The majority of beginner blacksmiths have no idea where or how to start their journey. Some get lost in unimportant specifics while others completely miss the point. I know one guy who didn’t want to start forging until he bought propane forge with 4 burners!
To be a successful blacksmith, you should be in a good physical condition and knowing how to use the hammer precisely and effectively. Exercises like calisthenics, one spot hammer blows, forging a point, upsetting, simple bending are some of the critical exercises that every beginner should do.
Let’s dive into this.
Physical Exercises
Every single blacksmith should be at least in some decent physical condition, at least if you want to be an effective one. I mean, theoretically, you can do forging work without any exercise but quality and durability are then questioned.
In the past centuries, you probably noticed that blacksmiths in those times were physically much stronger than smiths today. The major reason for that is that in the past, almost every aspect of work was done by hand tools. There were no power hammers, drill presses, angle grinders, and many others. Everything had to be done by their own hands.
But don’t get me wrong here, just because there are many power tools at your disposal, hand hammer is still the fundamental forging tool. As a beginner, you will mostly work with a hammer heavy somewhere between 1 to 4 pounds. Knowing that you see it doesn’t require a lot of strength but more of muscular endurance.
Therefore, calisthenic exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, squats are ideal for blacksmithing purposes. Instead of building unnecessary muscle mass, you will build the required muscle endurance necessary for long working days in the shop. You can also include static exercises like planks and wall sits for enhancing muscle endurance even more.
BLACKSMITH BEGINNER WORKOUT
- Push-ups 3×15
- Pull-ups 3×8-15
- Bodyweight squats 3×20
- Wall sit 3x 30 sec
- Plank 3x 30 sec
Keep in mind that this is just a general workout template. Some of you may start with fewer reps and others with more. The key thing here is to add 1 rep to each exercise every week if possible. That way you will gradually increase your muscle endurance. Do this workout at least 3 times a week, having at least one rest day between workouts.
On static exercises like wall sits and planks, your goal is to increase the duration on each set. For example, if you did 3×30 seconds the last time, you should try to do 3×35 seconds in the next training.
Accuracy
Accuracy with the hammer is one of the crucial skills of every blacksmith. The last thing you want is to miss the working piece and hit yourself with a hammer.
One of the simplest exercises for practicing hammer accuracy is to draw an x somewhere on the anvil and keep hitting the middle of the target until it disappears. It is as simple as that. If you don’t have the anvil, you can use any flat metal surface. For the hammer, don’t use the metal one but instead, use the soft face hammer and chalk to draw out the target.
After everything has been set, stand in the correct hammering position and start blowing until the center disappears. After that, simply redraw the x and repeat the process again. One of the cool things about this exercise is the similarity in time between removing the center of the x and losing the heat in real-time work. At first, it was a little strange to me but as I tested it, it turned out to be true.
As you can see, this exercise gives the beginner blacksmith the idea of how long he can expect to hammer the material without losing the heat. This method is especially useful for those who don’t have the forge yet. This way you can practice the work with the hammer without the actual forging process.
Of course, you can place the target anywhere on the anvil. It can be in the middle of the face or at the horn. The position doesn’t really matter as long as you are hitting the target. Don’t be discouraged if fail at first.
For example, when I was at first trying to hit the target, it didn’t go very well. After a couple of rounds, I could already see the improvement. If you are a person who never worked with the hammer before, this exercise is vital for you.
One of the biggest benefits of this exercise is that you can completely focus on the accuracy without any rush or stress mainly because you don’t have any heat to lose. Also, if you don’t have much time for lighting up the forge, you simply grab the soft face hammer, draw the target, and start practicing.
I recommend practicing this method every day for at least 10 rounds. While there is no ideal amount of practice, the principle is still the same. The more you practice, the better you become. My recommendation is to do at least 20 rounds every day.
The next progression would be to take a piece of mild steel and place it in the middle of the target. The only difference is that in this case, you should use the metal hammer. Now you are closer to the real scenario of forging. As its name suggests, mild steel can be shaped cold which makes it ideal for practicing purposes. As in the previous method, the round is finished when the middle of the target disappears.
The last progression is to do the same thing with the material heated in the forge. Note that you shouldn’t move on to this method unless you practiced the previous one. So often beginners like to think of themself as experts too soon. Just because you learned how to use the hammer correctly doesn’t mean you are an advanced blacksmith. Take the time to master the fundamentals and the results will come.
Muscle memory
Since drawing out is one of the primary techniques used in forging, it is logical to master it first. More often than not, drawing is the first technique beginners learn in a typical forging class. This technique is used for increasing the length of the material. Keep in mind that during drawing out, the volume of material doesn’t change, it only becomes thinner and longer.
Forging a point is a vital skill of every smith. However, it does require a lot of time practicing to build the required muscle memory for proper hammer work.
Before hammering, place your material in the forge and heat it until it reaches forging temperature. After that, simply place it on the anvil. Your workpiece should be slightly tilted up to keep the point centered.
Always start at the end of the material and slowly work your want down until you have the desired shape. After every hammer blow, rotate the workpiece 90° or it will become flat and wide otherwise. For novice blacksmith, I recommend using a light hammer for better control of the hammer.
After some reasonable time, you spent working on this technique you can speed up the process by using the peen of the hammer or horn of the anvil. The first one gives you slightly greater control, so keep that in mind.
I think that bending metal is self-explanatory. Note that, before starting, it is necessary to heat the desired portion of the metal. When metal becomes red, it is ready for bending. Make sure to use bending or leverage blows, instead of using extra-heavy blows.
There are a lot of different ways to bend metal. In this article, we will show you some of the most popular methods.
- Using a corner of the anvil
- Using a horn of the anvil
- Using a leg vise
- Using hardy tools
Upsetting is the opposite process of drawing out the metal. It is used to increase the thickness of the metal, rather than its length. Upsetting the metal allows you to make a flat end or round ball at its end. Upsetting usually demands higher forging temperatures than for the drawing process. Typically, when your metal becomes yellow-white, it is ready for upsetting.
Remember that only the part of the metal you want to upset should be heated. Contrarily, metal could easily bend and ruin the work. If any bending occurs during upsetting, stop immediately and straight it up.
You can upset the metal in two different ways:
- By using a hammer
- By using the weight of the material
As with any other exercise, the more you practice it, the better you become. Except for physical exercise, we recommend doing all other exercises every day.
To recap, here is the example of some beginner work on the anvil:
- 30 rounds of one-spot hammer strikes
- 10 minutes of drawing out
- 10 minutes of upsetting work
- 10 minutes of various bending work
This all together is less than one hour of practice, so there is no excuse for not doing it. Enough with reading for now and let’s get to practice.
