Bruno C.

BundleRiff, I Did not mean to offend or discourage you. And I encourage you to try all that you wish. Probably too long away from the fire that has me all grumpy. Jim Hrisoula has written 3 very Good books on Knife making (I hear tell of a fourth?). I highly recommend them. There are many other books and even videos available for sale on the internet through Amazon or usaknifemaker and the like. Loads of good information. Learn all you can. And if funding is an issue, you can try your local library. I find that if you look hard enough, then internet will provide more answers than one might care for. On google if you type in "free blacksmithing books" or "Free knifemaking books", you will find plenty of info to keep you busy for a long while. A very good knife can be made with not much more than fire in a hole in the ground, a rock for an anvil and a hammer of some sort. If you want it to look shinier, a file goes a long way. More than one way to skin a cat, but the basics remain the same. Good Luck, and Keep on Forging. -Bruno

Great Musicians Listen to Others Music, No ? Inspiration comes from somewhere, and even the greats appreciated other greats. The difference between a copy and an imitation I think are vast. I like seeing the knives that people design. Gives me ideas. To claim to own a Seax style blade, then you must be a few thousand years old. If I make a chair with 4 legs, am I stealing IKEA'S design ? Or am I just working within the parameters of an established functional design? If I see something cool, I can't help myself but attempt to mimic. My design I think would only be a take of an idea. If I put IKEA on the chair I made, then well, that's a more fuzzy area. I appreciate the creativity of all those willing to share. But if I make a similar item with my own name on it, then I don't see the problem, unless it's patented. Probably too many rules these days as all are striving for that dollar, so conflict will happen. Best I can say is CYA. Cover Your A**. Darned pennies always floating around. If I could keep them in a jar I'd be a millionaire :p -Bruno

BundleRiff, If you are not just a Troll (no offense), your question will breed discontent and laughter from the members of this forum. There is no such thing as a "How to make the ultimate sword for Newbies" book. If you are serious, Read all you can, learn all you can, and practice. No shortcuts exist. This forum is Full of information and insults to get you well on your way. All you need to do is put in the work. Interested in European swords ? Find the literature. Google has an app for that I think. Between historical accuracy and the methods historically accurate and modern, you have your work cut out for you. If all else fails, then simply forge something (try it), and if you survive unscathed, learn from any mistakes you've made. I think that's how they did it thousands of years ago before google. Always trying stuff attempting to make it better. Don't mean to discourage, just felt the need to post the obligatory "Bad Newbie", so the moderators and other talented smiths can spend some more time at the forge. Do what you wish, and I suggest reading as much as you can from wherever you can. Then form your own conclusions. We have all been N00bs at one point. I used to get laughed at for telling my teachers that I want to make a hammer. Why ? Because for them, you can buy a perfectly good hammer at the local market for less than $4. And the cost of making one would be 10 times that. Took a while for me to understand what they meant. You want a sword ? Buy one. Want to make a good sword ? Dedicate a good portion of your life learning about what a sword is, why it is, how it's used, when it's used, and methods of manufacture, etc. I dare say, I can beat any man with an Awesome "Ninja Sword" with a piece of rebar. Why ? cuz my rebar won't break, and if It does, I wouldn't care anyway. Good Luck. -Bruno

Thanks for the info guys. All I know about the wheel is that the shop was doing some sort of vehicle brake maintenance/repair. The wheel was found outside in the dirt, and had Very Likely been sitting there since the place went under / motel next door burned down in the 1990's. No name or Markings on the wheel. This is the desert so I expect it's been subjected to 20 years of Sun/Wind/Rain/Snow Extreme Heat and Cold. but the entire thing appears to be surprisingly intact all things considered except for some rust around the metal bits.. No visible cracks or dents, or even wear as far as I can tell. I wasn't meaning to put it under heavy power or high speeds. I figured I would either build an old style Treadle Grinding station with it, or I believe I have a very slow old motor that was pulled out of a Mobile Home. Think it's 1/8th horse power and has a Very Low RPM as it was used to lower the stabilizing jacks, or whatever they are called on the front of the Trailer. Thought that might work. It's about the right size, and I always wanted one of those Japanese style Grinding wheels since I saw one. Either way, I appreciate the info Guys, and I hope I can make use of the piece. It did sharpen my knife well when I tested it. I would say it has a grit similar to 200/300 grit sharpening stone. Maybe as low as 150 grit. Just a guess though based on what I can see. Need new batteries for the camera. Thanks Again. -Bruno

