Maillemaker

*facepalm* I should have known that. It just so happens that I'm studying material processes, and I just finished the metals section. Great advise, and keep it coming! The more help I can get, the better!

An interesting tidbit about the pilums: unlike Norse/Germanic throwing spears, a pilum was made with a relatively weak shaft, so it would deform when it hit an opponent's shield or another obstacle. This ensured that the barbarian hordes couldn't throw the spears back at the legionnaires.

While I am relatively new to blacksmithing, I would like to think I have my feet under me as far as basic skills go. However, I don't know of any experienced smiths in my area, so I have to turn to books and this wonderful forum. In The Blacksmith's Craft: A Primer of Tools & Methods by Charles McRaven, he states that after running the colors in a forge (heat treating) you should not quench your tool/project. Apparently, quenching the tool could harden the tool again. My latest project was a punch drawn out from a piece of coil spring (5160-ish), so I know there's enough carbon to allow hardening. After completely hardening (heat to red, then quench) I stuck the blunt end in the forge, and slowly ran the colors until the business end was a light straw. Heeding Mr. McRaven's advise, I allowed the punch to air-cool, and by the time it had cooled, the tip was a honey-bronze. My question is; can I somehow cool my workpiece more quickly without jeopardizing the heat treatment process?

I have been doing some looking around on the web (not that it's the most reliable source ever) and on this forum, and I can't seem to find how medieval arrowheads were attached to the shafts. There are plenty of resources on forging the heads, but not much on attaching them. Could I pin them like a hilt for a knife?