I have a brother who is in the process of building a forge for his own personal use. mostly farming equipment but he also does a few knives a year.  I am looking to buy a present for him to mark the occasion. He has just sold all his old tools with the intention of buying new ones. he has kept his vice, anvil and two TREASURED hammers.

any ideas would be appreciated. ill be ok buying a few small items tongs etc or one larger piece.

Thanks  

What about crafting a cool hand-forged sign for his new workshop?  Or perhaps something more practical like a hammer/tong rack or tool-stand that is personalized by you and might fall into the "nice to have when time to build it comes up" category rather than something like tongs or hardie tools that are more of a commodity he's more likely to buy or build on his own?

How about a gift certificate at Centaur, Peih Tool or Kayne and Sons? That way he can pick out something he needs or wants and ou don't have to worry about spending good money for something that doesn't fit him? Picking out something blacksmith quirky is a good thing too. Say a hat, t shirt, pin, trailer hitch cover. I forgeiron Curmudgeon T shirt

It can be tough picking out a gift for a craftsman to use in the shop without knowing the craft and his techniques. Some tools are very personal, using them is what makes them yours via muscle memory.

However there are "safe" tools every blacksmith uses that aren't personal like a pair of shoes. Tongs are a pretty safe bet if he makes knives bar tongs either flat or edge hold are very useful. Sneak out and measure the hardy hole in his anvil and get him a new hot hardy.

Frosty The Lucky.

Mark Aspery's books.  

Tools are great, but they're a very personal thing.  Knowledge.... that's priceless stuff and Mark's books are a solid investment because the skills in there can be applied towards a lot of different projects.

1 hour ago, VaughnT said:

Mark Aspery's books.  

Tools are great, but they're a very personal thing.  Knowledge.... that's priceless stuff and Mark's books are a solid investment because the skills in there can be applied towards a lot of different projects.

A solid second on this one. Or, given his interest in knifemaking, books by Jim Hrisoulas or Steven Sells.