I'm no expert on how to learn blacksmithing, seeing as I only first picked up a hammer a few months ago. But wouldn't the best idea be to learn technique on junk or cheap steel, then transition to better steel once you learn technique? For monetary reasons, of course.

Going back to the car analogies people seem to love around here, that strikes me as: going to drivers ed and learning on automatic while you get a feel for traffic, how terrible other drivers are, etc. Then, once you've learned the basics, learning manual since that's the car you will be driving around town.

It can be hard to transition, but I think starting easier or cheaper can keep things relaxed and you don't feel like you need to hit the ground running.

Feel free to completely disagree. Again, I'm certainly the furthest thing from an expert.

Edit: to clarify, I'm responding to not using RR spikes for knives.

Edited July 22, 201510 yr by falsevacuum

I have gotten hundreds of pounds of auto springs for free over the years.  What are you using that is cheaper than free?  Why would one want to practice on something that works differently from what you are trying to learn to use?   Sort of like trying to learn to forge knives by knapping flint. eg: I was at a SOFA meeting once where someone was demonstrating and forged a punch to use.  I could tell that they were not used to forging high carbon steels by the way they worked and heat treated it and when they passed it around I pointed out that it had a crack in it---a safety issue.  They replied that it was good enough to use---except that it failed with the second hit.   If you want to make blades practice on something that needs to be treated like blade steels need to be treated then your work habits are set for what you want to do---and if you have beginner's luck you have a blade and not a practice piece!

Also part of what you need to practice is the heat treat that is crucial in getting a good blade.  It is something that cannot be "practiced"using mild steel. (been trying to edit my post for 6 minutes so far...)

Vacc: The point you seem intent on rationalizing around or ignoring isn't so much what's the best to learn how to forge a knife with it's learning to forge first.

Learn to forge. Once you know how to make the metal move to your bidding it's just an adjustment to change steel types. Learning heat treatment is just another process and another adjustment to type. Trying to make knife shaped things from poor steel isn't going to teach you much of use though not good blades. It certainly won't be by playing games with poor steel or learning bad habits.

Frosty The Lucky.

I got the copy from Lindsay Technical Books back a decade or two ago; my wife asked what I wanted for Christmas and I took one of their catalogs and marked a bunch of cheap books and said "get me one of these".  She bought me all of them!

The book says "Stanford Jr College"  so it's NOT more likely for the University proper.  Many universities had a "Jr college" associated with them; shoot I had a friend that got a 2 year Ag degree from Yale!  Being in 1917 they cover using wrought iron for their projects as well as mild steel and so of interest to me.

:) I stand corrected!

Let's try this:

Let's try this:

My first exposure to real blacksmithing was meeting Sylvan Hart of Harold Peterson's book 'The Last of the Mountain Men'  fame. He went to school to be an engineer early in the 20th century, where he was taught Latin, Greek, and Blacksmithing as part of the curriculum! He made all of his own knives, swords and flintlock firearms, from scratch. As well as copper samovars, and a thousand other things.

Seeing a bowie knife being quenched in a bucket of bear grease, and seeing the vapors ignite into a 6 foot tower of flame was what got me hooked on this craft. I blame the wasted part of my life (working, paying taxes, etc.) on society.

Edited July 23, 201510 yr by John McPherson
Fighting the 'FORBIDDEN' gremlin. Winning for once!

Let's try this:

Well my point is that if you want to ski on snow skiing on snow is far better practice than water skiing.  The habits you engrain working with the wrong metal can make working with the right one *harder*.  I've seen it in person; been teaching smithing for over 30 years now.

How many mechanics did you check to get that $20 price?  (And an auto junkyard is not the best place to go to get such items for forging---they make their money selling parts and you want to get them as scrap metal. I recently gave my local mechanic a bottle opener made from a wrench and he wanted to give me free access to his scrap pile in return. Of course small shops owned by the employees are a better place than Chain Auto Repair places...) I had a student once that worked at a place that turned brand new trucks into EMS vehicles, one of the first thing they did was scrap the springs and replace them with HD ones; He brought me several hundred pounds of springs that had 16 miles on them---distance from the dealership to their company.

 And you should start working on heat treat with your first forged KSO; or do you want to get your forging down solid and then start breaking everything you forge to start learning heat treating.

Edited July 23, 201510 yr by ThomasPowers

We are getting a bit off topic of this thread.....show me your anvil.... 

 

well i got some free time this weekend and made up my stump/stand for my first anvil and a new coal rake for the forge

Finally got that sawyers anvil on a scale. 265#. It is definitely fun to move around.

First the disclaimer.  I was not the one who welded on this girl, but I did cut the angle iron legs off and mount it the way it is now. One thing I can be sure of is that I did not overpay for it.  It only cost me a little effort to get it off the truck.  In all the pics I've seen here or elsewhere I've still not seen another like this.  It appears to have been manufactured without a base.  Anyone know why?

Looks to me that it may have separated from its base. Maybe a factory failure or broke sometime in the past then suedo repaired?? The "bottom" is about where it would have been forge welded to its base.

 

I don't know why it would have been made that way, but there was an anvil that was similar on the South Bend Indiana craigslist for a long time a few years ago.  

Just added another to the collection , Picked up this no name cast iron steel faced pre 1950 anvil , it does have the cwt on it, 2-0-14 { 238 lbs or 108 kg }. Picked it up on Sunday from a farm in the Mena Creek area { FNQ , Australia } where it had been sitting in a corner of an old stables come tractor shed for many years collecting dust.

I say pre 1950 because the family that is selling the farm now, took over the farm back in 1950 and the anvil was in the shed then, so I don't know how old it really is or for that , the brand either.

The only other markings on the anvil is " 1 1 " in the centre the toe of the front foot.

Came with 2 hardy tools and a pair of light tongs. One of the hardy tools has the brand of " PLUMB AUST. PTY. LTD." stamped into ,this company started using HYTEST FORGED TOOLS as a trading name in 1946 because of the usa brand Plumb inc. , and the company was sold in 1965 to the Trojan tool company.

Cast iron is far from the best material for an anvil but I could not walk away from it . Now I own the best door stopper in the street.

 

That doesn't look like cast iron to me...

That doesn't look like cast iron to me...

Base reminds me of the two mid 19 th century anvils that I have.   If there are square holes in the body under the Tail and the Horn it may be wrought Iron with a steel face.

here is one I made some time ago, I dont mind idiots using this one as it is just a couple of blocks of mild steel and a wear part of a mole plough for the horn.

my minion is hammering out some staples from rebar for a customer.

I have also just bought a 14lb KL anvil but it will be a few weeks before it is collected so no pictures yet

Here's my first *real* anvil: 

A 75 lb no name London Pattern Anvil. It has a ~7/8" hardie hole and a 9/16" pirtchel, drilled later through the cutting plate.

The only marking is a faint "X" on the far side horn facing left. 

She's not perfect, but she's mine. Now for a name....... 

Here's my first *real* anvil: 

A 75 lb no name London Pattern Anvil. It has a ~7/8" hardie hole and a 9/16" pirtchel, drilled later through the cutting plate.

The only marking is a faint "X" on the far side horn facing left. 

She's not perfect, but she's mine. Now for a name....... 

That's a pretty old anvil so pick a pretty old name!  how about Victoria as it may be close to her birth date or her ascension date.

That's a pretty old anvil so pick a pretty old name!  how about Victoria as it may be close to her birth date or her ascension date.

Is this anvil really so old? I think that Victoria is a splendid name for her, and henceforth and soforth, she shall be christened Victoria!