comprehension much faster. The time after that you use the same phrasing whenever you see lack of understanding. More people seem to understand using the edges of hammer, anvil, and different shaped tooling faster when technical terms are not used. Thus in my experience telling them to think of things as dies helps their understanding. When people desire further understanding is when the technical terms (the foreign language) come into play. Each person depending on their apparent comprehension is communicated with in a slightly different manner. We all are in constant change. Communication changes. The only thing constant is time.

I thought I should add a little more. It all comes down to communication. Brian uses his terminology deliberately to be as precise as possible. (It seems to me, I can not speak for another.) Everyone is a product of their past, and their perception of such. We each seeing/experiencing an "event" will come away with a somewhat different perception of it. When we each try to describe it it will be communicated in different ways. Yes a hammer is a hammer. But in trying to communicate the concept of "hammer" to someone with no prior understanding of one (yes there are a lot of those nowadays) you end up trying to communicate a concept to another with your perceptions value on wording/understanding.

I volunteer at a national park historic site, where I am very frequently asked what's all these shapes and surfaces and the differences between them for, in reference to different hammers, anvils, and swage blocks. So I tell them to imagine each different part as a different die. (People are constanly calling swages molds, grrrrrr, heehee.) Each different die or surface area will perform a different function. I then go on to explain that hit the hammer flat everything goes splat in all different directions, tilt the hammer this way or that and it goes this way or that. Use the horn or step, or shapes in the swages and the metal moves towards the path of least resistance away. So I being a prior student of Brians it makes sense to me and makes sense to me in a way I can in person (imagine me going through the motions with the hammer and different surfaces as I explain to the public) explain to others. Without having to explain what a fuller is or even other more technical terms to people who don't know blacksmithing. Makes sense to me.

Those look pretty good. I'd be thinking more of a polled axe though. Did you slit and drift then for the eye? If so would you want to show the tooling you used?

I use a flatter on flat faces of hammers frequently. I just used one on some tong reins to clean up the sides 2 days ago. The use depends on the person and how they are doing what they are doing. Most of the time cleaned up with a hammers flat face is fine for me. But a flatter is used frequently by me. That is just me. The OP may have similar intended uses. Sort of like a swage block it's one of those things you either use or don't use. You can do without or not. It's all good.

I'd been meaning to say for forge welding practice an easy thing to do is take some 3/8" round stock (or whatever but for practice a little bigger is better as it stays hot longer due to mass) taper to a flat point, nick the bar a bit behind the point most of the way through on the side of the point, bend the bar over (bend not fold flat) so the point touches the parent bar. Round stock being used for this practice as it is round and lets scale and flux flow out. Then bring to almost welding heat, flux, bring rest of way to heat, should look translucent almost and sort of liquidy on surface, take from fire and like Frosty said above give it a good but not hard lick with the hammer, work from the point forward to the nick. Do this at different looks to the metal. See what sticks, forge out to a spoon or round shape at welding heat at first finishing at near welding heat. cool off and then bend the piece, see if it delaminates. Cut from parent stock and repeat. Till you can see the right looks and feel.

I can understand the desire for a place to stay. There is camping usually. It's all good though. Just trying to give you some options, what you do from there is up to you.

Real wood charcoal is possible to forge weld in. That was used before coal became more economical with lack of trees. There are other smiths in the central Oregon area. If you are using high carbon as a steel, trying to learn forge welding on some alloys could be pretty tricky. Try some simple smaller mild steel welding projects to learn on. Such as flux spoon, miniature axe, scrap, leaf stems, Don't use briquets use real wood charcoal. There are a lot of things that can go wrong with forge welding. Are the pieces scaling up? Where in the fire are you placing them? Are they clean and looking translucent when pulled out of the fire? Will they stick together in the fire? Forge welding is not as hard as it's made out to be but it really does benefit from haveing an experienced person there to explain and show it.

I really wouldn't bother with a harbor freight anvil. They may claim cast iron for the jewelers anvil but it is softer then copper. So a piece of scrap steel can actually be better then their anvil. I have good larger anvils, but I would use scrap before buying a harbor freight larger anvil. I do have one of their small jewelers anvils, if I don't want the jewelry marked up from imprinting from the anvil I use a piece of scrap steel with a clean face. I have used it for copper and a little silver work. The tools used are case hardened mild steel hammers without missed blows. The harbor freight jewelers anvil got marked up from tapping on copper for the most part. Lightly. They really are not worth the effort in my opinion, based on my experience. Others of course have the right to their opinions too.

Max like Neil said we have monthly get togethers in Longview. It is generally the 4th Saturday of each month. This month it is Mark Aspery, next month it is Arnon Kartnazov likely doing a Japanese knife, May is the spring conference. June is Bob Denman doing garden tools, July will be on a different day as the Fair is going on, we will be there for the fair just not doing the hammer in on the regular day, July will be on the 11th Wade Seiders doing a hammer poll belt axe. August we may not be having an event as there is blacksmith week up at Mount Hood. Note the details listed above may change. In the event of cancellations where we can't get another rescheduled I'll step in and do a hammer forging demo. At least get yourself on the NWBA email list to keep abreast of current events. All the above are a 3 hour demo by the persons listed followed by open forge for the rest of the day.

Ok second attempt at a reply. The lightning awls I forged for some of the Fort Vancouver personnel were made out of recycled garage door springs, same s the bright oval fire strikers. The awls were not hardened. Nails out of iron or mild steel (the modern substitute) were not work hardened after forging. Cut from the bar headed and dropped on the fllor to make room for the next one. The strikers in C, J, oval, whatever shape are hardened and tempered. The lightning awls were around 2.5"-3" or so total length.

For the lightning awls I made for some of the others at Fort Vancouver I used a spring steel (recycled garage door spring) and did not bother hardening it. Length 2.5"- 3" . I may of made some mild steel ones also on request, there were no complaints only praise for the items. Note that is usually the same stock (recycled garage door spring) I'd use for making the bright oval fire strikers. Make like making a chain link, weld, make oval, then flatten, clean up striking surface, heat treat, clean off striking surface, and test each one.

Cool. Like they said above you're off to a good start. If you're not already a member the NWBA has monthly demos followed by an open forge at Longview. Welcome and enjoy the journey.

Brian Brazeal has a you tube video forging a hexagonal ball finial. You can use the same concept to form your diamond. Like Jim said give it a try, maybe do some smaller practice pieces.

Just to be different I really like the gladius most. I like all of them and like second the two handed one with the black hilt and gross guard.

Fort Nisqually is the name of the other place I was trying to remember. There is a blacksmith shop set up there and their personnel are good peoples too. Thank you Frosty for remembering them for me. The NWBA library (you can check the contents via the website) will be moving to the mentoring center soon. The books, videos, and other reference material will be available to be checked out at the monthly mentoring center events, along with the conferences, etc. I believe some of the above mentioned books are part of our library. You can make arrangements to pick up a book rather then having it mailed to you at the mentoring center also.

Since you list Washington state as location. There is Fort Vancouver, in Vancouver WA which is set up as 1845 Hudson Bay company. I am one of the volunteers there, several of us will be at the NWBA mentoring center event in Longview next Saturday, where we will demo some tool making then have a work party to make more tools for the mentoring center followed by open forge once the tools are done,.

A handful of sawdust is what I used when I took a coopering class. When the barrel/pail/whatever dries out it will shrink then need to be rehydrated and/or possibly the hoops retightened. Once rehydrated it should hold water again. The sawdust flows into the cracks, swells with water and fills the holes.