Where to start

[Zachary Hile]

I’m completely new to blacksmithing and I would like to know what project I should start with.

[Daswulf]

Hi Zachary, there are a bunch of threads on beginner projects. Try searching "beginner projects" in your search engine with "iforgeiron" after it. Should bring up a bunch. 

[Eventlessbox]

Zach,

I am a very green new smith as well. One place that I have found several ideas has actually been my local library. They only had three books on blacksmithing but one was a primer (book for someone with little to no knowledge on a subject) and the other two were both beginner blacksmith books with project ideas. 

Welcome to the addiction.

[Frosty]

Welcome aboard Zach, glad to have you. As mentioned already there is a beginner section here with projects and the library will have books on the basics if they don't have them in the stacks they can ILL them from elsewhere. That's Inter Library Loan.

What do you have for a forge, anvil, hammers? Once you have those 3 basics you can make the rest, it's part of what makes blacksmithing so addictive. You get to play with fire and hit things with hammers, you will be manipulating THE symbol of strength and durability in the human mind with fire and hammer. Once you discover you can make what you need it'll impart real independence, you can make what you need. 

Best of all it's more fun than should be legal and there are thousands of folk here with ideas, knowledge and experiences to help. Hmmm?

Frosty The Lucky.

[JHCC]

I just did a search of the Mifflin County Public Library online catalog for "blacksmith" and found Charles McRaven's Country Blacksmithing, Randy McDaniel's Blacksmithing Primer, and Foxfire 5. Assuming that's the right local library, you're in good shape to get started.

(Assuming, that is, that you don't get distracted by all the Amish blacksmith-themed romance novels that that search also turned up....)

[pnut]

The Foxfire books are great. There's more than blacksmithing too. They cover a wide variety of subjects relating to life in Appalachia. 

Pnut (Mike)

JHCC, thanks for reminding me about those books and the Foxfire fund. Haven't thought about them in years.

[ClassicGrimey]

30 minutes ago, JHCC said:

(Assuming, that is, that you don't get distracted by all the Amish blacksmith-themed romance novels that that search also turned up....)

I for one would be very interested in seeing what an Amish blacksmith-themed romance novel has got going for it...

[JHCC]

Isn't that plain?

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

If you are using a solid fuel forge (coal/charcoal), I suggest learning to build and maintain the fire. That's the first thing my mentor taught me to do and I thought I knew how to do that. I found out it's not as simple as building a campfire. Good tips here on IFI concerning that subject.

[Frosty]

4 hours ago, JHCC said:

Isn't that plain?

Frosty The Lucky.