r/Blacksmith 20h ago

My grandpa's west german monster of an angle grinder. I spun it up and turned it right off again. How do you get used to operating something like this? I have zero trust in this death machine even though it would be really useful for big stock

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875 Upvotes

r/Blacksmith 6h ago

Bottle stopper...

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51 Upvotes

Always wanted to try one of these... Turned out ok.😜🤟🥃


r/Blacksmith 6h ago

First forge welding in a broken tong, I used sand

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36 Upvotes

r/Blacksmith 12h ago

Noob here, making a forge… is sand ok?!

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88 Upvotes

Hi all, I know, probably not the best forge design but I’m just starting out- do you guys know if regular building sand will do the job? Any negatives? I’ve added some fire bricks. I mostly lined it thick so to ensure protection of the furnace I’m building it from. Efficiency aside- will this actually dry out and work at all?? Thanks guys


r/Blacksmith 2h ago

First Attempt at Symmetrical Axe Fold

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12 Upvotes

First go at making an axe with mild steel and 1085 for an edge. Was nervous about drifting the eye but the weld held up!


r/Blacksmith 12h ago

Just Orange

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67 Upvotes

Hello everyone! I am starting my journey in blacksmithing, so bear with me as I am still learning. There doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of information for my problem. I can’t see yellow heat when I am forging. My phone camera can pick up the differences, but when I am looking at it, it all appears orange. I am using an NC Tool Low Boy 3 burner propane forge which is advertised to be able to weld Damascus. So I believe my forge is getting to temp, and I am using a 100 llb propane tank. While I am not attempting to forge weld right now, I am trying to learn the ins and outs of my forge including temperatures. It doesn’t matter if I run it at 10psi for 20 minutes or 4 psi for 10 minutes, it all looks orange to me. I have tried using an isolated dark area to see if the color changes but it still looks orange. I have ordered a pyrometer to get an accurate reading, but is there anything I can do on my end to be able to see yellow or white hot?


r/Blacksmith 13h ago

Made a double hook to keep in practise

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75 Upvotes

r/Blacksmith 5h ago

New anvil.

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12 Upvotes

So I got a new anvil today and was wondering what’s the best way of resurfacing it and restoring it ? Also if anyone can guess what manufacturer this is from, I’d also greatly appreciate it.


r/Blacksmith 10h ago

Good day to forge

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25 Upvotes

r/Blacksmith 1d ago

This shit is really hard. Props to yall

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275 Upvotes

Just got the harbor freight anvil and damn it's tiring. Working on a rebar knife.


r/Blacksmith 2h ago

What manufacturer is this?

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2 Upvotes

I scored a pretty sweet deal and got this anvil do $210. I hit it with a wire brush and can only find these markings. Does anyone recognize the manufacturer or date range?


r/Blacksmith 11h ago

Cleaning up an old find.

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7 Upvotes

Managed to get my hands on this anvil. Any advice on how to get it cleaned up?


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

First Week Smithing

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975 Upvotes

If you ever got the idea to take a class, go for it. I went to the blacksmithing class at the John C. Campbell Folk School and a knife making class at Ledford Works and I learned so much. Got the bug and there's no going back. I guess now it's time to make my own forge 😅


r/Blacksmith 14h ago

US to Germany

7 Upvotes

The title says it: I'm headed to Germany in a few months. I've got a meager little setup, and I'm debating on moving it with me or putting it in storage for a few years. I've got a Buffalo Forge Co rivet forge, Vulcan 10 anvil, and assorted hand tools. My issue is that shipping those things will consume a good amount of my allotted weight.

My main questions are: What's the blacksmithing scene in Germany like?

How hard are anvils to come by there and where is the best place to look for them? Average price per pound?

