MAKING A FALCHION!!! Part 3

[@MrDowntemp0]

Alec Last Month: I want to be more careful and learn not to make any more minor mistakes Alec This Month: Clay's not dry yet? I'm sure it'll be fine! INTO THE FORGE!

[@rexmcstiller4675]

This clay do that what it make to do. It´s for sealing exhaust. It should expand and harden of the exhaust temperatures.

[@Fmily]

It's cool that Alec is able to grow his hair and beard so quickly. And be in two places at once.

[@cooperbrahmsteadt5123]

And change his height. And his voice. And his body size.

[@soupfork2105]

Just putting it out there again: Alec, buy a commercial pizza oven for your workshop. Big enough to temper swords and make pizza while doing so. WIN - WIN Situation.

[@bradleyholcombe6114]

Agreed.

[@darkducky]

then alex french guy can come and use it!

[@soupfork2105]

My m8 has one that’s 150cm x 100cm inside and can hold any stable temp from 80c to 425c for hours. That will fit a blade up to 175cm in length and a couple of big pizzas... got it used for £450 ex vat. It’s a no-brainer really :D

[@tysvlogs5838]

SoupFork He can invite French Alex back to make a knife set, and British Alec's father could come in and make them a knife block. :D

[@tysvlogs5838]

DarrkDucky just realized I commented the same thing. Great minds...

[@clau2272]

It's not the oil temperature. You simply should have tempered it immediately , even with the remnants of the furnace cement on the blade.. Differential hardening puts the blade under enormous stresses (even more so than regular through - hardened blades) and any pre-temper grinding needs to be exceptionally superficial and must not heat up the blade at all or you risk stress cracks as removal of material will relieve stress on one side vs the other side.

[@Divine_Serpent_Geh]

Absolutely 100% well said sir. Especially when dealing with a very high carbon steel (1095 has about 1% carbon, so after a fast quench it’s diamond hard). It’s got lots of stress in the blade. What I do is I have some steel wool or sandpaper handy to very quickly and crudely scratch off forge scale. As soon I see the blade, into the temper it goes.

[@K_Lawl]

“THANK YOU VERY MUCH” I love Alex’s enthusiasm and wholeheartedness

[@petercresswell57]

Love the rate at which your able to work with Alex in your shop, and no it definitely isn't confusing having Alec, and Alex :)

[@matthewray6008]

Since you are both millennials, does that mean that this is a Millennial Falchion?

[@mike_aglione1132]

Matthew Ray that deserved a pin.

[@Isnogood12]

You're the reason the blade broke. Groan.

[@stevefoley7545]

👏🏻

[@billbaggins]

dammit, i made that joke yesterday but nobody saw it 😢😂

[@matthewray6008]

My grandpa made a falchion once... he would always chew backer and insisted on sanding by hand, solo.

[@mcdadeluke]

Back after a hiatus following the birth of my kid. As always, excellent work, Alec! And welcome to the apprentice, Alex!

[@hellskarred]

How to become a master blacksmith in about a month. Step 1. Power watch every single episode of Alec Steele in less than 3 weeks. Step 2. (Haven’t finished step one)

[@jasonsmereczniak801]

most of the way through step one Step 2: order burners from Sam Fowler, a welder ,a welding table, learn to tig and build your forge

[@tacoedits3302]

Step three: re watch all of Alec Steele's videos to remember to practice and to do things right the first time

[@oxain88]

Step 4: Profit???

[@jasonsmereczniak801]

Step 4: find money to buy power hammer and vertical band say and plasma cutter Step 5: make money

[@evaderknives]

I wish it was that easy... there is a HUGE difference between theory & practice.... all the theory in the world is no good without PRACTICE, PRACTICE AND MORE PRACTICE!!!!

[@garthor]

When do we get to see Jamie again?

[@WinterCharmVT]

Alec, the way you react to being corrected speaks so much to your character. You're so down to earth and chill about admitting that you were wrong and correcting yourself. Full of class and genuinely a nice dude. I'm a huge fan :D

[@marincarl8037]

There should be a regular vlog by Alex about the life of an intern where he talks about what it is like, what he learned and stuff like that.

