Hi everyone!
I am brand new to the world of Bladesmithing. I've been wanting to start forging for many years but it didn't happen. This year is gonna be my 40th so I decided I should pursue what I always wanted to do. I recently built a small Charcoal forge out of a bread pan and got my hand on a small railroad track anvil. It's not much but it will allow me to start learning.
I haven't forged anything yet. Before starting, I really wanted to gather as much info as possible on the craft, which is why I just joined ABS. I want my first hammer strike to be purposeful and my learning to be focussed on the right things.
I also want to share a bit of my journey, as this community seems to be towards sharing knowledge and experiences.
So here I am!
Francis
Welcome to the ABS and Forum.
Anthony
Bonjour,
Welcome to the brotherhood of the blade; it's nice to meet you!
The best way to learn is to do, so don't be too focused on getting it right. Go out there, make mistakes, then educate yourself about why it didn't work. The learning process is only made FASTER by your failures. When I first started, I could have accomplished so much more if I hadn't been afraid of ruining my work. Ironically, it was a series of successful knife builds that most held me back.
Bladesmithing education resources I would recommend:
1) This Forum!!!! There are centuries worth of collective experience available to you here.
2) University of YouTube- hundreds of hours worth of great tutorials. Walter Sorrells has a long running series called "Tips for the Knifemaker"
There are a good number of other makers producing great content on line as well.
3) ANYTHING Kevin Cashen has ever said, posted, published or written in a snowbank... you can find lots of his work available here. But not that last part...
I hope these suggestions will help you.
Au revoir!
-Evan
Evan L. Cihak