Hi, Picked up what looks like a Grinding Wheel from a Job Site. The place was some sort of service shop and had thousands of brake pads laying around. Mostly new. This is the wheel I found. It has an: Outer diameter of 18 inches.. Inner Diameter of 12 inches. Width of 3 and 3/8 inches. And a 3" sidewall. It also has 8 female threads embedded in the stone on one side. Wondering if anyone has seen anything like this before? Is this a Grinding Wheel ? Would it be safe to use this under power ? I would date the wheel at somewhere between the 70's and early 90's. No Markings that I can see. My biggest concern is that the wheel may have been used to grind down brake pads. Don't know if that was something that used to be done. Don't really want asbestos dust floating around my shop. Any ideas on mounting such a wheel ? Any info would be greatly appreciated. -Bruno

Super Cool. I'm gonna try that now. :) Gotta add a hammer and anvil to my fire starter kit now.

Brian, Save yourself the trouble, and buy a gas forge. Atlas Forge, Chile Forge, N.C. Forge, Diamond Forge?, and several others. Unless you can get coal easily, go propane, otherwise build an easy Coal forge to get started. Second... What do you plan on forging ? If you want to take up knives, then you need more research. if you want to do general forging, again more research, and second get a 4 1/2" angle grinder from home depot or local hardware store. It will serve you better than the old grinding wheel for general task's. Anvils are a sacred subject around here. Here's the secret... :ph34r: Anything will work. Rail Road track is good. Steel plate welded together will work. Sledge Hammer head on end buried in a tree stump will also work. Fork Lift Tines, mounted truck springs, side walk curb, A Large Rock. Heavy and Solid is good to start. You don't need a 300 pound anvil to start forging. It's NICE, but not a requirement. Forging requires temperatures well into 2500 degrees Fahrenheit. IF you don't know what you are doing, rocks and mud's of various sorts can explode when exposed to that temperature. Wood will burn, meat will char, metal will do lots of things. A purchased small venturi forge, a makeshift Anvil, an angle grinder or if you want to be xxxxxx. then a few good files, will get you forging and making anything you have the patience for. And you could even do it outside or any place where nobody will bother you. Just remember guys 500 Years ago were making Gates and Shoes and Swords and everything in between with no electricity or local Shopping Center available. A Blacksmith Can make the tools he needs. Sometimes you need to start at the bare essential to make a better tool. If you have the resources though, just use what you can get from established members of the community. It will make your transition to progress much easier. Good Luck With Your Forgings :) -bruno

Not hijacking, just think it might be relevant? I plan on lining my forges' tomorrow. Building a Don Fogg style Vertical Forge that will use a 3/4" venturi, and a Smaller Horizontal that will run off a (home depot) 1/2" propane torch. Flame me if I'm wrong, but I would think that all this talk of fuel consumption is relative to the design of the Forge. I'm currently debating as to whether use 1" insulation in the Vertical forge, or 2" insulation. The forge shell is built to be within the 350 Cubic Inch" Threshold of the 3/4" burner using 1" insulation, but I wonder if I'd get better results using 2". What are better results ? Providing I've made the forge correctly, then I would think that if I use 2" of insulation, that would lead to less gas consumption using a Venturi Burner, since I'd retain more heat in the Shell, and could run on a lower amount of gas vs. time at temperature (of forge). If you lose much heat, then you need more heat to compensate, right ? I would think the same is true with a Blown burner. Have not used one myself, as I appreciate the Lack of Electricity needed to run a venturi burner. Got a full tank ,you good to go. But even with a blown burner, if you have a forge that is lined to 1" of insulation vs. 2" on insulation. Then the Forge using 2" of insulation would work better I think. If you had 2 identical forges, one using a Blown burner, and one using a Venturi burner, then , from what I've read, the blown burner would beat it hand's down. But again it's all relative. If you had a forge that had say 3" of insulation running a venturi, and a blown burner running in a forge with 2" insulation, then maybe it evens out ? Test's would have to be done. Just think, a few cents on the dollar may help over 5 years, or if you deal in millions of money dollars it adds up. Overall though, Maybe the cost in Extra fuel for a Venturi Design may Equal the Cost of Electricity needed to power the blower for a blown burner design. Use what works for you because the science will always be different depending on you. 0.02 Cents.

