@@BlackBearForge@1:15 sounds like a good solid weld John. I was directed here from the short. Speaking of shorts, I loved the 360° tour yesterday, but could not squeeze in a question about the work bench drawers handles. Was that in a playlist? Link please. Thank you.
@@BlackBearForgeBack again. My favorite pattern from elevator cable is to cut them short after a solid weld and oriented so that the entire bar shows ends on the faces of the blade sides. Kinda like a starburst effect. And a good etchant substitute for ferric chloride etchant is cheap and environmentally safe. Stronger than normal dark tea bags boiled, not steeped.
What I like the most is the explanation in the background. Most other videos is simply showing us what is done without any explanation around it. For laymen like me who simply love blacksmithy, explanation builds interest.
When you’re too good at forge welding! Very nice ax! I understand not wanting to be redundant in this video, but admittedly I am one who enjoys your commentary. You are an excellent teacher and your wisdom and experience is greatly appreciated! Thank you again, John!
I concur, too many blacksmith instructional videos have little explanation of the steps. I’ve learned so much and advanced so far in this craft because of instruction John. Much appreciated!!!!
Great video! When you yack it’s relevant and helpful, others just yack. I do like the idea of the phrase and Steele shirt. Thanks for sharing this video with us!
John, for your next etch, try really cheap, super concentrated instant coffee. I use cafe bustello instant espresso with great results. After you achieve the level of etch you’re happy with, let it dry completely before touching it, then pop it in the oven at 225f for an hour or so. Awesome job on the axe! Love your content!!! Thank you!!!
I must say, from a video perspective (I was in video production on an international level for 20 years) I have the utmost respect for you in how you ended this piece. 99% of talent would not have stood in front of the camera and said what you said. Kudos to you. I have been working for a year now on a journey in silver and steel (silver inlay in the handles with steel pieces) and I think your work and videos are great. Can't afford your membership until next month when I get paid. (Working horses, I broke my back twice, so I'm poor boying it until I can start selling something. Thanks so much for what you do! ...Christian
Hey bud try using tasters choice instant coffee. That works when nothing else will. Cable is touch sometimes. I done it hundreds of times it works. Thx again nice job … Paul…..👍🔥🇺🇸⚒
Stunning work as always! An easy way to get (mostly) ferric chloride is to react a large amount of forge scale with hydrochloric acid (aka muriatic acid). Beware of all safety issues with handling acid and the gasses released. The resultant solution is a mix of ferric and ferrous chlorides which can be used directly to etch pattern welded steels. The ferrous chloride in the solution will gradually convert to ferric chloride through contact with the air
Metallic iron reacts with acid to liberate hydrogen. Generate the ferric chloride in a WELL ventilated area that has no flames or sparks. BTW, the conversion of ferrous to ferric, via air oxidation, can be accelerated by employing an aquarium pump and air stone.
You got me with the lights in your forge!! That was a good one! Shame the pattern didnt show, but one trick ive used in the past on cable is getting my acid hot, like near boiling for vinegar, and for my feric, i will put the tank into a 5 gallon bucket of my hottest tap water.
i am pretty sure i have the same belt grinder (4:00) in my shop! managed to land it for 50.00 from a local machine shop. cant for the life of me understand why they sold it for that price, but i wasnt arguing ;)
The end result is ironically predictable. Hammered so perfectly it homogenized fully. I'm honestly more impressed by that than I ever would Be with a pattern. Every vid I watch I'm constantly in awe of your economy of movement. Not a single wasted hammer blow. Also I was struck by how many historic anvil parts the guy was able to put on your new gem but man that hefty piece of cable looked tiny on it! Also I too appreciate the visual fx trick.
Hi John! I've been waiting for this movie for 7 long days. Now I can watch your every move. You are a professional in every way. It's nice that you pass on your skills. As an amateur, I need such films. You are making excellent tools. Thanks for the good lesson. All the best. Adam
When you're so good at forge welding that there is no pattern. That speaks volumes to your forge welding knowledge and capabilities. I know the desired result in Damascus making is that the finished product has a visible pattern but damn, this was awesome!