[@danielcollier1448]

I have been watching since The Alec Steele Show days and all your projects have been great, but recently you have reached a whole new level!!!!! Your commitment to learning and implementing new practices is really showing in your work, The chef's knife you made is exquisite.

[@jasonshoffner1089]

I'm digging this intern collaboration. Makes everything so much smoother transitioning between steps.

[@michaelskilton4191]

You should make some damascus arrowheads

[@nicksb4814]

Mikey Skiltonator yes! Definitely

[@oohsharp7181]

I liked your other comment and I will like this one too

[@alifetomake]

And a damascus bow, of course :)

[@oohsharp7181]

Loéï Music & co lol

[@gavindillon1486]

@@alifetomake how does that even work?

[@BIGWojo68]

Alex: * grinding away happily * *CRACK* Alex: That's it, I'm fired.

[@chefr6210]

I love alex’s(the intern) eagerness to learn and improve. Big 👍🏻

[@MySilentAss]

[@ClanGunnBushcraft]

Awesome! True craftsman!! Would love to see you making a medieval style crossbow. Steel prod/bow, trigger and bolt tips. Lots of fun to shoot. Take care brotha

[@charliexoxox]

Alex has a great presence on camera! Really glad you have a helper that you trust

[@ianfarquharson3772]

So glad my dad taught me the joys of need a tool,make a tool. The 30 mins it takes Will save so much time in the long run. Makes me laugh when a job stops due to lack of imagination. Great vid as usual. TkEZ»UK

[@gunpowderHVA]

A day in your shop would be my life's greatest memory. This in my opinion is true art form requiring far more different skills than any other. And you sir excel at it with beautiful attention to detail and structure. You never hide your flaws. You embrace them, laugh at them, and perfect your skill. Brilliant. Simply Brilliant

[@Grrxmistress]

Alec, I think it's a good thing that you decided to fix this blade instead of starting fresh! It shows people who are learning along with you how to make the best of possible mistakes that might be made!

[@volcryndarkstar]

I saw the crack in the thumbnail and immediately felt a twinge of empathy for you guys. Blade looks great.

[@detritus10001]

Man, I'm addicted to watching this young man perform what seems to be magic in metalwork. He seems like such a nice kid as well.

[@HughTube]

THANKS SO MUCH FOR DOING A HAMON!! So excited for this build. Thanks for getting me into such an awesome craft!

[@HughTube]

Hey Alex, just something I was told when doing a hamon. The stress fracture may have come about as you didn't coat the whole blade with a thin layer of gun gum and then apply thicker on the back edge to get the pattern

[@MySilentAss]

Well as you normally quench 1095 without always having clay on it that shouldn't be the problem, no. thanks for the suggestion though

[@rorydonaldson2794]

You guys have such a positive attitude when you make mistakes!! idk how you do it guys but great job yet again

[@MegaChort]

Love the quicker pace of the project and video with Alex the intern helping out!

[@johnhawley4595]

Can't wait to see how the Hamon turns out!! Even more excited to see you getting into inlays and inset blades in the guard! Keep it up Alec!!

[@etherdark]

I just let out a huge sigh of relief. So glad Elmsley got in touch with you

[@wtfmynamestaken]

Time for a bigger forge Alec.

[@glennsosinske3260]

All I have to say is, you made the most beautiful damascus chefs knife I've ever seen. I love your videos. Keep it up my man!

[@maxrockatansky3896]

What I like about these videos is that you actually learn something.

[@SomebodytoRemember]

Hey Alec, I had an idea. You are great at black smithing, and while I have not started yet, so I might be a bit clueless, I think it would be interesting to see you do a small quick series on a wood working project that can teach you more of the skills you need in making the handles and such for your knives and swords. It seems to take a long time to do those and maybe the dedicated practice can help. Just an idea though!

[@bizznotch101]

I was just thinking that it would be amazing to see Alec make a bow. It would do well to improve his wood working skills as well as being something he could elaborate on by making his own arrows and arrow heads. I think that would fit into your idea as well.

