Since there were no real grinders at the Folk School, I decided that we would make these blades by hand. This was quite a shock to the full time makers who were attached to their belt sanders and to the new comers who hadn't done much hand work before, but it was also a good learning experience and I felt essential to really understanding the swords. Too often we rush out to buy power equipment to do a job missing some of the basics of the craft in the process. I began making Damascus by hand with a hand hammer and continued for several years until I could no longer keep up with the work. This gave me a feel for the steel and the process and also made me appreciate the final product. Damascus has never been bar stock for me, it remains special and it feel it is because of this early start.
I had requested that the students bring files, stones and paper to the classes, but we took Tuesday morning to forge out some Japanese style scrapers called sens to use for the stock removal. The sen is very similar to a draw knife used for wood. The blade has two handles or tangs extending from a flat center cutting area. The best cutting tools are flat ground on one face and have two cutting edges front and back. The bevel is quite acute to the edge, but is concave for strength. They are meant to be used sharp and work with either a push or pull stroke. We made ours up out of leaf spring and oil hardened them, drawing for 1/2 hr at 325F to take the curse off the hardening. Most of the ones we made worked quite well, some better than others, but I think that all who gave them a fair try, found it to be a much fast way of getting the stock off and the flats set than by filing.
Before using the sen or files, we knocked off the scale with rough stones. I had found some cheap oil stones at a flea market and they worked fine. Knocking the scale off revealed the hammer imperfections and bevel lines. Once most of the scale was removed, we turned to the scrapers. It is a bit difficult to get them started since they need to establish their own bite before they really start cutting the metal. I have pulled a shaving off a katana three inches long with my sen and end up with a pile on the floor when I am finished shaping the blade. I brought my sen to class and it had sharpened two katana and a tanto before requiring anything more than a light touch up.
Final shaping of a sword with hand tools is hard work. I have to work through my impatience and settle into the rhythm of the tools before I can appreciate the process. It is very peaceful and satisfying not to have a motor running every time you work. I find going back to power tools stressful after a time of working only with hand tools. Because the pace is slower, you also get a chance to thinking about what you are making, anticipating problems and developing a connection with the piece instead of simply producing it.
Often new knifemakers jump into the craft without ever having made a knife from scratch. I think this is skipping an important learning phase and doesn't teach respect for what they are doing. The connection with the past and with a time not so caught up in the frenetic pace of today's life that was appealing to me when I first started forging and I am glad that I was able to experience and appreciate it.
The scraper sets the lines of the blade and prepares us for the files. Going to the files we begin to refine the blade. At first the file takes the tops off the scraper cuts, but soon it is into the meat of the steel. I like to use a draw filing motion that is not in the books. I hold the file in both hands and push/pull it at right angles to the work. While this may seem contrary to the way a file was designed to cut, it produces a smooth flat finish and rarely galls. I also use light strokes and do not bear down as hard as I did with the scraper. I begin with a bastard mill file, though if a lot of material needs to be removed I sometimes use a magic cut file. After the bastard mill file you can go to a smooth file and this will save you time when you transition to stones.
After, the lines have been set and are crisp, I begin to work the flat of the bevel to the edge. It is helpful to sight along the edge and find the center line. Cutting a mini-bevel to establish the center line will give you a guide when you begin cutting to it along the flat of the blade. This is a common practice when grinding a blade and it works well with hand tools too.
I should mention at this time about how to secure the blade while working on it. In my shop, I have made a sturdy and functional tool for holding long blades. It is made from a drill press vise to which I have welded a 1" angle iron roughly 24 inches long. The vise is located in approximately 6" from one end and the angle is welded using nickel rod for the cast iron and welded to the inside base and fixed jaw. I pad the surface of the angle with thin leather and pad the top, moveable vise jaw with neoprene. When I am working, I clamp this tool in my bench vise. Using a vise in a vise is very versatile, sort of vise versa. Sorry. Anyway, you can then clamp the blade securely while you are working on it. A bit about vise safety. A blade clamped in the vise should have the edge and point behind the back up support. It is very dangerous and can hurt you badly. Whenever I leave the work piece, I remove the blade from the vise, every time. For the class at J.C. Campbell, we used 2x4's held in the post vise clamping the blades down with c clamps.