He forged the modified type XVIIIb blade in 80CrV2, and the guard & pommel from mild steel. The handle is leather wrapped walnut, then everything was blackened. Did I mention he's only 15?! I am thinking a fun Forged In Fire episode would be just my four best students going head to head because they are getting daaaarn good.

Oh GREAT Theo, now EVERY teenage boy is going to want to forge a sword! Where are the future coin and stamp collectors going to come from if you keep turning out bladesmiths like this?

Nice blade, he's earned that big fat grin. 

Frosty The Lucky.

Weight?

Way to go Finn! Nicely done.

Sweeeeeet. Congrats, Finn. 

That's awsome... but will it kill?

Nice looking blade. Please don't tell me that's his first project.

"First for the toughness test we're going to chop this boxcar in half, then we'll test it's sharpness by splitting an atom."

On 4/12/2018 at 3:49 PM, John in Oly, WA said:

Nice looking blade. Please don't tell me that's his first project.

"First for the toughness test we're going to chop this boxcar in half, then we'll test it's sharpness by splitting an atom."

lol, on point

On 4/12/2018 at 3:49 PM, John in Oly, WA said:

"First for the toughness test we're going to chop this boxcar in half, then we'll test it's sharpness by splitting an atom."

Ha!

Sounds like tough tests to me. A wood or steel box car? What do you think for the KEEL test, ox carcass? I vote for a troll carcass. 

Frosty The Lucky.

Wood boxcar would be enough. You'd still have to get through the metal frame.

Dead troll or live? Live would really be a true KEEL test, although outcome might be questionable.

Couldn't resist the attempt at humor, but I do admit, I really like Forged In Fire. Watch every episode. Imagine someone coming back from their home forge with a light saber. LOL

The wood boxcar I know of was just wood---with some 1/2" wrought iron rods crisscrossing it.  Well right now it's a pile of rotten wood and rattle snakes.

Interesting Thomas. How were the wheels held on? I would have (actually I did) thought that with the force of pulling numerous cars, there had to be some sort of continuous metal connection between couplers. If just wood, they'd eventually pull apart. But that's what I get for thinking.

I didn't dig that deep, see mention of rattlesnakes.  It could have been just the "box" removed from the running gear.  It could be the running gear has sunk into the desert.

Where's your sword? You could fight off the rattlesnakes, have dinner then find out the answer. 

Wasn't there an old saying about being the type of guy who'd bring a sword to a rattlesnake fight?   Hoe is more traditional out here...

You are welcome to come out and try it yourself; just watch out for roadrunners and falling anvils...

Only time I ever saw anyone go after a rattlesnake, it was with a spade shovel. They had to get it out of the bushes first. Rangers at a state park in Eastern Washington. Rattlesnake made the mistake of getting too close to the campers. I just stood well back and watched.

I'm not much of a desert person Thomas.   I'll stick with the rattlesnakes we have up here. Well I've never seen one in person but they are around. I'd prefer to keep it that way. 

I had 3 one year at my Casita, my neighbors had 18, (bigger place). OTOH no copperheads or cottonmouths in the desert... More scorpions and black widow spiders and of course the large centipedes. Many fewer Mosquitoes and a rainy day is considered a blessing!

Copperheads I have seen. Not much of a problem in my location but in the mountains more so. So far right now winter does not want to let go. We had a few beautiful days and now it's been snowing and cold again. It would be nice to get a little bit of dry warm weather so the ground will dry up a little. 

Only supposed to get up to 84 today with 25-35 mph winds and gusts to 50 mph. Humidity is 6% so you might say it's drying out the ground---except that it's already dried out...Kind of weather where I wash all my dirty bluejeans and hang them in the bedroom to dry and put some humidity in the air overnight.

37 degrees f here and 71% humidity.  My Dehumidifier runs constant in my basement from early spring to late fall. 

We don't have many rattlesnake in TN, but I have seen and killed a ton of cottonmouths and copperheads.  When I was 14 I got one by jumping on its neck to hold it down and cutting it's head of with my knife.  IIRC I was Barefoot too. Little redneck farmboy...

What's a basement?  When I lived in Socorro NM; I knew of as many personal fallout shelters as basements; 1 of each and the basement was a special deal as the house used to be used by the state police and so had a battery plant in the basement.

A basement is where desert dwellers have to keep their humidity, or did when I were one.

I have a snake lives on the front porch, bought it when the toilet was plugged. (No, nothing so manly MAN.) Do all you guys name your snakes and what do you call the toilet?

Frosty The Lucky.