Glenn, WoW!. That is great advice on the gloves. I was just working with an Old 7" Wheel "Sander" as it's labelled, but I use it as a grinder, as well, as a cheap ryobi with an oversized cutting wheel on it. While working, I had the thought, "The cuff of my glove is awfully close to that spinning wheel". I hoped for the best. But on a serious note, your method would relieve some of that worry. I agree, it's not the best method when forging... but for other task's.. it can resolve some probabilities for injury. A few instances of Welder Burn, and one learns to cover up, or at least hide behind the glove. BTW: Those are the exact Home Depot Gloves that are cheap and work Wonders for anything you are not willing to touch by hand. -bruno

Simple $3 pair of leather-like purple/gray gloves. The cheap stuff, unless I'm in the money, then I'll go for the $7 Orange/Gray gloves. Usually from Home Depot. Might last you a week if working pretty hard everyday. Longer if under normal use. Mine usually get a hole starting in the finger or in stitching where the thumb meets the rest of the hand. When that happens, I'm either extra careful or get new gloves. I consider them part of the expense of forging/working. Welding gloves are nice, but too thick for any work that requires any sort of dexterity. Great for hot stuff though, but you'll probably wear one out faster than the other. I'd rather just cool the handle of whatever I'm working on. Regular Joe Shmoe worker gloves work fine, especially for many of us keyboard blacksmiths. Sometimes you use a glove, sometimes it's better if you don't, there is risk in everything. Overthinking stuff tends to lead to overly complex.

Admanfrd, zinc will kill you. Some bolts/plating these days also include Cadmium. If exposed to that it will stay in your system for years. If you feel under the weather, and have flu like symptoms, well, if they do not improve in short order, you might be best served seeking medical attention if you can afford that. Plating of any kind on metal's I believe is usually dangerous, not excluding lead paint from old objects. Do NOT Burn/Weld That Stuff, clean out your forge with use of a proper respirator and research the Safety Hazards of what ever it is that you are doing. Safety is your responsibility. Hands, Eyes, Ears, Lungs.

Haven't made one. But I would think that any high carbon or Tool Steel properly heat treated should work fine. At least if you are working the piece hot/annealed. Cold worked, well you can damage any tool if you don't use it properly, say trying to punch hardened steel. I have to make one myself. Or At least, I'm debating on whether to stamp or use an electro etch stencil. Stencil's can be somewhat cheaper than commercial stamps. I built my own Electro etch machine from designs on the internets. My design is too complex for me to make the stencil myself for any cheaper than I can get commercially/professionally. Might simplify it, or just see how the commercial option works, either way, I'd still like to make a stamp for the experience. I would try it with a piece of Coil Spring or something readily available as a test run, with probably a simpler design just to see if I (1) Have the patience to do such a thing, (2) Have the skills to do it well, and (3) Decide how much better a steel or Heat treat I need for the Next one I make to use in production. Thanks to John McPherson for the great links... Good Luck.

I just got a blood blister after I tipped over a Jack Stand while jacking up my truck. Was setting it in place, and it simply tipped over (no weight on it), when I reached for it, landed right on my finger. I obliged the laws of physics with a customary curse and yelp. Just a reminder, with all the talk of throwing knives at concrete and all, the laws of physics always have a way of reminding us of their power and endless will. Always remember Murphy's Law as well. Whatever can go wrong Will Go Wrong. Aside from knife shrapnel in the face as a good possibility, what if a piece lands/goes somewhere inside one of your tools ? Like your belt sander motor, or not likely but possibly cuts a propane hose running to your forge ? Might get a good BTM then. Just saying, if you are going to do such things, don't take the Laws of physics for granted. Some gun makers in Third World Countries test there guns in an enclosed Cage filled with sand to test for function, and even then it's usually I would think on the far side of the shop. Think of all the things that can go wrong with a Firearm ? Bad Bullets, bad alignment, weak spots/parts, poor design, etc... These third world guys test their firearms by hand in lieu of an automated firearm mount of sorts behinds tons of safety glass. That's pretty brave or at least certain of their craftsmanship. But they still shoot into a cage to prevent "much" outward damage to others. Anything can be dangerous and with proper precautions can be manageable... Just remember, run around hooting and hollaring throwing knives at concrete because of your perceived success Will Always invite the Laws of Physics, or Darwin to say the least. Change for a Nickel ?