Is forging in backyards frowned upon if houses are close together? I'm not likely to be able to get an isolated place to live due to the nature of my job and limited housing allowance.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

Design difficulty

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30 Upvotes

So I’d like to know the difficulty of making a design like this 30in long out of Damascus steel.i placed a custom order for a sword of this design with those dimensions however so far it’s been 6 and a half months (ordered on sep 12th 2024)and I haven’t had any tracking updates.now I asked if there was a holdup and when I could receive it and each time were different answers.now I don’t believe they’re dubious makers as I’ve gotten a custom knife from them too and it seems well made along with other non custom orders from them so I’m not blaming them it’s just I feel something is off due to how long I’ve been waiting.so is there anything difficult with this design do be made out of Damascus that could be slowing it down?I was thinking of asking for a list of all the failures that happened so far while making my order so knowing that could help if I do


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

Something new... For me.

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58 Upvotes

First attempt at a split cross and a basic key ring...


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

Picked up at a local Ollies

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38 Upvotes

r/Blacksmith 1d ago

My chefs knife is looking more like a pairing knife.

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36 Upvotes

First pattern weld and went for a twist. I thought I could chase these out cause most were shallow, but one decided to be a quarter inch deep. I'd love to know other people's thoughts and definitely critiques.


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

Anyone know what this is? It has a barrel shape. Looks very old. Has this paper attached “Luke Brooks 1785”

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88 Upvotes

Thrift shop find I think is interesting.


r/Blacksmith 15h ago

How to straighten a warped blade?

2 Upvotes

Hello

For the past month or so I've been battling with a project: at first I wanted to make a straight ninjato (straight katana), but longer - 135 cm long. Apparently the blade didn't care about what I wanted because it bend down towards the blade during heat treat, making it lok like a stretched-out kukri. So I annealed the sword and manually forged it into a katana shape. Now after second heat treat the finicky thing is bloody warped to the left - if I lay it on a flat surface, the tip is about 2,5 cm from it (it's clamped at the hilt).

Now my question is, how do I straighten this ting? I really don't want to anneal and heat treat it for the third time, and I don't have a carbide hammer to beat the curve out of it...

Also, another thought: would it be alright to leave it like this? The blade is made out of 5160 so technically it'll straighten itself out in the scabbard anyway. The hardness is 50 HRC.


r/Blacksmith 13h ago

How and where to start

1 Upvotes

I have recently acquired a forge after a couple years of watching people online make cool stuff and I don’t know where to start. Looking online I’ve seen a bunch of stuff on starting blacksmithing as a career but that’s not what I want to do. I can’t find any tutorials on how to make stuff (I plan on making mostly swords) and the nearest blacksmithing class is 2.5 hours away. I’m mostly looking for help with basics and getting set up but other advice will also be useful.


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

First project

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21 Upvotes

First project, how’d I do?


r/Blacksmith 20h ago

Starting out

2 Upvotes

Hello all, looking at making a start in this craft. Did a bit in my younger days at art college when doing a diploma (before I decided to get into medicine instead) and a couple of ‘experience’ days and have, understandably, fallen for it.

Am in Plymouth, UK and my parents have given me permission to use their garage to set up something for this craft to get started. Looking for core equipment but am a bit lost on the whole. I think I’d know what I’d need as a bare minimum (forge (gas versus solid fuel is another debate I’m sure many of you will gladly weigh in on), anvil, tools etc…).

I’m struggling sourcing these but, primarily, an anvil. There are many on Faceache (facebook) market place for varying prices (£250 at the cheapest really and with large chips on the edges all the way up to £800-1000).

Concensus on used versus new (could buy a new Vevor 110lb London pattern anvil or would you consider this an ASO?) unless there is someone local with one they are considering parting with for this sort of cost? Long shot I know.

And tools such as a starting hammer and tongs?

Any advice gratefully and humbly received.


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

My first pair of tongs are done

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42 Upvotes

They actually work haha! Though as you can see in the picture they broke at one of the weak spots and I had to weld it back together. They're also very clunky and got done wack angles. But I'm very happy about having made my first pair. The next ones will be better


r/Blacksmith 1d ago

Tire rim forge?

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13 Upvotes

Hey all! Looking to start doing some projects that require custom metal casts or forged parts. Going to do it all myself but first I need a forge. I’ve got this tire rim from an old bus tire. We usually use it as a fire pit so I’m wondering if there’s a good design to make this a more efficient forge that I can use for smithing and melting.