I love that you can hear the difference between the first few hammer blows and when the weld takes it goes from a sort of hollow thud to a solid thunk with a little ring from your very quiet anvil
Information for whom might be interested. Definitely recommend getting some ferric chloride and mix at a 50/50 ratio. Soak for 15min then lightly sand with 2,000 grit to remove oxides. Then do 2 more times. Results may vary depending on acid strength and how polished the piece is. If you want to get a higher contrast, a long soak (I leave 15+ hrs) in some real strong instant coffee after the ferric etch cycles.
Ferric chloride is easy to make if you are so inclined. Hydrochloric acid (aka muriatic) should be available at most hardware stores, and the highest strength hydrogen peroxide you can find (likely at a hydroponic grow store). Mix a bit of the peroxide in and soak a bunch of iron in it. The peroxide will help the iron dissolve and the HCl will convert it to ferric. Another etch you might be interested in is "Nital" which selectively etches the ferrite phase. Its usually 2% nitric acid in ethanol for looking at the pattern under a microscope, but for damscus you could probably up it to 10% or more.
Strong ferric heated w proper hse/ppe is an option. A couple of trips thru w 2000 2500 grit "massages" between soaks Very cheap instant coffee mixed 10 or 15 x drinkable is another or moreover additional step. However as you stated it is so highly refined at the point you have it. There's a greater than not possiblity there's little if any pattern left. Great video. Loved the little extra but with the forge! And then the reveal! Very well played! Blessings Mr John Crawford out 🙏🔥⚒️🧙🏼♂️
John - I really do enjoy the channel. I am constantly coming here for guidance (I’m no smith, just a beginning hobbyist). Watching and learning has allowed me to make some very small Christmas gifts and other practical items for my shop. I enjoy your conversation as well as studying your technique. Cheers, Mark
I was researching metallography, reading the book A History of Metallography, by Cyril Stanley Smith. He has a section describing Wootz damascus. He says referring to damascus blades of the middle east, " ...the blades must have been forged at very low temperature in order to avoid solution and redistribution of the carbide, which would both remove the pattern and render the steel more difficult to forge and give a brittle sword." Essentially, he says that wootz pieces were of a cast steel and that excessive or indelicate forging would destroy the natural pattern of the metal created when it solidifies. Of course, cable is not cast, so this exact mechanism is not at fault. It is interesting, however, to note the similarities. P.S. I really love the "yak yak," and, while I am probably in the minority, I'm sure there are others that share my opinion. Love the videos!
Wow!!! U turned chunk of cable into a beautiful axe. Forge welding i enjoy a lot. Gas forge sound hammer blows typical blacksmith's shop real sounds and forging awesome. Love this type of videos. Ferric chloride and coffee etch are good options for getting the pattern. Great work sir👍👍🔥🔥🔥
John very nice job this project ended up turning out very well. Hard work pays off in the end. Hopefully you enjoy this for many years to come my friend. Can't wait to see more videos soon John. Keep up the great craftsmanship and hard work. Forge on. Fab on. Keep making. God bless.
I'm glad you had difficulty with the first axe and grateful that you showed it. I learned more from that and watching what you did differently than I could from watching a perfect effort five times. Thanks for the great lessons.
I dont know if you are going to see this but i just wanted to say im glad your channel has been growing and you have been a huge source of inspiration for me for a long time :)
That’s pretty cool that you show off a shirt from a fellow RUclips channel, especially on as large as Alec’s. Axe turned out great. Cable Damascus always looks good but it can be such a pain sometimes to get welded up. Plus it makes a huge mess from all the gunk being cooked out. 🍻
Even though the style of work Alec does isn't what I'm interested in, I enjoy watching for the entertainment value and I really admire how his hard work has led to such great success at a relatively young age. I think there is much I can learn from him
I completely agree. His video content has change over the past year or two, but he’s still very determined and hard working. Very impressive with all he has accomplished. But I do miss the older content he use to put out. Regardless I’ll continue to watch both of you.
