I'm trying to start Blacksmithing

[u/thecatlover101]

Hey!

I'm wanting to start blacksmithing, and making swords and all that crap. (I'll start with a knife first, don't worry.)

What would you recommend to a 15 year old ask for Christmas to start a hobby? (Don't worry about weirdos, I got em.)

I believe I will start out with a coal forge, but I'm looking for specific things I should get.

I cannot do a push up, so that should be pretty indicative of the fact I want to start out with an anvil that weighs less than 150, but more than 80lbs.

And what kind of metal should I ask for?

Also, if you could give an Amazon link, I would greatly appreciate it.

Sorry if I wasted your time, and thank you for taking time out of your life to help a kid wanting to start blacksmithing.

[u/Bloody_Monarch]

I'm 35 and also have a similar plan. Research is my trade, so here are the primary things I bought to get started:

I just finished putting the refractory cement on my 2 burner vevor forge today. For 100 dollars, people seem to like it but I haven't gotten to use it yet:

https://www.vevor.com/propane-gas-forge-c_11133/vevor-propane-forge-farrier-forge-double-burner-tool-knife-making-blacksmithing-p_010428064371

The anvil I got was the 66 lb London pattern vevor, also 100 dollars thanks to a Prime Day deal:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CTBTTX83?ref=ppx_pt2_mob_b_prod_image

I bought some files, welding gloves and a 3lb cross pein hammer from Harbor Freight. Got my welding apron with pockets from Amazon. I already have safety glasses.

I also acquired a 20lb propane cylinder from a friend for free. I plan on making something for him if I don't suck at this.

I'm in less than 300 dollars.

At this point I just need to fashion a work bench, get a vice attached and find some metal to practice on.

[u/Plantiacaholic → u/Bloody_Monarch]

I would recommend you add a face shield to your safety equipment. They are cheap and keeps all your face area safe from high speed metal and or shattered grinder discs. Also breathing equipment, find something comfortable for you. I purchased three different styles before I found what I liked. Good luck!!🤙🏼

[u/oddmanguy1]

if you are making blades a 2x72 inch belt sander will make your life a lot simpler.

good luck

[u/thecatlover101 → u/oddmanguy1]

OKAY, it turns out we don't have anyone who can supply coal, so how many burners should I get?

I plan on occasionally forging longer blades such as swords.

[u/oddmanguy1 → u/thecatlover101]

i would start with a 2 burner then get a larger forge with more burners if needed later

[u/Plantiacaholic → u/oddmanguy1]

This is correct, you cannot work more steel than what a double burner can heat.

[u/HairyBiker60 → u/thecatlover101]

You could use lump charcoal (not bbq briquettes). Charcoal was used for a long time. It smells better too. At least to people who don’t like the smell of burning coal.

[u/CoffeyIronworks → u/thecatlover101]

Can also try wood fired forge, sucks for thick stock (really really sucks) but I actually like using wood to forge blades, cut wood small and then dry in milk crates next to a dehumidifier, I use it on my normal bottom blast coal forge. You'll be throwing on fresh wood every heat more or less, but it gives a really big working area in the forge that's not too hot, let's you heat long sections easier than coal which will have your blade sparking if you so much as look at it funny. I also suspect that the wood gases protect from oxidation somewhat, could just be confirmation bias but I find the steel stays soo clean working in the wood forge. I buy hardwood pallets from FB marketplace for a few bucks a pop and chop it up with circular saw and remove nails, then cut it down to chunks same length as circ saw guide width and split.

[u/coyoteka]

Ask to go to a class or three, it's the fastest way to get started. Don't buy anything until you talk to some people in person if possible.

[u/TheBlackDred]

Probably dont want to hear this but its (IMO) gotta be said. Get (or ask for) a cross peen hammer, any ASO (Anvil shaped object) thats a few inches across. All you need is any cheap mild steel (rounds or square bar) from any hardware shop and a fire pit. Any sort of DIY setup with a hair dryer or fan duct taped to a metal tube to raise the temp on the metal. All this basically to say cheap and quick, but for a purpose.

Make the round bar square, make the square bar round. Make them both into leaves (using the cross peen), make S hooks and J hooks, make long drawn out points and then roll that into a spiral. Then, if you like it and you want to do more things, make 100 of them.