[@SomebodytoRemember]

That is a fantastic idea!! If anyone else has good specific ideas like Bizznotch101 does please post them, that way Alec would have a few great choices to pick from!!

[@alexpjp9082]

Isn't his dad a wood worker?

[@SomebodytoRemember]

Yea! If you see his katana series you will see the shop, it is gorgeous!

[@alifetomake]

For this hamon problem, you could use 1/3 clay + 1/3 charcoal + 1/3 fine sand, and water to get the right consistency.

[@dddvh1]

I’m excited to see how the inlay turns out and how you will integrate it into the piece.

[@mndlessdrwer]

Don't forget to undercut and raise the edge of the groove for your inlay. When I've seen inlay done, the artisan puts a matching chamfer on the material to be inlaid so that they lock together.

[@Hill_Walker]

So glad you're taking on inlaying which can lead onto engraving. Really feel it could be the cherry to finish off your great pieces.

[@jerribruce8095]

I love the dramatic hardening of the blade. You should do that more often.

[@Arinx7]

Hey Alec, I am currently in Japan for foreign exchange and was able to visit a traditional blacksmith today! For creating the hamon, the clay he used was made out of ground up stone mixed with ground up carbon!

[@kalebharris5722]

I never know what to say when commenting on stuff. I like the videos. Very educational and entertaining, two things that don't normally go together, however you put them together seamlessly. Can't wait to start building my own tools. Oh keep the workshop clean. And take a few minutes in the morning to enjoy a clean workspace.

[@EgholmViking]

I love the "Improvise, Adapt, overcome" attitude to failure and im pleased you are going on ahead and salvage what you can. But please try to revisit this one again in the future. Pretty please?

[@Airsoftbonnybridge]

Dude! That editing in the beginning of the episode where those hammer blows are matching the music, just super epic. Gets me super excited to move some metal. Great job man

[@c0n0d42]

Alex is a chill dude 😎

[@eoinreilly5469]

Looking good man, liking the progress, only tip I can give for clay differential hardening is to put a few thin lines of clay down to the edge of the blade. This creates tiny regions of softer steel which help relieve stress and help reduce cracks when tempering or grinding. Also stops cracks permeating up the entire blade during use. Keep up the good work man!

[@aeliyra9465]

I'm not even a blacksmith and I love your videos. They are very inspirational as I work on my video editing skills. Well done!

[@cheeznibbliez]

Alex is hardcore. That barefist fistbump into your chainmailed fist....

[@Nurple17]

I would recommend Green Beetle's Hamon method (or as his videos series is called, "Hammonding"). What he does is waiting a full day for the clay to dry (might be harder to do with the stuff you use as the fibers in it would hold moisture longer), he quenches in water (though he has said oil is okay), and he goes into tempering immediately after quenching and sorting out any warping. He also brought out the Hamon with lemons.

[@logantidwell7698]

On Katanas they make some lines gown to the edge of the blade. Apparently it's supposed to make the edge flexible as well, while keeping it hard.

[@masterimbecile]

"Knife makers don't make mistakes, just smaller knives." What a great way to look at it!

[@LunkovichTromofski]

I'm a bit confused about heating up the oil. Alec says it makes the blade cool down faster yet ABS Mastersmith J. Neilson from Forged in Fire says it slows down the cooling, which makes sense to me as the concept of quenching is you are rapidly cooling the blade to harden it instead of letting it slowly air cool.

[@aaronhaggard7683]

Its to keep the blade from cracking from cooling down too fast.

[@georgeschnakenberg7808]

I watch you all the time and mention you to my friends. Not necessarily because of your blacksmith skills. More so because of your enthusiasm and disipline. You are are great blacksmith but I have a strong feeling you are a good person too. Ive been here since 200k or so. Definitely not the beginning but I have watch you grow in everything I mentioned before. GREAT JOB MAN. (Sedalia Missouri)

[@Jimtac]

What about a roll-away extension for the forge? The current one can be kept small when not needed, but can be rolled over and snugged in place for adding extra length to the existing forge for these longer projects. If needed it could have its own burner as well.

