“It's a pretty amazing process taking a strip of mild steel and turning it into a knife. I was guided through the process of forging (heating the steel up, forming it with a hammer, tongs, and anvil), heat treating (heating it up to 815C, rapidly quenching in oil), grinding, polishing, and finally putting on a handle. You start with something that looks like trash (the mild steel cutout), then definitely looks like trash (the heat treated/quenched steel), then ground and polished to something you would see in a craft market.
The instructor was VERY well versed in his craft, and taught us using humor (and likely lots of patience.) He emphasised safety... which is a good thing, there's lots of dangerous things around a blacksmith's studio.
They have a well laid out studio, with forges, anvils, tools, grinders, vices, etc.
An excellent introduction to the craft. You'll appreciate all the (MANY!) steel items around your home.”
“Awesome fun knife making course. Jamie is a great teacher and does a great job and guiding you thru the process. End result of a wonderful hand made kitchen knife to be proud of. Would recommend to anyone with an interest in making something functional and a great conversation starter piece.”
“This was a cracking day. The teacher (Jamie) is a great bloke and is entertaining and highly skilled, particularly when it came to correcting my cockups. I was truly amazed at the quality of the knife we all produced at the end of the day. Rather than being an embarrassment that gets thrown into the back of the kitchen drawer, it's on display with my Japanese forged knives, and it cuts beautifully. I highly recommend this course.”
“The knife making course with Jamie was a great day. I had no idea that I would end up with such a fabulous result. Jamie was very skilled, informative and patient. A fantastic day!”
