Spear head in progress

[Wesley Chambers]

Had a leaf spring looking at me funny, tired of the sword and dagger "thing" so I thought I would have a go at my first spearhead. The quillon like protrusions still need a bit of shaping and finish work, I'll get that done tomorrow before I start work on the blade grind, think Im going to file this one by hand. Can't wait to get back to coke, the gas is nice for shoeing but meh such a waste of heat.

[Mainely,Bob]

Nice work and post.Thanks for putting it up.
Nice to see complete progress pics in a size that you can use without scrolling. :D

[don't tread on me]

looks deadly

[Wesley Chambers]

Thanks, getting ready to start on the file work, normally I'll cheat and use a grinder or belt but not today!

[brianbrazealblacksmith]

Nice job, and great approach, Wesley!

[Wesley Chambers]

Thanks Brian, wish I could have done more today but I forgot my gloves, Brilliant! see photo 1... but a lot of progress for a 9" file and 2 hours! hahah oh well. I love how precise hand filing can be compared to quick moving high grit belt lol.

I also added an instructional pic of how to slowly bring down the blade profile, most here I'm sure know this but for any that didnt here ya go~




Day two, didnt spend as much time with it today, hunting for a larger file. Wondering how far back I want to bring the taper, I kinda like the axe grind on the broad head.

[Bentiron1946]

Planning for the boar hunt already are you? Blisters? I haven't seen blisters on hands in forever, the use of hand tools seems to be waning these days, most folk just use a grinder. When you use hand tools you have lots of time to contemplate things, think them through, real different isn't it? That's a real killer of a spear head, it should do that boar in just fine. When's the BBQ? :P

[Wesley Chambers]

Pig Roast sounds like a great idea, the roommate wants to go anyway. Know of any good hunting areas around Ky or adjoining states?

Actually a roast/hammer in sounds like an even better idea~

Start of day 3, only at it for an hour so far, taking the pup to the park while my file soaks in muriatic acid. I was worried at the start about how well the annealing went, but with a fresh file I'm pealing off 1-2 mil bits so that's good, and bad they are getting stuck in the file so I gotta go to the wire brush every 5 min.



Almost doubled the width of the bevel, just about equal with the underside edge as well, slow and steady right?

[Larry H]

Some filing tips: don't hold the file with a death grip, use proper form, don't push to hard, or lean on the file, it may cause large chips and deeper gouges that you ultimately have to file out, let the tool do the work.
when you get down to the file that feels like a smooth worn out useless tool, thats the one that gives the mirror finish. My first time finishing a blade, I didn't believe a file could do that ! !, I could see myself, and believe me, no one should have to see that !

[John B]

with a fresh file I'm pealing off 1-2 mil bits so that's good, and bad they are getting stuck in the file so I gotta go to the wire brush every 5 min.

If you rub soapstone or soft chalk into the teeth of the file it should help prevent the pinning you are having problems with

[Mainely,Bob]

Another file tip is to warm the file in the sun and rub wax on it.The wax both keeps the file from loading up and also keeps it from rusting.
Draw filing will usually cut faster and leave a better finish than conventional filing.

[Wesley Chambers]

I must say after the past few days of actual draw filing properly Im upset no one ever taught me the technique before, but I guess as the age of hand tools wains its understandable.

[Akad]

Love the in-progess pics. Starting to make me stare back at my leaf springs.

[Bentiron1946]

Wesley, Don't feel bad, most of us old pharts were taught that either by our fathers or in high school metal shop. The American school system now thinks it a mortal sin for a young man or woman to want to work with their hands and mind instead of just their mind sitting on their butt in front of a computer. You are an exception to that thought, you want to do a job that requires you to use you hands and mind, to think in a three dimensional way, good on you. Now you get to learn and practice the skill of you ancestors. B)

[Ed Steinkirchner]

i consider myself lucky that i had metal shop in junior high, the three years i tookit were the last years it was offered. the teacher was told that he could get any new tech machinery he needed but he refused. seems that hethought we learned more from retaking the same notes as the year before and making sugar scoops than from anything else. he tought shop for years and was being a bit stubborn, and though i under stand it, it could have ended differently. i learned to drawfile in that class as well as most of the safety procedures. luckily before they got rid of everything a few of the old text books from the 1960s walked into a few of the students' "private libraries"
i for one wasn't involved

cant wait to see the finished spear, good work so far

Ed Steinkirchner

[Wesley Chambers]

My apologies for the late update, finally got to work a little more. Major file work done I still need some small work near the base of the bevel but Ill fix that before the next stage of sanding and HT.
Heh, she bit me today too, a walnut dropped onto my steel roof sounding like a gunshot, just enough for me to slip and let the edge slice deep into the top of my knuckle, thus the duct tape in the photo, made a nice little split from a plastic fork to keep it from bending and opening the flap wide heheh my lady will have a few choice words for me when she gets home to see it I fear.



I was looking at the cold steel boar spear this weekend at a friend's smithing booth, only 1/8" stamped steel, though a little longer than this one I think she will hunt just fine.

[Wesley Chambers]

So I had to speedup production, I have a friend that will be using the spear in a film he is acting in,"Swordbearer" and will be shooting a few scenes this weekend. I will be forging a but cap and if I can get my boars head forged I'll find a way use it instead.

Before oil quench:



After quench/clean and attacking the dead tree~



I wanted to make sure my $8 pine dowel would stand up to the movie shoot and that the quench was not catastrophic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9JvdnjaNFU

[Bentiron1946]

You could have bought a hickory handle for a rake or hoe and been better off than a large pine dowel. Nice looking boar hound, is he part Rhodesian Ridgeback? Should be somewhat fierce. Silly boy, don't he know that's not a pruning hook? :rolleyes:

[Wesley Chambers]

You could have bought a hickory handle for a rake or hoe and been better off than a large pine dowel. Nice looking boar hound, is he part Rhodesian Ridgeback? Should be somewhat fierce. Silly boy, don't he know that's not a pruning hook?

heheh well they didnt have any 6' rake/hoe handles but this is just for the movie prop, after they are done with it Ill use kiln dried ash, or if the buyer pays a little more Ill just order the Cold Steel brand ash wood boar spear shaft.

You are correct my pup, Baron is 100% Rhodesian Ridgeback, but as most of the videos I have seen of people hog hunting with dogs, not all the dogs make it home, he will NOT be going with me ;)

[Bentiron1946]

We had a Pit Bull/ Rhodesian Ridgeback mix, loyal dog but just so not the dog to have around other dogs. Turned him over to a fellow from South Africa that trained guard dogs, he loved him for his one person loyalty, but he still couldn't be around others unless with his trainer, not something you wanted for a pet.

[Wesley Chambers]

Yea the Ridgeback can be VERY loyal, overly so if not tended to properly, I wanted to make sure I could have my pup around anyone or anything. My Lady and I plan on having kids in a few years so from the day we got him at 8 weeks we exposed him to as many people places and things we could. He travels with me every day for my farrier work, loves the horses and the people soo much and is very intelligent so I've been very lucky with any training.

[Wesley Chambers]

Update, got off my lazy rump and forged out a quick but cap for the shaft, sorry about the photos I was fighting glare.



bit of black iron pipe a quick heat and a few whacks with a poorly fitting hardy guillotine to a point then a couple glancing blows to smooth the hole solid and poof my spear shaft is protected!