Blacksmith Beginnings: Lesson 1

1. Introduction: Hello. Welcome to the lost art of blacksmith. I'm really Have you ever looked at a broader gate and stood in off the craftsmanship? Have you ever wondered what it takes to form hot iron into the shakes? Would you just like to make something around? Your health can be useful with your own personal flair. It takes just a few tools and some skills, and you can learn to work hot air today. I'm going to show you a bit about how lie, Smith. 2. A few words on safety: before we get onto the 14 I'm going to mention some things about safety you may not have thought about. This isn't meant to be all inclusive, as nearly everything in a blacksmith's shop has the potential to be hot, heavy, sharp or fast movie. This is just met. Two. I like some areas and to get you thinking about what you're doing and have a plan, should something go wrong. That plan should include a way to put out a fire and a way to summon help if it is needed. If you have Devon indoor location, make sure you have adequate ventilation to replace the year the fired uses with air that's suitable for you to breathe. Regardless, If you're insider out, there are some things you should not put in the fire. Still, that has been galvanised, painted or plated. I don't belong in a doctor. Some of these Cody's produce fumes when they're burned off. That could make you sick. If you're looking for a source of usable steel, what is sold as well double steel in many hardware stores. We'll work for most of the projects I present. You should avoid wearing synthetic clothing or blends that have synthetic materials in synthetics will melt or burn and stick to your skin. A good choice for clothing is 100% cotton, linen, wool or leather. You should have high protection on, and that should include adequate protections against infrared and ultraviolet radiation as a forest fire does produce a little bit of this. I personally well, we're hearing protection in the form of the phone earplugs and a leather apron when I'm Smith. If you have long hair, it needs to be secured out of the way, so it does not get caught on anything or catch fire. Remember to think about what you're doing and stay safe. 3. Project and goals: the project for this glasses to 14 s hook. This is a relatively simple project that is intended to start developing your hammer skills and learning how hot steel moves. The skills you will work on include bending still over the horn and on the face of the ample drawing a taper and forming a scroll. 4. Bending: you need a piece of steel using clay as a substitute for steel. First over the horn. When you work over a horn to get a straight bend, you need to hold your stock at an angle. The exact angle will be determined by the exact shape of your come with the steel oak past the base of the horn are passed to the horn. Strike Far Side, working your way around tighter curves made on me into the war. Sometimes it's easier to work. That's one with the steal down from the top. Indian steel in clay over the war, Another angle again. When you're working over the horn because of the way the point is formed, you want to hold steel and a bit of an angle to it. Do boy getting a compound curve Dirt. The end of the steel is over the edge. Did you ever down come back? Admin angle. Oftentimes, you'll find it easier to move this deal like like that. If you do find that you're getting a compound curve, you can set the steel in the face of the amble and tepid foot, bending the curve in steel over the face of the anvil Using clay is a substitute for steel Working past the forage of the amble strike you steal What? You're going to start winding it down At some point, this deal will start to perv and be heading for the side of the animal This point you need to turn your steel over and pull back point back a bit bending a piece of steel using the anvil face another ankle There are lots things you can you can hold up strike much more effective to have the edge at the end Look over the edge of the animal Struck down to start in You turned it stuck around and hammer back pulling up as you go 5. Tapering: forging a square taper did. Mr Human Clay. When you're forging a taper, you should hold your stock up at a little bit of an angle to the amble face, and you told your hammer at an angle. Strike down like that. You can also straight in starting with a flat piece, you work over the far edge of the amble hammer. A couple blows. Rotate hammer a couple blows, rotate your rotation should be 90 degrees. You tape with length you want. He's like blows to straighten it out. You have a square tape square taper from another from another angle. Hammer, rotate hammer. You take rotate tape it like you want and ST and up to forge a round. Taper. Many people who first start this think the foreground paper I have to do is hit and rotate it and rotate it. Rotate. The problem is, when you do this, you don't create around taper. You create a noble. The proper way to make around Taper is to start by drawing a square. Taper exactly the same techniques square tape. Once you get, you take make you want and is a nice square. Then you knock down the corners to make and talked about it. And when you get a good octagon, I really liked hammer blows To refine the shape is all that is needed. Round taper from another angle. Get start square. We have a good square. Yeah, no down corners to make an octagon before really like hammer blows, rotating to refine the shape. 6. Scrolls: to make this goals were going to use on our s hook Great to demonstrate in clay for the tapered scroll Draw out a nice round taper start enjoying a nice square Taper Taking this doing to go and finally going round Do the actual scroll kept the end started over But look , the end backing up still is much easier to work in backing up If your school goes off line , just sit down and tap it flat The other taper we're going to put on our s hope is called a fish. Tell scroll fish tell scroll You start by hammering the end flat to form a fan shape. I want to, uh, make you taper into the fan. Well, nice if you find that you don't hit quite true but it over and finish it on the other side Moving the end Just over the edge of the amble Dip down What? Over in? Pull it up! Down! Roll it over. Blow it up! I don't but over. Pull it up. Fishtail scroll from another angle him in the in Flint. Good. Fancy. You're still holding your hammer Had an angle tapering back. They got a nice even draw in the end of the scroll goes over the edge of the amble. Step down, over backing up back. And did you have a Your fish still extends past the sides of your scroll If you need to straighten it, you want the fish tail part of this. Do not be on you. Otherwise you're going to make it offset. 7. Forging hot steel: now will forge a hook and steal. Start by 14 a taper on one end as I showed you using clay. If you practiced with Clay, you'll find it still does not move is easy, which actually makes it easier to work. Hot steel is You can hit it harder. You need to work while the steel it's hot, but it back in the fire when it goes to a doll glowing red. You should not hit the steel at a black heat unless you are refining, smoothing or straightening the peace. If you get this deal too hot, which will be evidenced by steel sparking, you may need to get a new piece of steel. This is easy to do with solid fuel. It's harder to do with gas once you have a taper you like. Start for Munich curve of the hook. This is not yet making the scroll on the end. This will make finishing the bend easier once the school is done. After you do that, then you stroll the scroll. This is the exact technique I show when I was working in clay. When you get day scroll, you like, go ahead and finish the bend. On this end, all the still is hot. If you find that your curve is not remaining true, you can flatten it on the face of your animal. Here, I've closed the loop up more than I wanted, so I'm opening it up using the horn of the animal. What, you're happy with that? Turn the work around so you can heat the other end. On this end, we're going to work on the fish, tell scroll flat in the end of the steal out into a good fan shape. And again, I'm going to start spending the hook before I roll the school. Keeping your work piece hot will make it much easier to work once you get this girl uniform you're satisfied with, then go ahead and finish the Ben on this into this growth that will complete the hook. And then the next step is to clean it of the forge scale. If you find that this into the hook has gotten off line, you want to rest the fishtail over the edge of the anvil when you straighten it so you don't make it offset 8. Cleaning the forge scale: When you're satisfied with the shape of your hook, you'll want to clean the board scale off of the peace. The fourth scale is the thick layer of iron oxide that develops when this deal is hot. There are many ways to do this. The simplest is too. So the peace in vinegar for a few hours overnight works good. Several days will not hurt. When you pull it out, rinse it off. A lot of this guy will just fall away and then clean up with a wire brush. Some people will mutual is the acid in the vinegar by using baking soda or Windex? I haven't found this to be necessary. 9. Closing thoughts: congratulations on completing your first blacksmithing project. Be sure to upload a picture, do the class projects. This type of hook is commonly used to hang planters from a chain, but it could be accused. Wherever you need Hook, Feel free to ask me any questions and be sure to look for more fortune projects coming soon .