I had two blade blanks in the gas forge at the shop yesterday, and I slid a piece of brass flat stock in so that I could anneal it. I turned around to place a hot cut hardy in the anvil, and when I pulled the brass out, a substantial part of it had melted off onto the blanks and the floor of the gas forge.

The brass appears to have fused to the blade blank surfaces (W-1 + heat scale + propane + brass), turned red, and doesn't seem to want to go anywhere without grinding and filing. Can someone tell me what I've done here and whether or not I've got two letter openers, or two blades that might feature "unique decoration" once I grind the brass off the blade surfaces?

Thanks,
Jim

You basically brazed the surface of the blanks. The red would indicate that it oxidized but it won't "soak" into the blank so you will be able to eventually get below the coating.

Unfortunately, you may have created a bad environment for further forging if the floor of the forge is covered in brass and it will probably need to be relined.

I'm not surprised to read that the forge floor would need relining. Luckily, I've got supplies for just such an occasion!

Thanks for the help,
J