Blacksmithing For Beginners - How To Forge Your Own Tools From Scrap Steel

This video explains the finer points of using a blacksmith's forge to make your own tools.
In This Video
Intro 0:00
Forging Carbon Steel 4:22
The Critical Temperature 5:40
The Hardening Process 12:13
The Tempering Process 15:00
This is Axe Making video link for the clip used in this video.
Forging A Viking Style Carving Axe
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Thanks for watching - Denis

[@Alanbataar]

Dennis, this is the best description of hardening and tempering on KZbin.

[@benleckie5775]

This is one of the best simplified heat treatment videos I've seen. Nice work and thank you! B.R.Leckie, blacksmith, Victoria, Australia.

[@bjh4970]

Love the focus on easily accessible steel sources and just enough detail to understand how and a bit of why without complicating things; thanks!

[@atothek1804]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Topic is very helpful especially the discoloration of steel is top notch information. Thank you for your time to put video together! 😊😊😊😊

[@BaadSaint]

Excellent info! Thanks for explaining it so that even I can understand!

[@ibpopp]

Excellent explanation of the heat treatment process suitable for a blacksmith. Well done.

[@LitoGeorge]

Extremely good. New sub and liked. Thank you.

[@brysonalden5414]

Pretty much all my chisels and punches were made from coil springs, and they've been going strong for years. Can't beat free steel to make tools from! If it's the right steel, of course. Thanks!

[@TheSkaBouncer]

Incredible video! I understand the processes and explanations with ease, so much so that I'm gonna share this vid with my university's blacksmithing club

[@littlepaddy7444]

Great video Denis. You've illustrated the hardening and tempering process very well. Thanks I have the set of encyclopedias and still reference them often.

[@richardcook555]

You kept it simple.................excellent!

[@dennisw7350]

Lots of good info fast. Thanks.

[@timothymoore7890]

Great video, thanks! Beware that residual oil on the work piece will distort the temper colours

[@bunyanforgings7849]

Speaking of salvaged steel; a friend gave me a couple of teeth off of a grader. Tried cutting the stuff with my abrasive chopsaw. I ultimately had to normalize them in the gas forge before l could cut out a few billets to make dies for my trip hammer. In the end l made a set of combination dies. As to heat treating, l stopped at normalizing as opposed to hardening and tempering. Considering the amount of carbon in the dies, even normalized, they have no trouble forming mild steel without marring of the dies. In retrospect l figure this has left the dies more durable. I guess l'm just reiterating a point made by John at Blackbear that we don't always have to harden tools if we're just going to work with mild steel. I would also like to say that an earlier video of yours did an amazing job explaining the running of the colours. I had read about that in an old blacksmithing book, but didn't really understand until l watched your video. Thank you for that. Cheers.

[@stantilton2191]

Very good demo and description. I was gifted a set of used rock rake tines, Italian steel. Tough but low carbon. It wouldn't harden in oil and normal hardening in water did not produce enough hardness for work. I found heating and quenching at high heat make a serviceable punch no tempering. The stock was marked Italy, but I couldn't find much info. on it. For what it's worth. Experiment and know your stock as best you can. Thanks Dennis.

[@kevinorr6880]

I tried to teach myself(with the help of a blacksmith) to make a free of leaf spring steel. A huge failure on the forge weld!! Simply would not weld to itself. I'd love to see what you do with a leaf spring.

[@brankoval4686]

I find crowbars for $1-5 at flea markets and garage sales. Lots of cheap tools to be found there. Used and rusted files are about 25 cents and come in a bunch of different shapes and sizes

[@6Sally5]

Thank you for this! Beginner blacksmith here. If I understand correctly, leaf spring steel is 5160? After tempering your chisel, you quenched in water. How about canola oil? Does it make any difference really? I’m using leaf spring steel to make knives (I’m new at that too). Should the quenching process be the same for knives as tools? Thanks again.

[@df-intheshop330]

I harden all my tools in canola oil. I use it mainly because I can use our kitchen oven to temper things and it just smells like fries. The tempering process does not get anywhere near the critical temp so water is ok to slow down or stop the progression of heat reaching the tip.

[@jasonscott7803]

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