You continue to be one of my favorite standard all around blacksmiths along with Joey Van der Steeg. Neither of you are spending all of your time forging knives and axes, but when you do I love it. Continue doing what you enjoy, and don't worry, if you started making more knives and Axes I'd still watch.
Incredible attention to detail and a most interesting technique used to make the axe. The final product was a thing of beauty. I must add that it was the most riveting video I've seen in a long time. It was a pleasure to see every stage of the forging. Thank you!
John I have had really good luck using instant coffee and distilled water as an etch, it produces the light and darks you would expect from ferric chloride, and when your done you can dump it down the sink! Th ratio I’ve used is something like 45 grams per 500 mL of water. I’ve heard some people just keep adding instant coffee until it stop dissolving. I’d be curious to see if works for this piece! Beautiful work as always!
Those flap disks are the bomb !!! We use those where I work at . Different brand , but they work nicely . I am sure combat abrasive is much much more affordable than 3m !!! You pay for the name as well as the product
Yesterday while smoking meet... enjoying the hickory smell...a thought occurred... Previous video you mentioned a coal burning forge in my subdivision prolly not neighbor friendly. Stinky stuff. Can you do a Home made Char set of videos? From tree to Forging a hammer head? Ya know in your spare time. Love love love your videos.
![BRASIL vs. URUGUAY [1-1] | RESUMEN | ELIMINATORIAS SUDAMERICANAS | FECHA 12](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/-hWBAuxF1eY/mqdefault.jpg)
Facebook wouldn't stop showing me your shorter videos, so I decided to just watch the long stuff. Addicting and fascinating content
The photography, lighting, and production were top notch on this episode. You've got a powerful grasp of more than a pair of tongs! 👍 😃
Glad you enjoyed it!
Well said!
Xxvgfxjsgffvfbvc vf what are you doing I love you
@@BlackBearForge@1:15 sounds like a good solid weld John. I was directed here from the short. Speaking of shorts, I loved the 360° tour yesterday, but could not squeeze in a question about the work bench drawers handles. Was that in a playlist? Link please. Thank you.
@@BlackBearForgeBack again. My favorite pattern from elevator cable is to cut them short after a solid weld and oriented so that the entire bar shows ends on the faces of the blade sides. Kinda like a starburst effect. And a good etchant substitute for ferric chloride etchant is cheap and environmentally safe. Stronger than normal dark tea bags boiled, not steeped.
What I like the most is the explanation in the background. Most other videos is simply showing us what is done without any explanation around it. For laymen like me who simply love blacksmithy, explanation builds interest.
Great video! About the shirt, l love your channel BECAUSE of the 'yak'. You have taught me so much!
When you’re too good at forge welding!
Very nice ax! I understand not wanting to be redundant in this video, but admittedly I am one who enjoys your commentary. You are an excellent teacher and your wisdom and experience is greatly appreciated! Thank you again, John!
Thanks 👍
I concur, too many blacksmith instructional videos have little explanation of the steps. I’ve learned so much and advanced so far in this craft because of instruction John. Much appreciated!!!!
The lack of pattern is a testament to you forge welding, Looks good
I don't know how to explain the amount of unbridled joy it brought me to see you wearing one of Alec Steele's shirts. Thank you for being awesome sir.
Glad you enjoyed it!
adding the 1095 edge into the axe after the first profiling really blew my mind
you just keep getting better and better at production
The slow motion was cool 😊👍
Editing is unreal! Great vid as always. I puckered up something proper when you stuck your hand in the "glowing" forge. Got me good buddy.
Thanks for sticking around till the end to see the gag revealed.
@@BlackBearForge 😱🤣
I appreciate art. I can also appreciate the work my great-grandfather did as a blacksmith.
Hi John, been a while since i watched. but i'm back. you are the reason I am an abuser of metal and steel. much love from massachusetts 🇺🇸❤️
Welcome back. lots more to come
I’m impressed. The execution, of this technique.
Found you on Facebook but couldn't find all the parts so I came here. Great channel and amazing presentation work.
Welcome aboard!
This man is a library of experience and knowledge. Thank you kindly for sharing with such a pleasant explanation.