[@richardhamshire5299]

Alec most traditional falcions have a through tang and I had no idea you could use gun gum as clay here is South Africa it is used as a high heat repair putty for exhaust repair and the like and you could make a straightening jig using some angle iron an a few clamps

[@Thebular.]

I've never really wanted to go to bed at 6:30 until now. I can't wait to see tomorrow's episode, I wish tomorrow would come sooner! This kinda reminds me of the way I felt on Christmas eve as a little kid

[@tuckerfalter6547]

Alec, thank you for making all the marvelous content. I don’t think I would’ve made it as far as I have without the help from your videos, do to the mass amounts of new things you teach in just one video I believe that I can complete all of my projects that I started two years ago. Keep up the great videos and I plan on seeing the Egyptian khopesh being finished in the future.

[@GiveAcademy]

Just heard you on the Lars Larson show!!! That is awesome!!! Super excited for you. Keep up the great work and always remember rule #1. Never stop learning!

[@JThyroid]

With all the long blades that won’t fit in your oven, it would be beneficial to have an electric heat treat oven. It would allow you to keep consistent temperature for a long temper.

[@hyper_fine8635]

I love the team work banter, great choice of an intern he's brilliant

[@pilotbroF22]

Not gonna lie, I love that your channel is human. humans make mistakes and it is important to recognize them when they occur. In my opinion, mistakes are the greatest teachers. I also like the energy and the quick thinking that you have towards resolving the mistakes. Excellent work mate

[@robertpaxton1679]

Amazing work as always. It's great how you take us with you through your learning experiences and the different ways you solve problems. Strong work Alec Steele! Keep it up!

[@reececorbin8816]

1:34 "the fire is cold" Alec Steele

[@SkunkworksProps]

B&Q also sells fire cement which you can use forclaying blades Alec, just in case you find yourself in need again!

[@musicaholic7069]

Hey Alex there's stuff you can use instead of gungum it's called firegum it's more of a paste so no need for the wire wrap and you can get it from Halfords stores or any motor factors

[@patmancrowley8509]

Suggestion for the guard. After you've got it cleaned up heat it and use a brass wire wheel on it so that it will transfer the brass color onto the guard. It'll look GREAT and still be steel!

[@lachy1709]

Hey Alec, a tip for next time with the Hamon, Ilya from Man at Arms runs really thin lines of clay down from the spine to the edge to prevent that from cracking during heat treat, maybe that would help for after heat treat too?

[@locohombre79]

Fantastic as usual! My uneducated guess as to why you got a crack in the tip is that’s where you straightened it, and therefore “locked in” some tension as it cooled

[@silvertauros7744]

for a cool damascus project You could do a Cinquedea which is like a very broad italian dagger. It has long grooves from tang to tip. It would be georgeus!

[@alexr6113]

I'm glad your finishing the project through even with mistakes that way you get all your mistakes for every out of the way and the next one will be better

[@aachor]

Alex makes an excellent straight-man for this channel. Haha.

[@babybalrog]

For the wire inlay, if you twist it with another color as you inlay it you get an interesting pattern at finish. I don't remember if its the hatch pattern or parallel lines like //

[@evilutionltd]

It’s exhaust sealing putty. It’s supposed to expand as it gets hot.

[@Wheels_Unlimited]

Seems to me you could use a longer forge.

[@nunyabiddness4333]

*First time, Alex grinds it.... It cracks.* *Second go around, Alec is the one on the grinder....* 😂😂

[@hanvyj2]

Nunya Biddness he must have been feeling terrible taking that to Alec :( Was it even in contact when it cracked though?

[@snekmeseht]

I'm wondering why they didn't temper it before grinding.

[@maledetto1221]

they had to remove all the clay and burned stuff from the blade

[@h0881-v6v]

Sent you a random youtube question about whether you would do any differential hardening with clay and now you gone and done it. Almost brings a tear to my eye.

[@richardculbertson8027]

Exhaust sealant is a great idea for clay to keep the spine from being as hard as the edge

[@ENRIQUEARUIZ-vw3de]

He said wat? The fire is cold?

[@isaacreynolds1546]

ENRIQUE A. RUIZ. Lol I thought the same thing haha.

