Blacksmithing
Practical Action
Mild Steel – Can be found in sheet form in car body panels, truck chassis and oil drums. In
bar form mild steel appears in reinforcing rods on construction sites, although these often
have a slightly higher carbon content than true mild steel. You make hoes and hinges from
sheet steel and tongs, set handles and sickles (toothed pattern), from bars.
When working mild steel it should be forged at a bright yellow heats as seen in the shade (just
below the temperature where it starts to give off sparks) Some minor bending and cutting can
be done cold. It is not possible to harden mild steel enough for cutting tools (high carbon
steel is better for this) but it is easier to fire weld than other materials.
Medium Carbon Steel – Many vehicle parts and mechanical machine parts are made from
medium carbon steel. Vehicle shafts, tractor plough discs and plough mould boards are a few
but there are others. You can use medium carbon steel for Hoes and punches similar to mild
steel, but also Hammers and hot chisels, for when you are making new tools for specific jobs.
Working medium carbon steel needs to be done at a temperature lower than that of mild
steel, but still at a heat where it is yellow. The extra carbon I the steel means that it is
possible to harden it but no t to the extent of high carbon steel. It can be difficult to fire
weld, but with practice it is possible.
High Carbon Steel – Sources of high carbon steel can be found in the following, Suspension
coil spring, torsion bar, vehicle leaf spring, Anti roll bar, Wood Saw, Large hacksaw. As it is
high carbon it can be hardened as mentioned before and so is very useful to make tools from
when working I the forge. Tools like cold chisels, cold sets, knives, wood chisels, plane
blades, axes, adzes, wood and stone carving tools and tin snips.
High Carbon steel is the most useful of the three steels described. It can be hardened, which
means it is suitable to make cutting blades from, which a lot of the mentioned tools need to
function. It needs to be forged at an orange/yellow heat, but not as hot as the mild and
medium carbon steels. It is very hard to fire weld with this material but it can be welded to
low carbon steels with practice.
Practical approach to working
Always work out, either mentally or on a piece of paper, the steps involved to make the item
to be made. Never start and hope that it will come out right because this is rarely a
successful practice. Time spent thinking out the way in which each part of the forging is
going to be manipulated will pay handsomely in the long run. It is a question of 95% what to
do and 5% doing it. Once a plan is clearly formed, cut off the correct weight of material and
start heating. Remember it is nearly impossible to increase the section by normal anvil work
so start with the largest section material needed to reach the finished size required. Be
sparing with the use of your hammer: wasted blows only tire you and create bad marks in the
workpiece. Never consider a job unworthy of making special tools to fulfil a particular part of
the job.
Many items made may be individual creations but repeats are sometimes required and it is
good to keep a record of each significant job in note form in a pocket book. Keep a record of
any drawings you have made and it may be as well to start a formal recording system.
Always finish off the work you start by filing the rough edges and leaving the piece in a state
with which you are proud.
Calculations
Sometimes a smith is faced with finding out mathematical answers to questions, for instance,
how much material will be required to produce a bolt so long? If a sample exists in a similar
material, it is possible to weigh the sample and this gives the weight of the minimum material
required to forge a replacement. It is wise to add some more material to the minimum so as
to allow for wastage and for holding the workpiece, which may be an awkward shape
otherwise. Volumes are being dealt with by the smith all his working life and this means
measuring the length, the breadth and the height of a job so as to find a figure, which then
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