So nice of you
Well done, sir.. true artisan. Arts like this are dying , art and trade mix together, legend.
Great video! When you yack it’s relevant and helpful, others just yack. I do like the idea of the phrase and Steele shirt. Thanks for sharing this video with us!
Hello John
A fine little axe . Well done
Thank you for the Video and showing your work
Take care have a good new week
Greetings Frank Galetzka
Clever source for an axe. We shared this video on our homemade tools forum this week 😎
The beginning is a very similar process to forgeing the japanese katana very beautiful work john and as always thank you for sharing your wisdom.
absolutely beautiful
Good morning
Morning
Morning
This episode was lovely to listen to. Just the sounds of you forging rough head was relaxing.
You have taught me so much about forge welding that I’ve been able to make some Damascus so thank u
It Really Does Look Great... Thanks for Sharing. The Time on the Handle shows too
NOOOOOO, your Yack Yack is therapeutic... Love your commentary. you are a de-stressor after a long day in the grind.
Well done Blacksmith a real good job on that axe prior to the previous one.
Hi John Awesome job
John, for your next etch, try really cheap, super concentrated instant coffee. I use cafe bustello instant espresso with great results. After you achieve the level of etch you’re happy with, let it dry completely before touching it, then pop it in the oven at 225f for an hour or so.
Awesome job on the axe! Love your content!!! Thank you!!!
Am I the only person seeing a really nice, subtle pattern on the axe? Looks great IMHO.
I enjoy seeing the many variety of tools that you need and there convenient storage for immediate use!
I must say, from a video perspective (I was in video production on an international level for 20 years) I have the utmost respect for you in how you ended this piece. 99% of talent would not have stood in front of the camera and said what you said. Kudos to you. I have been working for a year now on a journey in silver and steel (silver inlay in the handles with steel pieces) and I think your work and videos are great. Can't afford your membership until next month when I get paid. (Working horses, I broke my back twice, so I'm poor boying it until I can start selling something. Thanks so much for what you do! ...Christian
Hey bud try using tasters choice instant coffee. That works when nothing else will. Cable is touch sometimes. I done it hundreds of times it works. Thx again nice job …
Paul…..👍🔥🇺🇸⚒
This is a beautifull little hatchet you made there!
Beautiful little axe, really interesting video never seen an axe made that way before.
The orange LED flicker in the cold forge was a nice touch!
Stunning work as always!
An easy way to get (mostly) ferric chloride is to react a large amount of forge scale with hydrochloric acid (aka muriatic acid). Beware of all safety issues with handling acid and the gasses released.
The resultant solution is a mix of ferric and ferrous chlorides which can be used directly to etch pattern welded steels. The ferrous chloride in the solution will gradually convert to ferric chloride through contact with the air
Metallic iron reacts with acid to liberate hydrogen. Generate the ferric chloride in a WELL ventilated area that has no flames or sparks. BTW, the conversion of ferrous to ferric, via air oxidation, can be accelerated by employing an aquarium pump and air stone.
You got me with the lights in your forge!! That was a good one! Shame the pattern didnt show, but one trick ive used in the past on cable is getting my acid hot, like near boiling for vinegar, and for my feric, i will put the tank into a 5 gallon bucket of my hottest tap water.
the ax is beautiful i love it i hope 1 day i can make something that nice Mark i got a new anvil this past weekend a JHM 200 so far i love it
i am pretty sure i have the same belt grinder (4:00) in my shop! managed to land it for 50.00 from a local machine shop. cant for the life of me understand why they sold it for that price, but i wasnt arguing ;)
Great looking ax and handle. I'm glad you did not use the burnt method on the handle.
I have never been a fan of burnt handles
Nice work!!
The end result is ironically predictable. Hammered so perfectly it homogenized fully. I'm honestly more impressed by that than I ever would Be with a pattern. Every vid I watch I'm constantly in awe of your economy of movement. Not a single wasted hammer blow. Also I was struck by how many historic anvil parts the guy was able to put on your new gem but man that hefty piece of cable looked tiny on it! Also I too appreciate the visual fx trick.
