- Joined
- Dec 19, 2002
- Messages
- 22,513
It was the first meeting of S.O.O.T. or Society Of Olde-tyme Technology. A gathering of folks whose interest draws them to pre-20th Century technology, we were a diverse group with a common interest in how to do things the old way.
We met at Ardenwood Forge (Fremont, CA) and blacksmith Scott and his shop lackey, Paul had fired up the coals and demonstrated how to harden a sword. Now, I've seen Hershel House and others harden knives but when it comes to a sword, that's a pretty long object and to heat the blade poses some real problems.
No problem at Ardenwood Forge since Scott built himself a special blade forge. Wood framed and firebrick lined, the bricks are held in place with concrete. A large air pipe runs down the center to feed fresh air to the coals. The starter coals were originally heated in a pot bellied stove and then transferred to the forge for firing up the other coals. After the coals were good and hot (and enough folks were present), a hand forged Norman (1066) style blade was placed in the forge and heated until it was the same color as the coals. It's important to keep the heat even as you don't want to burn the metal (something I'm very good at). When the right color is attained, the blade is withdrawn and quenched in oil.
I asked about the Roman practice of quencing in the belly of a Nubian and Scott explained there may be something to the thickness (viscosity) of blood as it would cool metal slower.
After allowing the blade to cool off in the oil, it is very brittle and prone to breakage unless it is tempered. Fine emery paper was used to wet sand one side of the blade until it was shiny. This allows the bladesmith to see color changes when the blade is tempered. To perform the latter, Scott and Paul sawed some copper blocks (1" wide, 4" long by 1/2" thick) which were attached to a long piece of iron. Three such copper blocks were made and heated up until red. While two were kept hot, Scott would take one and place it lenghtwise on the blade near where the tang is. The block was parallel (and not perpendicular) to the blade. Scott would apply some water (via a rag) to the blade and wait for it to sizzle. That told him that the heat was being transferred. He would keep the copper in place until it started getting cool. At this point, Paul would pull a hot one out of the forge in exchange for the cooled one. Scott would continue heating that same portion of the blade until it started changing to a bluish color. If there was still heat in the copper, Scott would slide the block down a few inches to begin tempering a new section of the blade. This process continued until the entire blade was tempered.
It was a fun demonstration which lasted from 7pm until 10 pm. Some folks left earlier. SOOT organizer, Charlie (Coehornboy) explained that the idea was to develop a network of hobbyists/artisans/craftsmen with old skills and to share them (via internet or seminars). We had folks who were bladesmiths, hobbyist gunsmiths, a clockmaker, leatherworker show up (about 14 in all including Scott, Paul & Charlie). It was fun, loosely run evening and well worth attending.
For more info, contact Charlie at [email protected]
We met at Ardenwood Forge (Fremont, CA) and blacksmith Scott and his shop lackey, Paul had fired up the coals and demonstrated how to harden a sword. Now, I've seen Hershel House and others harden knives but when it comes to a sword, that's a pretty long object and to heat the blade poses some real problems.
No problem at Ardenwood Forge since Scott built himself a special blade forge. Wood framed and firebrick lined, the bricks are held in place with concrete. A large air pipe runs down the center to feed fresh air to the coals. The starter coals were originally heated in a pot bellied stove and then transferred to the forge for firing up the other coals. After the coals were good and hot (and enough folks were present), a hand forged Norman (1066) style blade was placed in the forge and heated until it was the same color as the coals. It's important to keep the heat even as you don't want to burn the metal (something I'm very good at). When the right color is attained, the blade is withdrawn and quenched in oil.
I asked about the Roman practice of quencing in the belly of a Nubian and Scott explained there may be something to the thickness (viscosity) of blood as it would cool metal slower.
After allowing the blade to cool off in the oil, it is very brittle and prone to breakage unless it is tempered. Fine emery paper was used to wet sand one side of the blade until it was shiny. This allows the bladesmith to see color changes when the blade is tempered. To perform the latter, Scott and Paul sawed some copper blocks (1" wide, 4" long by 1/2" thick) which were attached to a long piece of iron. Three such copper blocks were made and heated up until red. While two were kept hot, Scott would take one and place it lenghtwise on the blade near where the tang is. The block was parallel (and not perpendicular) to the blade. Scott would apply some water (via a rag) to the blade and wait for it to sizzle. That told him that the heat was being transferred. He would keep the copper in place until it started getting cool. At this point, Paul would pull a hot one out of the forge in exchange for the cooled one. Scott would continue heating that same portion of the blade until it started changing to a bluish color. If there was still heat in the copper, Scott would slide the block down a few inches to begin tempering a new section of the blade. This process continued until the entire blade was tempered.
It was a fun demonstration which lasted from 7pm until 10 pm. Some folks left earlier. SOOT organizer, Charlie (Coehornboy) explained that the idea was to develop a network of hobbyists/artisans/craftsmen with old skills and to share them (via internet or seminars). We had folks who were bladesmiths, hobbyist gunsmiths, a clockmaker, leatherworker show up (about 14 in all including Scott, Paul & Charlie). It was fun, loosely run evening and well worth attending.
For more info, contact Charlie at [email protected]
.