December 22, 201411 yr Hi, all! So I want to forge some forks. And spoons. And butter knives, spatulas, ladles, and all the fun kitchen things. Things you put in your mouth to put other things in your mouth, mostly. So the question is, what kind of metal do I use for this? I figure mild steel with its rusty bits would be less than ideal, but I could be wrong. I've been wrong before. It was weird. Also pictures!
December 22, 201411 yr hmm, i'd figure SS would be nice, that's what most silverware is made out of either way, just make sure it ain't galv or anything else of that nature, wait for the more wiser guys to come along with their suggestions on what to use, they know a good bit more than me
December 22, 201411 yr Carbon steel works just fine, but it takes a bit more care. 304 or 316 stainles is nice to,as it doesn't corode if properly pickeld
December 22, 201411 yr mild steel works fine. use a vegetable oil for a hot oil finish. never had any rusty bits, always kept them in the tack room.
December 22, 201411 yr My favorite is Monel! It is very stain resistant! Expensive and tough to move though! The finished products and patinas are extremely durable!
December 22, 201411 yr Has any one used that new high cromium low nickel stainless from SA? Forgot the designation
December 22, 201411 yr Author I'll try my hand at each of these and see which I enjoy. Thanks for the info! Very helpful!
December 22, 201411 yr stainless is a lot of work to forge short temp range to work in. I like A-311 steel medium carbon steel.
December 22, 201411 yr Stainless and monel are extremely tough to do anything with, even cut. Stick to carbon steel and keep the product clean and vegetable oil after cleaning.
December 22, 201411 yr I use mild steel. You just have to care for it the same way you would a cast iron skillet.
December 29, 201411 yr Lets see I have made forks from A36, 1018, 316, 440 C, and Titanium. They have all worked.
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