Hi John! I've been waiting for this movie for 7 long days. Now I can watch your every move. You are a professional in every way. It's nice that you pass on your skills. As an amateur, I need such films. You are making excellent tools. Thanks for the good lesson. All the best. Adam
I really like how this one turned out, well done sir. Thank you👏👏
When you're so good at forge welding that there is no pattern. That speaks volumes to your forge welding knowledge and capabilities. I know the desired result in Damascus making is that the finished product has a visible pattern but damn, this was awesome!
I love that you can hear the difference between the first few hammer blows and when the weld takes it goes from a sort of hollow thud to a solid thunk with a little ring from your very quiet anvil
Information for whom might be interested.
Definitely recommend getting some ferric chloride and mix at a 50/50 ratio. Soak for 15min then lightly sand with 2,000 grit to remove oxides. Then do 2 more times. Results may vary depending on acid strength and how polished the piece is. If you want to get a higher contrast, a long soak (I leave 15+ hrs) in some real strong instant coffee after the ferric etch cycles.
Ferric chloride is easy to make if you are so inclined.
Hydrochloric acid (aka muriatic) should be available at most hardware stores, and the highest strength hydrogen peroxide you can find (likely at a hydroponic grow store). Mix a bit of the peroxide in and soak a bunch of iron in it. The peroxide will help the iron dissolve and the HCl will convert it to ferric.
Another etch you might be interested in is "Nital" which selectively etches the ferrite phase. Its usually 2% nitric acid in ethanol for looking at the pattern under a microscope, but for damscus you could probably up it to 10% or more.
very well done, it turned out great.
awesome slow motion! good video!
Strong ferric heated w proper hse/ppe is an option. A couple of trips thru w 2000 2500 grit "massages" between soaks
Very cheap instant coffee mixed 10 or 15 x drinkable is another or moreover additional step.
However as you stated it is so highly refined at the point you have it. There's a greater than not possiblity there's little if any pattern left.
Great video.
Loved the little extra but with the forge! And then the reveal! Very well played!
Blessings Mr John
Crawford out 🙏🔥⚒️🧙🏼♂️
Great looking axe! 👍
Love the post production technique of fading out the forge roar into the next scene around the 17:30 mark. Excellent auditory transition.
Perfect tongs for this
Turned out great John, going to be stronger than ever. Thanks for sharing with us. Fred.
John - I really do enjoy the channel. I am constantly coming here for guidance (I’m no smith, just a beginning hobbyist). Watching and learning has allowed me to make some very small Christmas gifts and other practical items for my shop. I enjoy your conversation as well as studying your technique.
Cheers, Mark
Looks amazing even without the pattern!
Very nice John, finally!😄
Instant coffee is the Beat way to go
Even though it didn't show a pattern after the etch, it's still a fine looking axe!
I was researching metallography, reading the book A History of Metallography, by Cyril Stanley Smith. He has a section describing Wootz damascus. He says referring to damascus blades of the middle east, " ...the blades must have been forged at very low temperature in order to avoid solution and redistribution of the carbide, which would both remove the pattern and render the steel more difficult to forge and give a brittle sword." Essentially, he says that wootz pieces were of a cast steel and that excessive or indelicate forging would destroy the natural pattern of the metal created when it solidifies. Of course, cable is not cast, so this exact mechanism is not at fault. It is interesting, however, to note the similarities.
P.S. I really love the "yak yak," and, while I am probably in the minority, I'm sure there are others that share my opinion. Love the videos!
Wow!!! U turned chunk of cable into a beautiful axe. Forge welding i enjoy a lot. Gas forge sound hammer blows typical blacksmith's shop real sounds and forging awesome. Love this type of videos. Ferric chloride and coffee etch are good options for getting the pattern. Great work sir👍👍🔥🔥🔥
Thanks 👍
Beautifully made!
John very nice job this project ended up turning out very well. Hard work pays off in the end. Hopefully you enjoy this for many years to come my friend. Can't wait to see more videos soon John. Keep up the great craftsmanship and hard work. Forge on. Fab on. Keep making. God bless.