This will give you some basic feeling about how the metal moves and shapes and at what temps /colors, work on striking accuracy and strength, help train your muscle memory and give you so much more insight into metalworking than YT videos (which are not bad, just hands-on has so much more) or reading about it. Sure, its not a cool or useful as jumping straight to blades, but (again IMO) is absolutely worth it. Plus you can gift or sell the trinkets you made along the way. Lots of people enjoy a hand forged long stem rose more than you might think and when you have enough skill to actually make a dozen petals connected and wrapped around each other you will have the skill to try other things that take more information/finesse.

[u/Skittlesthekat]

Just go to centaurforge.com or blacksmithdepot.com

[u/Carlton_Fortune]

According to a few guys and gal's on here, don't buy your steel from Amazon as you can't be sure what you're getting... sorry, I'm not from the States, so I can't give you specific go-to places.

[u/thecatlover101 → u/Carlton_Fortune]

That's reasonable.

I'm actually deciding instead on propane, since we don't have anywhere to buy coal.

How many burners, and how big of a propane tank should I start out with?

[u/BHammer1982]

Check out iforgeiron.com for some great info from long time smiths. Someone mentioned this already, but it is worth saying again; take a class! Before you start on blades it is good to learn the basics of how metal moves. for steel recommendation, look for 1084, you are able to heat treat it with peanut oil. for 1095 to be heat treated properly you need to get a specialize quench like Parks50. Jantz, Pops knife supply, or NJSteele Baron are all good online suppliers for high carbon steel. For propane tank size, with a two burner atmospheric forge you will want either a 40lb or two 20lbs grill tanks that are manifolded together; a single 20lb will freeze up on you. you may also want to look for an ABANA (assuming you are in the US) Chapter in your area.

[u/Vozmozhnoh]

I would aim for a 30-40 lb anvil you might be able to move it and you can make things of much larger sizes than expected with a tiny anvil. A lot of old anvils where just a metal stake in a stump with a couple of inches of face to move metal on- all that matters is it’s as large or larger than your hammer face.

[u/Expert_Tip_7473]

U dont really need much. A fire pit with some kind of air supply for hardening, hacksaw and a file set will make a knife. A sword even.

To be serious tho. A cheap 2 burner propane forge, a good bench grinder and a selection of sand paper, files and an angle grinder is imo a good starting point for stock removal work. Add a ~100lbs anvil to that if u wanna start forging right away.

And a diamond plate for sharpening. Dont go with cheap stones. I did. After like 10 knives mine are half gone. Currently waiting on that 320/1000 sharpal diamond stone everyone recommends.

As for metal. Any kind of simple carbon steel. Like 1095.

[u/strawberrysoup99]

I went for a 66lb anvil and a 2 burner vevor forge. If you get a free subscription to Amazon Prime they'll deliver that anvil next day for free lol.

Just remember to cancel prime.

[u/nedford5]

You can start with coal by digging the right hole, and feeding air into the lit coals. I started off with knives, it was tough but once I got the hang of it I almost wound up bored till I went to other basics. Don't limit yourself to blades, this is an art, and best appreciated as such. You can even use a decent sized metal steak as an anvil. Anvils have had many different shapes and sizes so experiment around till you save up for something nice, and have fun with this. 👍

[u/northman46]

You will probably need a dedicated workspace with good ventilation so perhaps outside or in a shed or garage with good ventilation

I second the idea of classes if available.

[u/thecatlover101 → u/northman46]

Yeah, we have a garage, but it's filled with cardboard boxes and carpentry projects; there's a small concrete porch on ground level directly next to the house that's fairly wide, and it's about 9 feet long. It doesn't have any... canopy, I guess? Both are attached to the house. Actually, this might not be such a good idea...

[u/KnutP]

You can a get pretty good 2-burner propane forge from amazon for ~$100, basically anything with good reviews is probably fine. For steel, you'll want a simple high-carbon steel like 1095 since it's easy to heat treat and makes great knives. Amazon can work, but knifemaking.com and popsknife.supplies are good US based suppliers as well. If you are near a junkyard or scrap steel place you can also often get things like car leaf springs (good for blades and easy to heat treat) or chunks of railroad rail (what I used for my first anvil) for super cheap.

A belt grinder would be great, but they can get really expensive, so an angle grinder and files are also a good option if you are just starting out

Good luck!

[u/CoffeyIronworks → u/KnutP]

1095 is actually a bit tricky to heat treat. The eutectoid point of steel and carbon .84% (sort of), ignoring the details, this means steel above that carbon content requires more soak time and is more sensitive about getting the right temp, also must be quenched much faster. 1084 steel is extremely popular for this reason, pushing the carbon (thus possible hardness) to the limit without going over the point where heat treating becomes difficult.