Grzegorz Kulig
Industry Professional
Location: Poland Joined: 22 Mar 2007
Posts: 98
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 Posted: Sat 04 Aug, 2007 11:07 am Post subject: |
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| Arizona Coleman wrote: | Thank you so much for the vote of confidence! Hearing about your humble beginnings is a true inspiration to me and many others in my position who have/will read this. I have to ask...did you start with a dishing stump or a bag of sand or did you actually have/improvise raising stakes?
Long days and pleasant nights to you Thorkil |
No problem. :-)
I am not sure if I understood every technical words, you guys have written, but I will try to answer.
I was making my first helmets, heating the steel on stove used to warm the house (I don't know how exactly it is in English) and forging on old shell of a tank (from 2nd WW)  because I had nor an anvil nor hearth. First I couldn't even imagine that it is possible to forge without heat tread.  My first helmet I was making quite long, but it turn out to be very good and very strong, probably by accident , as I was fighting in it for 5 year (we are using head shots in Poland), then I sold it for good money. After having made those first helmets I learnt forging without heat tread and I made by myself few stakes. I noticed quite fast that mild steel is "piece of shit" for helmets and it isn't suitable for really tuff fight with using axes. So, I started to make helmets of constructional steel, hot rolled - this steel is much harder than mild steel. But I still was making 'on cold", with only already mentioned stakes and woodcut with depresion. I have made this way lots of really good helmets of 2,5mm thickness. But for this technique and this thickness you have to use hammers of weight : 1 kg, 1,5kg and 2kg. After some time I made and bought some tools for raising with heat tread. Now I make armours of many steel kinds (even spring steel and stainless) and with using many techniques (also raising of one piece of steel), depending on what I make and what customer requires. But I have never used any forms, press or any other machines shaping steel -only hand hammers and the strength of my arms. And I don't intend. More : I don't recommend you using forms etc, because you will never learn how to forge well if you will be using those kind of machines. I don't have tools for mass production - I work only for commision. This way I choose is more difficult, more time-consuming but this is real craftmanship. I think this is the best way if you want to attain real perfection in this craft.
Nathan gave you good advise:
| Nathan Keysor wrote: | | Depending on how much metal working experience you have I would suggest making a couple great helms or spangen helms before you try to raise one out of one piece. |
You need few years of practice with metal working before you will be able to raise a helmet of one piece of steel.
Greetings,
Thorkil.
 Attachment: 57.59 KB
Me raising helmet of one piece.
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