How To J.D. Smith, WiP

Lorien

Lorien

Nose to the Grindstone
Moderator
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Dec 5, 2005
Messages
26,512
It all started with a sketch, which I finished up mid December 2013 and then sent to Boston.

G4wQeVY.jpg


I was going for a kard/jambiya/khanjar/pesh kabz hybrid type thing, with a little Kabar thrown in. The main thing I was going for was a nice, broad blade to showcase J.D.'s mesmerizing damascus, in a form that I thought might jive with his artistic language.

Never felt that I got this pattern completely nailed down, and looking back on it from the distance of time, I can see so many problem areas and lost opportunities.

Fortunately, J.D. follows the beat of his on anvil...
 
the layers of steel have been forge welded, crushed, squished, squeezed and hammered into a billet of what is known as 'Damascus steel'. You will watch this steel billet get forged into a pretty large knife.

Here's a little explanation that J.D. provided;

You see the arrows I've indicated on the billet? those were to orient me to the edge bar on the billet. I cut the tip to allow me to bring the edge around with the curve of the blade as I forge it to shape.

eP34koS.jpg


zjx7wwQ.jpg


vGCqIUQ.jpg


ehVA46A.jpg


ukIvGlY.jpg


UtfQaJy.jpg



If you want to see how Damascus steel is made, I highly recommend checking out Mareko Maumasi's Instagram page.
 
Last edited:
I recently watched the Forged in Fire episode with J.D. in it.

The thing that I noticed the most was how keenly he was watched by the judges while he was working, and how respectful- almost deferential- they were to him when they had to tell him that he didn't make the cut. Forged in Fire is a unique situation in bladesmithing, and shouldn't be taken as an indicator of what is wheat and what is chaff. It's educational and entertaining for the viewer, but it is a game show and gameshows require things from their contestants other than just skill and knowledge.

By every real measure, J.D. is one of the best bladesmiths alive today.

MGbI3t8.jpg


vTqvOvc.jpg


ogqVRQU.jpg


JOD2nQC.jpg
 
Lorien said:
......Forged in Fire is a unique situation......... It's educational and entertaining for the viewer
Click to expand...

Entertaining, yes. Educational?....questionable, at best. ;):D


Lorien said:
By every real measure, J.D. is one of the best bladesmiths alive today.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more. Very pleasant and intelligent man and insanely talented. :thumbsup::cool:
 
added some text to post #2, fyi
 
Pesh Kabarz? ;) Looks pretty cool so far.
 
bolster bashing. J.D.'s description;


"I've selected an area to upset and thicken to become the 'integral bolster'. It will need to have enough mass to net the kind of shape the final form will have."

Aq7t0K6.jpg


DsrbtIP.jpg


eTUde6r.jpg


ObWVBzc.jpg


EoAzn7O.jpg
 
Last edited:
Lorien, I'm loving this thread. Thank you.

I don't know how he does it. Here's a photo of JD taken almost 18 years ago (2002). He hasn't aged a year.

orig.jpg


Jeez. Must be all that dancing he teaches. :)
 
Beautiful drawing, Arnold, can not say why but I love the work of JD, the association of the two of you is superb, congratulations .
Pic with Andrew is TERRIBLE (terrible translated into French means even more than superb, explosive :D)
 
Very nice thread. JD does some beautiful forging. I'd like to get a piece from him one day. WIP threads are some of my favorite ones.
 
This is killing me.... I love these threads and jump each time I see another update. Then the waiting begins for the next posts... Can’t wait to see how this one ends up :thumbsup:.

Jeremy
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top