There’s something almost primal about the act of smithing. Combining fire and metal, and then beating them into something useful.
Time was, the village blacksmith was the high tech guru. He could take rocks (ore) and make iron, then steel, then turn it into something you needed: horseshoes, weapons, tools, even a decorative hook for hanging up your stuff.
That’s what I made: a hook.
For some recent gift-giving occasion, my daughter signed me up for a session in a local forge. With visions of Forged in Fire in my head, I pictured myself creating a lethal, yet beautiful, Damascus steel knife with a stacked leather handle and a head-cracking pommel. My signature style would be a Bowie or a Kukri.
I made a hook.
Turns out that it’s not as easy to make a functional knife, particularly when all you have is hand tools. Combine that limitation with those of lack of skill and experience, and your expectations need to be adjusted.
The Houston Area Blacksmith Association maintains a rustic forge in the town of Magnolia, north of Houston. There were no power hammers, no belt grinders, no propane forges, no presses. Just coal that we burned into coke and heated the steel to a nice cherry glow.
Lessons learned: Blacksmithing by hand is hard work and very satisfying. Forges are dangerous places – coal is not exactly the cleanest fuel. Grinding and hammering throw off sparks. Add t a tight space with lots of people moving between forges and anvils, and I surprised no one came away with a significant burn.
I had a great time and have decided that, as a hobby, it’s not for me. Good survival skill, but not something I’m going to do every day.