I've been at blade smithing for all of 6 weeks. I built a paint can forge, and while it was great for heat treating, I know I could never forge weld with it. Not with the one I built anyway.

So I built a new forge out of a 2 1/2 gallon air tank. Built a 3/4 T-burner and with a little help from Frosty, it is a little dragon. 

Then I decided I needed a set of tongs instead of vice grips because, MAN, this new forge gets hot!

I decided to make a set and it took me about 3 hours of hard sweaty labor. They ain't pretty, but they work and I'm more proud of them than any knife I've made so far. Let's just say that  new found respect for blacksmithing was born.

Before making these tongs, my forge  was just a means to the end of bladesmithing. Now I think I have "the bug" and I want to make some more useful tools and want to move into other areas eventually, like cabinet pulls, bottle openers, small things like that.

The next thing I want to make is a fuller jig and I know I need chisels and punches. 

What else should I look into, being just a beginner?

"Fuller jig?" One side, both, length ways or cross ways? Make a guillotine tool. You can make whatever kinds of dies you want for it.

There is a section here about beginner projects including beginner instructional books with plenty of them.

Frosty The Lucky.

Let me check out those projects then. I thought about something simple like this for a fuller jig small enough for small to medium size knives:

Just a piece of square stock that will fit in the hardy hole, with a couple of pieces of round run through it flattened a little at one then rounded of on those flat parts. 

Just off the top of my head. I'll look around here and on youtube too and see what I find. 

I'm just now doing a knife with my first fuller and I made a jig and cut it with an angle grinder and that just didn't make me happy. Going to try some stone attachments in my Dremel to clean it up than make a jig for the next one. 

I did see a youtube video to make a spring fuller tool using only round bar stock, but I know that would be way beyond me right now. 

Going to go pour over these projects now. Thanks again Frosty!

A one-piece spring fuller is easy to make. Check out this thread.

BOOM! Thanks! I was way overthinking it....as usual.  

 

Thanks, 

Easy to do, especially when you're new to all this.