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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Earth
    Posts
    3,567

    Default Down The Rabbit Hole - Forging My Own Japanese Tools

    Well it was inevitable that I would end up here. I am now so far down the hole I no longer know which way is up.

    With the help of a few friends I have been putting together the kit that would allow me to start forging my own tools. I have near zero smithing experience outside of two months I lived with two blacksmiths in Tasmania a few years back. I also have a friend who is a professional knife smith who makes Japanese style laminated blades.

    So this is the forge kit. Bought from https://www.artisansupplies.com.au/. Basically you buy the kit which comes with the hoses, tubing regulator and insulation. Then I bought an empty 9kg LPG tank from Bunnings. The steel tubing came from the school, that allowed me to build the frame. The welding done by another teacher. I tried to buy hammers and tongs locally but it seems that most blacksmith retailers in OZ do not have any stock. So I bought these from https://www.angele-shop.com/shop/en in Germany. They were recommended to me and I have only good things to say about them.

    So here are some photos. The forge is set up at school (work) so I get to use the school gas and anvil. The stand has two side rails that allow me to hang tongs and hammers from however I want to add a shelf that I can rest things on like tongs. I am sure the stand will evolve. The forge can get steel to a straw yellow almost white so welding temperature but it cannot burn the steel aka make a sparkler.

    B78C6302-2B19-4601-ADE4-FBD44BD72444.jpg B2D78B24-0E0B-4717-9ED6-DD876CAB55E4.jpgY

    I have access to a whole bunch of 6 & 12mm mild rod and I will use that for basic practice. Once I get the hang of drawing out and shaping. My knife maker friend will teach me to forge weld. He is also going to supply me with wrought iron and blue steel No 2. Then I will start making small marking knives, Kebiki blades and eventually a full on plane blade.

    This is something that I will be able to commit some time to as it’s at school and when ever I have lunch or a free period I can practice Forging. So I will keep you posted. I will even inscribe the tools with my Japanese name Heromuto.

    I want to get a Japanese hammer and a Sen, a tool for scraping the ura on Japanese tools and knives. However the sen maybe hard to find.

    Here is my first practice piece the first of a series of hooks that the kids can hang their aprons on.

    C5C8C28E-E168-449F-82BA-80EE30F14156.jpg 9A8119C0-88F5-4DAA-805F-1BEE906E8A24.jpg

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  3. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Location
    Perth
    Posts
    27,756

    Default

    If you want feedback or help you might want to post smithy stuff in the MW Smithy forum.

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    blue mountains
    Posts
    4,882

    Default

    Down the rabbit hole? Looks more like you are hooked.
    Pretty nice hooks by the way.
    Regards
    John

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2011
    Location
    McBride BC Canada
    Posts
    3,543

    Default

    I thought about it. I need decades of practice for striking accuracy. I quit. Fun to try.

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Adelaide Hills, South Australia
    Posts
    4,311

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by thumbsucker View Post
    I tried to buy hammers and tongs locally but it seems that most blacksmith retailers in OZ do not have any stock.
    They say you only need to buy (or borrow) one pair of tongs... as blacksmiths make their own and only need one pair to get going, but don't ask me how the very first pair got made. The blacksmith's version of what came first; the chicken or the egg...

    I spent a lot of time in blacksmith workshops as a child and they had dozens of tongs that they had made for different purposes hanging up ready for particular jobs. No doubt you will make a few yourself before you are done, Thumbsucker.

    You might be amused by the attached blacksmith apprenticeship indenture for my great uncle from 120 years ago, which I will attempt to attach. Try getting an apprentice to sign something like that nowadays!

    Daniel White apprenticeship indenture.docx

    That great uncle was descended from 400 hundred years of unbroken Welsh blacksmiths, so you would think it would be in my blood, but when it comes to metalwork I struggle with anything more demanding than straightening a bent nail...

    So, I can't offer any useful advice, but will certainly follow your progress with interest.
    Stay sharp and stay safe!

    Neil



  7. #6
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    Sutherland Shire, Sydney
    Age
    71
    Posts
    1,301

    Default

    I visited the Timber, Tools & Artisans show at Rosehill today, and stopped by the knife making stand where they had a range of tongs - https://www.artisansupplies.com.au/p...c=22783a5940ef

    They had a very interesting stand with heaps of bits and pieces on display. I'm not into blacksmithing or knife making, just liked looking at all the gear available, and enjoyed watching the forging of a knife from a bit of steel flat bar.

    Enjoy your new hobby.

    Alan...

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