Forged copper art knife

[canid]

I spent some time with the mini-forge yesterday, and took the opportunity to work with a friend on some hammer forging.

My friend had some spare 1/4x1/2" copper bar and we wanted to do some hammer forging. Copper is so much easier than steel for hot forging, and it was a real treat.

We made this blade, and he worked solo on another, to practice drawing, and get used to using the hammer.

http://i602.photobucket.com/albums/tt106/canid/knives/01_blade.jpg

http://i602.photobucket.com/albums/tt106/canid/knives/01_spine.jpg

I'd like to draw the tang out a bit more, and probably even the bevel out a little, but this is strictly an art piece. It will probably recieve a walnut handle. The stock was an extremely high purity copper, and it barely hardens at all, so the blade is exceptionally soft. I'm in the process of learning more about copper alloys. I believe fuming hot copper with zinc will at least produce a brass cortex on the work piece.

we will also be building a couple more mini-forges, but a bit larger than the one i have built already.

[your_comforting_company]

That's really cool! I tried a little hammer forging on red-iron back when I worked at the machine shop. It takes a bit of finesse to keep it going like you want it. I never made anything out of the scrap metal except misshapen scrap metal, but still was neat to form something like that. Have you ever tried brass?

[crashdive123]

Let that thing get a little green and black on it and you'll have a right fine Chalcolithic Period looking tool.

[hunter63]

Very cool, good project, y'all are moving into the bronze age I guess.
Thanks for posting.

[canid]

after forging, the whole thing was heavily patinated with oxides and soot. the pictures are after a light cleaning on a brush wheel [that's why the low spots are still dark].

[Rick]

Just a safety note. I remember reading that Bronze age smithies were subject to copper and arsenic poisoning because of the fumes released from the metals. Be careful when working with copper and bronze.

[tsitenha]

Try it by letting it cool slowly in air, copper hardens opposite of steel and then not that hard. It also work hardens.
It does not get any where as hard as steel but it will be harder.
Use a special copper grinding wheel to work it into shape (it clogs ordinarydisks)

[canid]

i know how copper hardens.

[panch0]

Very nice stuff.

[pocomoonskyeyes]

It' Really Beautiful!!

[canid]

drew the tang out slightly, and curved it to fit the desired handle shape and cut some antler for pinned scale handle. trying to decide what else to do with it.

in the service of experientation with brassing [not to be confused with brazing], i sanded the face of a couple pennies own to the zinc, and placed them sanded side down on the blade. i used the heat gun to heat the surface for a couple min to see if any zinc would transfer. between the oxides and the brassing, i got a pretty nifty pattern, which doesn't show well in the picture, but looks good. i'll try to get pictures in better light later:

http://i602.photobucket.com/albums/tt106/canid/knives/IMG_0317.jpg

[crashdive123]

That is pretty cool looking.

[rebel]

Ditto what Crash said. COOL!

[robertras]

I gotta say, this here is what got me to join the forum! I have seen threads on this site before, but I just thought this knife looked really awesome and had to say something. I haven't really gotten into making them, but I've always liked knives. Don't know what it is about them. Great job on this. I really like copper art (http://www.modernabstractdecor.com/modern_copper_art) though, like that kind, in case you didn't know what I was talking about. It just looks so unique...anyways, again, love the knife, let us know when you have it completely done!

[canid]

Sadly; this knife has not yet been finished, and is sitting in a friend's shop gathering dust. Thank you for the reminder, I'll dig it out the next time I'm out there and get back to work on it.

[crashdive123]

Hey - it's only been a year. You don't want to hurry art.

[Rick]

Creativity is a process. Time has no place or meaning. Only the idea and the finished masterpiece. I doubt da Vinci or Michelangelo ever looked at their watch and said, "Would you look at the time? I gotta pound stone!"