Never would have thought of the form you were hammering into.
Forging into the V swage really helps keep the cable under control.
I'm glad you had difficulty with the first axe and grateful that you showed it. I learned more from that and watching what you did differently than I could from watching a perfect effort five times. Thanks for the great lessons.
I dont know if you are going to see this but i just wanted to say im glad your channel has been growing and you have been a huge source of inspiration for me for a long time :)
Lack of a pattern just means your welds were impeccable. Great job.
Thanks 👍
Very nice axe!
That’s pretty cool that you show off a shirt from a fellow RUclips channel, especially on as large as Alec’s. Axe turned out great.
Cable Damascus always looks good but it can be such a pain sometimes to get welded up. Plus it makes a huge mess from all the gunk being cooked out. 🍻
Even though the style of work Alec does isn't what I'm interested in, I enjoy watching for the entertainment value and I really admire how his hard work has led to such great success at a relatively young age. I think there is much I can learn from him
I completely agree. His video content has change over the past year or two, but he’s still very determined and hard working. Very impressive with all he has accomplished. But I do miss the older content he use to put out. Regardless I’ll continue to watch both of you.
Looks great.
Excellent video! The anthology of the process has been wonderful!
wow. you nailed it the quality and time that little axe is made of is what dreams are made of. Great work that not many can buy
Wow looks really good, great instruction and commentary
Hi John, that is a nice looking ax 👍🔥⚒
FYI, Citric acid does a GREAT job, and you can buy it in granular form to make whatever concentration you need.
Even though the pattern doesn't really show, it turned out great! You do nice work! Enjoyed this video! Thanks, John!
You continue to be one of my favorite standard all around blacksmiths along with Joey Van der Steeg. Neither of you are spending all of your time forging knives and axes, but when you do I love it. Continue doing what you enjoy, and don't worry, if you started making more knives and Axes I'd still watch.
Very well produced video. Wow. Just so professional looking. Very good at explaining your process and so forth. Well done sir.
Incredible attention to detail and a most interesting technique used to make the axe. The final product was a thing of beauty. I must add that it was the most riveting video I've seen in a long time. It was a pleasure to see every stage of the forging. Thank you!
Hi , John that is a beautiful ax!
I'd like to see a cable pipe tomahawk. Always thought that was a really cool tool/ pipe.
Thanks for the videos! Always enjoyable.
I've been a subscriber for about a year now. Your wire rope axe is an excellent piece of work. 👍
I love your technique and control when you first start to weld the strands together
I fully enjoy listening to you as you work. I've learned so much from you and your videos.
That's a nice looking axe and I love the shape of the handle. Great video and photography.
Excellent video. Thank you.
Slomo not needed in my opinion.
Thank you so much.
Alec who? Never heard of him. 😁
That's a beautiful little axe!
Try coffee, as The Waylon and Joe show mentioned below. I see quite a lot of forgers on youtube use it. Nice ax!
John
I have had really good luck using instant coffee and distilled water as an etch, it produces the light and darks you would expect from ferric chloride, and when your done you can dump it down the sink!
Th ratio I’ve used is something like 45 grams per 500 mL of water. I’ve heard some people just keep adding instant coffee until it stop dissolving.
I’d be curious to see if works for this piece!
Beautiful work as always!
Those flap disks are the bomb !!! We use those where I work at . Different brand , but they work nicely . I am sure combat abrasive is much much more affordable than 3m !!! You pay for the name as well as the product
Very nice clean looking axe!
And we definitely need to see you make a cable pipe tomahawk! One that's an actual pipe.
The wedge design is neat as usual enjoyed your video.🇺🇸🇨🇦🇺🇸
Naw man... Yak all you want... that's why I love your videos over the others.
Yesterday while smoking meet... enjoying the hickory smell...a thought occurred...
Previous video you mentioned a coal burning forge in my subdivision prolly not neighbor friendly. Stinky stuff.
Can you do a Home made Char set of videos?
From tree to Forging a hammer head?
Ya know in your spare time.
Love love love your videos.
Good stuff Mr John!!!