Forging Steel

Robert Burns, the talented and experienced instructor of the Blacksmith’s Folding Knife Class, hands students bars of gray steel 18” long. Waving his own hands around the coal forges, massive anvils, grinding belts, drill presses, and a wall of hammers and tongs, he tells the assembled members that they will leave the four-day class with a knife that will last a lifetime.

Burns has taught at least 1,500 students in his career. “It’s always a unique experience,” he said. “Every class is totally unique; you never know what people are bringing to the table. As an instructor, you have to be open and very flexible to know each person and each group. I always see people leaving more confident in themselves at the end, which is really satisfying.”

The conversation starts with students crowding around a coal-fired forge. For many, there’s an almost primal attraction to fire. Robert combines pieces of coal with a few pieces of wood kindling, and cranks a lever that pushes a stream of air through the fuel. The elements soon combust into a red-hot furnace, and students take turns keeping the air flowing through the coals.

With some hesitation, students push their bars of steel into the center of the roaring forge. Moments later, the gray steel turns a glowing red. Armed with a heavy hammer, Burns demonstrates how students should form the knife’s blade.

Holding the hot bar against an anvil and wielding a hammer high in the air, the teacher’s strikes turn a blocky piece of steel into a svelte shape resembling a knife blade. With his patient guidance, students repeat the process: heating steel in the forge until red hot, banging on the anvil to change the shape, and returning it to the forge after the steel cools.

The students' knives take on many forms and designs, but each is a handmade work of art.

PHOTO CREDIT ROBERT BURNS

Some students are surprised when their “work in progress” blades crack off the end of the steel bar. Others need Robert’s gentle admonishment to bring the hammer down with purpose and force. “There are many different processes that you learn,” said Burns. “Everyone has particular skill sets that they’re going to be better at or worse at than others. That gives opportunities for people who were feeling uncertain one day because they weren’t as good, and then the next day they move into something they’re good at.”

The room fills with the clang of hammer and steel – one that an old-school blacksmith would recognize well. The initial hesitation with a forge turns into a collective sense of accomplishment. Comparing the shapes they’ve created, students offer each other encouragement.

The first task now completed, Robert demonstrates the next steps. Once the rough shape of the blade is formed, it is time to connect it to the handle. The forges cool as students move to the grinding wheels. The rough knife blades need work to refine their size and shape, and to remove the crust that forms when red-hot coal meets cold steel.

Once again Burns demonstrates. With decades of experience, his hands make the connection between steel and grinding belt with firm but delicate grace. He explains that with too much pressure the intended shape of a knife blade would disappear; too little, the crust remains unchanged.

Grinding belts whir as students take their turns. Sparks fly; hot steel needs to be dipped into a nearby water bucket to cool off – a process that must be repeated again and again. Over the course of several hours, rough gray steel turns into shining polished blades. Students encourage each other and compare their results.

Then it’s time to return to the forges. Burns hands each student a square piece of steel that, after several steps, will become the knife’s handle. Heat, then hammer. Heat, then hammer. Folding the square so the edges match. Heat, then hammer. In their own time, students call Burns over to the forges for his approval.

Robert glows in his own manner. “It’s always exciting to see those moments. It’s a kind of childlike excitement, right? Like because it is solving a problem, it’s understanding it. Even if you don’t fully understand everything about the process, you’re starting to see the light. I see how much more confident they are, and you can see that they’re starting to get it and making their own decisions.”

From forge, anvil, and hammer, students move to an upright bandsaw in order to cut the folded steel into a shape that will match the knife blade. Again, hesitancy turns into a sense of accomplishment. Some students cut a bit more than is needed; the result being a slightly different shape than desired, but still appropriate for the final product.

Attention returns to bringing the knife blades to a finished state. Sandpaper of varying grits pass over the blades until fingers cramp. Back and forth, over and over. Thin lines ground into the blades fade as the sandpaper scours the surface.

Over a four day class, students turn a bar of steel into a working folding knife that will last a lifetime.

PHOTO CREDIT LOUIS DZIERZAK

Again, students offer their blades to Burns for his approval. He responds with an encouraging nod – and instructions to keep going. “When you feel ready, keep going. Keep going,” said Burns. With persistence and patience, over the course of several hours, each student’s blade turns from dull to bright, gray to crisp silver.

As the blades near completion, students turn their attention back to the handles. Burns’s instructions shifts from tools and machines to the magic of bronze and heat. Students place small, spaghetti-sized pieces of bronze along the top of their folded steel handles. Carefully placed in a white-hot kiln, they watch the bronze shift from a solid state to a bubbling mass, then melt into the steel surface. Wow! Look at that... Now, the bronze-decorated handles start to match the beauty of the knife blades themselves.

The final steps connect the handle to the blade. First, a carefully placed drill bit creates a pivot point. Aligning the blade, handle, and pivot hole with a tiny pin takes patience, dexterous fingers, and a deftly placed hammer strike. For most students, that strike often ends with the tiny pin spinning across the shop floor.

One by one, students celebrate successfully connecting blade and handle. One by one, students stand in line, eager to show Burns their handiwork. “There is a lot of finesse at each step,” Burns explains. “You learn to understand how critical each one was, and then you can start to build on that and understand that from the big picture to the smallest detail, everything matters. You can’t see the importance of each step until you’ve gone through the entire process.”

Over the four days students learn new skills, with hesitancy turning into confidence, and raw materials turning into finished art. Mistakes happen – some serious enough to require starting with a fresh piece of steel; others hidden from everyone except the knife’s owner. But Robert guides students through each stage of the process with patience and grace, offering instructions that connect and make sense, and giving the conviction that everyone will succeed in creating a folding knife that will last a lifetime.

“A knife is more than just a tool. It’s also the memories, the emotions, and the stories that come with it, said Burns. “And when you have a connection with that, I think that promotes its own confidence. I like when objects carry stories and they’re a part of our lives, they live and grow with us.”

Mission accomplished.