[@whytho1707]

Heya Alec fantastic to see you! I have an interesting question/suggestion for you, have you ever thought about making other kind's of cookware like pots or pans? Specifically, a Damascus steel pot or pan would be an incredibly cool project to see you work on! I've never seen you work on something of quite that kind of stature and shape so I'd be super interested to see the whole learning process!

[@strider2175]

It would be interesting (to me at least) to see if that crack had been under the wires used to form the pattern for the hamon. If the wire retained more heat and transferred that heat to the blade, it could explain the stress fracture (since the blade would be even harder at that point, and the act of sanding it would generate the additional heat to cause it to crack).

[@TheQuantumCreeper]

The way I understand it. The faster something cools, the more brittle it becomes. So if the wire retained heat, that part would be softer and more pliable.

[@mindyaguliar9346]

TheQuantumCreeper ..either way, I think the wire had something to do with the crack. On episode two I kinda had the idea that the wire might create a soft line to the edge.

[@jnathannger8654]

quenching in sunlight, could you be giving inconsistent heats and making some pieces extra brittle , causing the crack?

[@owainrichards4372]

When I heard the “ting!” My heart dropped I know that noise and feeling all to well

[@ioancrow183]

6:29 Alec loves the power

[@rogueshadow5280]

For the inlay you might want to make a second tool to go back and widen the base of your channel effectively making a dovetail groove so that the inlay can become wider at the base as it’s hammered in and will never fall out

[@jtsimmons3133]

Furnace cement makes a great hamon and it's way easier to find and less expensive. One thing to remember is that this is one of those processes that need some patience. Slow down a little and your results will improve. Let the clay dry thoroughly.

[@lunaratlas3704]

He'll yeah ! I commented on the forging gold video for y'all to do an inlay glad to see it's actually happening!

[@bradameerbeg6422]

You can hear the difference immediately, it's amazing.

[@TmaireTame]

You could also do some brass polishing for future decoration.

[@tivnator]

I'm not a blacksmith but for the whole work and the Beautiful original shape of the falchion I would have open the crack with an angle grinder in order to tig weld the entire fissure. It's not Damascus Steel anyway. And if you're worried by the HAZ just normalize it and then proceed as always.

[@monabale8263]

maybe shaping the initial tip by hammering created stress at that apex. could you add a step to relieve that stress- or would it be better to shape the curve by grinding?

[@edgarderschmied4497]

That copper inlaying is pretty interesting. I wanted to try it for so long, but never found the time...

[@merkdogg88]

Just heard you on Lars Larson!! Keep it up!!

[@edinbeg.]

Hey Alec! I love your work and I would love to see you make a shirasaya style tanto! I think it would be a really good practice for you too!

[@adamturner8763]

Id love to see you make the best quality frame-lock folding knife you could. It takes a lot more precision in the moving parts and the creativity is much more finite in small details. I know it's a hard ask but i think it's an awesome challenge

[@Mdjb19]

Hey Alec just a little tip if your using gun gum, if you wet your fingers slightly it stops it sticking to you and you can smooth it and get it where you want it easier

[@comeraffara2187]

The crack is also due to the internal stresses of the steel because of the difference between tempered and non tempered area.

[@RealCyclops]

Love the channel, love the content Alec, but would love to see more of the mentoring you do with Alex. So far all we have really seen is you handing things off to Alex to grind. Would love to see more of the interaction between you and Alex going though some of the learning/teaching moments.

[@lilylavallee9719]

Alex you have incredible skills and i adore your works, keep doing what your doing😊

[@MySilentAss]

super kind of you!

[@lilylavallee9719]

Thanks🙂, I always try to be nice, especially to amazing people.

[@tysvlogs5838]

Excellent. Looking forward to the inlay.

[@crzycnt8566]

No.2 ohhh yeah Alec, a cool bent wood scythe please. Maybe even bring your dad in on a project.

[@jocksizer1123]

Alec for real, every episode you amaze me! I love your energie and it's really genuine, keep your awesome work! And nice cleaning with the broom though hahah

[@TheGoodoftheLand]

Nice save brother! Can't wait to see the inlay.