Forged In Fire

Uath

Uath

Joined
Oct 25, 2003
Messages
703
I love the show. I've seen every episode three times. It's even inspired me to buy a small propane forge, an anvil, and a table vise. I haven't been able to start yet, because I'm buying the stuff I need over a couple of months. I figure all I need now are tongs, an apron, a respirator, and another propane tank. I've injured my shoulder, so I can't do any forging anyway. Next month I'll buy the rest of the minimums and start if I'm able.

Anyway, I love the show. All of the contestants are pretty impressive people to me. Talk about a dedicated crew. They're all passionate to the point of religion, all of them. You always hear them saying things like, "I put a part of myself in every blade I make." I think I've heard just about everyone of them say it.
I'm a working artist myself. I appreciate skill and dedication. Real technique takes thousands of hours, I know. The blade-smiths on this show are skilled craftsmen and dedicated artists. I respect them.

I like the judges also. The first judge is always a master-smith and they really know what they're doing. The Baker fellow is a historical weapons expert and Hollywood blade-smith, and then they have a martial-artist. They're fair and tough. They don't pull punches and they give valuable feedback. (I feel at times they get a bit subjective. For example, they don't like long handles... Things like that)
The best are the weapons tests. It gives us the chance to see real historical weapons at work. I love, love, love, it.

They teach about knives and knife-making in the most entertaining way possible. I've learned so much about steels and Damascus and all kinds of stuff.

I know there's some criticism: All they test are weapons. They make knives look dangerous. Shows like that increase knife-law probability. They glorify knives as weapons, etc...

I don't care. To me they promote independent forges and blade-artists. They give constant tutorial in technique and also safety. Every one of those people are dedicated knife nuts. I love the show.

It Weel Keeel
 
Yeah I’m totally addicted to it. Great craftsmanship and folks who are real characters on it.
It’s not overly competitive in how it’s run by the judges... they are always very respectful and try to give positive feedback even when there isn’t much to give.
Great “plot twists” in the challenges and what historical weapon they have to build.
There have been some very young smiths that have totally impressed me.

I also somehow don’t feel embarrassed by the testing portion like I would for anything Cold Steel related lol.

There’s definitely a lot to love about that show.
 
Tried to watch it. It's abysmal. The same forced drama and lack of craftsmanship found on every one of these Discovery/History Channel "craftmaship" abominations.
 
OP, try to make your own tongs as a project to learn on.


SpySmasher said:
Tried to watch it. It's abysmal. The same forced drama and lack of craftsmanship found on every one of these Discovery/History Channel "craftmaship" abominations.
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Yea, what do Salem Straub, Burt Foster, Mark Knapp, Tobin Smith, Ben Abbott, David Mirabile, et al. know about craftsmanship. :(
 
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No knife maker works under time constraints like this in the real world, that's the added pressure, that's where corners get cut, that's where people crumble.

Not many people will watch a real time 10 hour anticlimactic YouTube documentary on knife making. They are making a tv show for the masses and it seems to be working for them.
 
I like the show. It only shows just how much skill, craftsmanship, imagination, and sweat goes into a handmade knife.
The show has given me an even higher respect for the Knifemaker/Craftman/Service Providers found here on the forum. We're lucky to have access to their knowledge for pennies a day. Thanks spark
 
BFS said:
OP, try to make your own tongs as a project to learn on.




Yea, what do Salem Straub, Burt Foster, Mark Knapp, Tobin Smith, Ben Abbott, David Mirabile, et al. know about craftsmanship. :(
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I did a search and as far as I can tell Tobin Smith was not on the show.
 
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I enjoy the show as well but wish they had more tool-oriented challenges rather than focusing on the weapon aspect of knives constantly. How about 4" blade length for the first round or a filet knife, and some tests that better represent practical applications?
 
I like the show. The torture tests are fun as hell to watch even though some of them make me cringe, haha. I do have a confession to make, though, I like Jason Knight as a judge a good bit more than Neilson.
 
3fifty7 said:
No knife maker works under time constraints like this in the real world, that's the added pressure, that's where corners get cut, that's where people crumble.

Not many people will watch a real time 10 hour anticlimactic YouTube documentary on knife making. They are making a tv show for the masses and it seems to be working for them.
Click to expand...

Maybe no knife maker who is selling his own wares to the public works under such constraints, but a prop maker like David Baker working for a production company often does. "Hey, Dave. We need a sword like this picture for filming tomorrow. Make it happen." I'm pretty sure he was the one who came up with the time frame.

The show is what it is. Someone else called it "the Olympics of forging". The challenge isn't "can you make a knife?" It's "Can you make a knife to these parameters, out of whatever junk we give you, to perform these tasks, in this time frame?" The weapon focus bugs me too, but I understand it from a marketing standpoint.
 
barcbsa said:
I did a search and as far as I can tell Tobin Smith was not on the show.
Click to expand...

No, but J.D. Smith was, twice, and never made it to the finals. He is an excellent craftsman and makes great knives, but he couldn't handle the time crunch.
 
I meant Ray Smith. I had just finished looking at some Tobin Smith knives and the name stuck.
 
Lynn Thompson should be a guest Judge on that show.

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Great show and I've seen some pretty nice blades made in those time crunches on that show. I wouldn't mind owning a few of them. I like the testing especially the antler chop.....Man that's hard to watch as J. Neilson beats the crap out of those blades, heck I believe he's even broke a few of them in two.
 
Pete Winkler (Cross Knives) is a past winner of Forged In Fire. (S3 Episode 9) He is without question, one of the nicest guys in the business he is also one of the best makers I know. I own 2 of his customs and I've had 2 knives re-handled by Pete as well. His knives might be the sharpest of any customs I own. His fit and finish is impeccable.

It was a cool experience watching a friend compete. There were a few people hosting "Forged in Fire" parties to watch Pete's episode when it aired.
 
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