I always had a thing for knives. From my first swiss army at 8 years old to now. One day after many years working on computers, I got fed up with them. Decided I like knives so much, so why not make them ? As luck would have it, a relative invited me to the Ukraine. Spent some time there. While there I took the opportunity to meet some local blacksmiths with the help of my relative. They agreed to let me hang around. After many months of sweeping, grinding and breaking up coal, They let me work at the forge more. They soon after started teaching me more about the art. I consider myself lucky for the opportunity. Spent a good few months with them before I left. Great talented, hard working people. Wasn't till a couple years later that I realized when I first forged something. As a 10 year old kid I remember reading about lock picks on the internets. Yeah, give a kid AOL and what do you expect ? So I decided to make some out of some out of the flat metal band that came with old style headphones. Used some files that were laying around and made the shapes that I saw in the diagrams. It worked out well. But I remember having trouble making the Torque pick. And for some reason, I still don't know why, I remember thinking that, "Hey, if I heat this up it might bend easier". So late one night I took my metallic strip to the kitchen stove and heated it up until it was red hot. It bent easily, and the hammer took out the off angles in the metal, and after a few burns on my thumb I decided to cool (quench) in water. Needless to say, it came out hardened and properly shaped. And it worked very well for the task at hand. I still have the set I made. Don't know why I did it that way, and hadn't done anything similar until I started working more with metal. Weird, Huh? Guess some people are just born infected. -Bruno

http://video.pbs.org/video/2365104352/ Is where I saw it. Great show.

Ran across this old video of building a Steam Locomotive in the 1930's. Incredible what they managed to do so many years ago. Forging, Machining, Casting and all that fun.

I use the 3M 7500 Series half-mask. The P7093 Filters work great for all around dust and Grinding operations. Light-weight and Effective. I however use the 60926 Multi-Gas/Vapour cartridge for welding operations. It's heavier, and does not fit well under my welding hood, but I get by as I only weld in a hobby setting. The Multi-Gas/Vapour cartridge is better for organic vapours such as what zinc turns into when you weld on it and other gases. *THIS IS NOT AN ENDORSEMENT OF WELDING GALVANIZED*. I Would NOT TRUST IT! I believe O.S.H.A. requires a proper fitting of mask's and maybe different filters when welding Galvanized, and frankly I would NOT DO IT under any circumstances unless I had a full Face Welding Hood with Forced Air. *I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT O.S.H.A.* But not many of us have $1000 to spend on such a unit. Even then, I would not weld Galvanized because I don't think it's worth the risk to one's health. I use 60926 filters while welding because from what I read, it does well with welding fumes, and does a job of blocking Ozone created by my arc welder. Keep in Mind that All of these Filters are intended for "Nuisance Level" smoke and particulates. Having said that, if you walk into an enclosed room full of welding smoke thinking your mask will protect you and then Die, It's your fault. Overall, I would recommend a Half-Face mask to anyone doing anything involving Dust/Grinding/Cleaning or anything else the puts Nasties in the air for you to breath. They even make filters for Lead Based Paint or Mold clean-up situations, but something that toxic usually requires wearing a full Disposable plastic suit to avoid the spread of contamination through Clothes, shoes or other means. Stay Safe. -Bruno

Wow, Great Info Dan C. Never thought of that. I'll try it out next time I weld something real thin. Thanks -Bruno

My .02 cents. Avoid anything from harbor freight. I've seen old AC/DC arc welders around me at swap meets for less than $100. I'm using an old Forney AC only arc welder. Got it for free, or at least the boss let me have it after a long day of hard work. Solid welder. And has done all that I've asked it too so far. It sticks metal together. Limited to using 6011, 6013 and 7018 for the most part, but that's all I really need anyway for my home projects. Got the welder for free, but then I spent $40 on a cheap welding helmet, $80 on leads and connectors, $200+ wiring my garage for 220v just cause I wanted power on both sides of the garage, $40 for the initial rods, and I'm sure a few other things like gloves, etc. So I say take whatever you can get. Them older machines are rock solid and don't consist of much more than a large chunk of copper wiring. I've seen pro machines for $3000+ and Mig setups for around $400. All depends on what you are doing. My view is that if you can arc weld well, then anything else should be easy to pick up. Sure some machines are nicer than others, but if you just need to stick metal together, can't go wrong with an old AC/DC machine. Will probably outlast you. Check out swap meets if there are any in your area. A good welding course is also advisable. The safety information you would gain is worth whatever price you paid for the course and might save you a hospital stay. I have a Praxair Supplier near me. They have everything I can ever want and much of what I can't afford. If you have the cash and lots of welding to do, then by all means go all out and get the best you can afford. Otherwise an old Arc will serve you just fine I think. Also, I can weld thin stock with my Arc. Not easy. Just gotta turn the power way down and be very slow and careful. Thin stock heats up real fast and you'll blow a hole through it in no time if you try to maintain a bead. Better to Tap and let cool, tap and let cool. Takes practice as does anything. But then again, if I'm welding thin stock, 1/16" or less, I don't expect much from the stock, much less the weld. So it's usually for prototyping or non critical applications. If you want to weld forged leaves onto a forged stem or something like that, then a Mig would probably serve you better. Maybe that was more like .04 cents ? Got any change ? :P :) -Bruno

search for "30 gallon steel drum" on amazon. More expensive, but it's there.

Looks Cool. Head all safety warnings from the Knowledgeable here. I sent most of the rebar I had laying around to the scrap yard. I broke a Himalayan Imports sword a while back. Thought they were Awesome when I first bought it. Was disappointed in the Rat-tail Tang that was used. When I look back at it, I think of how lucky I am that it harmlessly fell to the ground in front of me instead of sticking me in the face. Rebar scales sounds like a cool idea though. Btw: I like your anvil setup, Looks like timing chain holding it down ? Looks Cool :) -Bruno

Lookup "Mongo Burner" and Ron Reil. Also if really interested: Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces & kilns written by Michael Porter. Should give you all the information you need. More than one way to skin a cat. -Bruno

Everyone wants to make a sword. So do I one day. I wish all attempters safety and luck. Frankly, I think anyone can make one. But there are very few makers that can make one I would trust my life or health with. number1001, the only end all super sword ever conceived was/is the Light Saber. Everything else is a compromise. Learn as much as you can, and try not to watch HighLander while you're doing it :p It fuzzes things up a bit on expectations. I say Go fer it and Good Luck. But I would do my best to make sure anybody else is left unhurt from your creation, saving yourself from injury is a great Bonus too. Don't mean to discourage at all. Sometimes the best way to learn is the hard way. -Bruno

Stick with what you can see in the video, and see if you can get that to work first, then you can modify as necessary. The larger the opening, the more heat you will need and more heat will escape. Start small, learn what you can from the process, then make another if need be. These small forge designs are not really meant to be super efficient or that useful for production. More for getting your feet wet with forging. Like I said, you are probably looking at 3/8" to 1/2" diameter stock tops. Anything bigger just wont really work in these small one brick forges. Start small, and avoid making your own modifications until you have a good understanding of what is going on with the process. Short-cuts will lead you to wasted effort and expense. Follow the proven designs and focus on getting those to work the way they are supposed to. As far as forges go, there are many reputable companies. Lookup Atlas Forge, Diamondback Forge, Chile Forge, NC Forge, and I'm sure there are more. Depends on whether you want propane or coal. If you can't find it here on the forums, there is this new Internet company out there, I believe they are called Google or something like that. I think they may be able to help you as well :p -Bruno

Iron_Bear, Re-Read Rich Hales advice. Second, judging from your pictures... I would say your torch is too small, and your brick forge is not conducive to laminar heat flow. In other words, your heat is hitting one spot and concentrating there, as opposed to moving around in a nice even flow through-out your heat chamber. I would try again using only 1 brick, and maybe a hole cutting saw or large wood paddle bit to create your heat chamber. With such a setup you can only expect limited results. Don't think it will get hot enough to weld aluminium, and only hot enough to move small amounts of iron/steel, probably 3/8" diameter tops. Learn about your materials, learn about temperatures required, learn about getting required heat, but most of all just learn. Working metal is not impossible or even that tricky, just more specific in nature. Keep at it and you'll figure it out. Look-up charcoal, hair dryers, blowers, one-brick forges. If all else fails, save your pennies and invest in a good product that has been well made and will get you on your way to forging, that might make your transition to knowledge more bearable. Good Luck -Bruno