Custom Forged Blades by Dan Weatherby
THE PROCESS OF FORGING BARRELS INTO BLADES
BARRELS TO BLADES
The following section gives some insight into the process of forging rifle barrels into blades. It has taken me years to perfect this process with much trial and error. The following information is by no means a complete description of everything that goes into making my blades, but for those of you who are interested in learning a bit more of the technical aspects to this please read on! Please note that the videos and images are from various blades I have made and are not a representation of one single type of blade. They are merely to illustrate the process of an individual step in bladesmithing.
DESIGN
The first thing I do is come up with a design. Sometimes the design is determined by handle material that I acquire. Other times it is inspired by other blades I see. Most of the time, it is a combination of ideas that all sort of come together late at night when I can't sleep! At any rate, it all ends up on paper and I sketch and erase many times till the design and dimensions are to my liking.
BARRELS
The next thing I do is choose which barrel to use for a blade. Weatherby uses two different steel types for their rifle barrels, chrome moly and stainless steel. I primarily use Weatherby's stainless steel barrels which are made of 410 stainless steel. This material resists corrosion much better than chrome moly and produces a drastic pattern when combined with the high carbon tool steel that forms the edge of the blade.
CORE MATERIAL THAT FORMS THE CUTTING EDGE
Once I have the barrel picked out, I choose the material to put inside the barrel before forging. This steel will ultimately form the cutting edge of the blade and therefore needs to be a steel that will harden and hold an edge for a long time. I have experimented with various high carbon tool steels and have successfully used different combinations of 1095, W1, O1, 52100, and 1084. These steels can be in the form of rod, powder, or ball bearing. This design is actually a form of Damascus steel called "San Mai." It means "three layers." Once the blade is forged out and one side is cut away there is a softer jacket of steel, in this case the 410 stainless steel rifle barrel, that surrounds the high carbon steel cutting edge. This pattern is not only aesthetically pleasing but it serves a function as well. In fact, high-end Japanese swords have used it for hundreds of years. The softer steel on the outside strengthens the more hardened core material on the edge as this harder material is more brittle and prone to break. It is less likely to break when surrounded by the softer steel along the spine and sides of the blade.
WELDING
After the core material is inserted into the barrel, both ends of the barrel are welded closed.
FORGING
Once the barrel is welded closed with the core materials in the middle it is time to fire up the forge! The first step in forging is to forge weld the two types of steels together by "setting the welds" with light hammer blows at an extremely high temperature. Eventually they are bonded as one piece. Then I begin to draw the material out and flatten it as I go, always being conscious of keeping that core material directly in the center.
PROFILE
Once the barrel has been forged out flat, I have to draw the profile of my blade and cut it out. I cannot forge the bevels of the blade, as I have to keep the outer jacket material and core material lined up to make sure that the core material forms the cutting edge.
GRIND THE PROFILE AND CHECK CORE CENTER
Once the profile of the blade has been cut out, it is dipped in acid and I am able to tell the difference between the stainless barrel which resists the acid etch and the high carbon core that oxidizes with the acid etch.
SCALE REMOVAL & FINISH PROFILING
I then take the blade to the 2X72 belt grinder and remove all the forging scale, and finish the profiling based on the original drawing design.
BEVEL GRINDING
Once the scale is removed and the flats are ground to about 400 grit it is time to grind the bevels. This is the rewarding part as the pattern of the San Mai damascus begins to reveal itself!
HEAT TREATMENT
Once the bevel has been ground it is time to heat treat the blade. This is one of the most important parts of the process. I have experimented with several different kinds of steels many times over until I have gotten the results that I need. Weatherby Inc. has a Rockwell hardness composition testing machine that I have access to. This has helped me greatly as I know exactly the harness of each material. I have a digitally controlled heat treating kiln to ensure that I get the greatest result out of each type of steel. I heat the blade to a specified temperature and then quench it in oil. After this I temper the blade in an oven at a specific temperature to remove brittleness.
HAND SANDING & POLISHING
Once the blade has been heat treated, the long and arduous process of hand sanding and polishing begins. It consists of a block of wood and various degrees of sand paper increasing in grit. Depending on what look I'm going for, it can go up to 600 grit or for a mirror polish up to 2400 grit followed by a buffing wheel. At some point along the way it is dipped in acid to reveal the san mai damascus pattern. It is also at this point that etch my signature in the blade.
CREATING THE GUARD
Once the blade is completely finished it is time to create the guard. Several holes are drilled out of whatever material will be used for the guard and then filed with needle files to fit the guard tightly. Once this is completed I silver solder the guard to the tang for blades with mirror finishes and blades with acid etch are compression fit and sealed with high strength epoxy.
GLUING & FITTING THE HANDLE
Once the guard is completed the handle material can be cut, drilled, fitted, and then glued. I use Brownell's acraglass for all of my blades. This is also the time at which I create a pommel if it is a through tang design. I thread the tang to fit a custom nut that is silver brazed to the pommel to ensure a tight fit. Sometimes there can be many pieces involved as with this Yukon model!
HANDLE AND GUARD GRINDING & SHAPING
Once the glue has dried, it is time to complete the knife by grinding, shaping, and contouring the handle and guard to the shape desired. Once the general shape is acquired I work up in grits until I get the level of finish I want. I complete it by polishing it on the buffing wheel. Most of my handle material is stabilized in resin in a vacuum chamber so after buffing there is no need to apply any finish to the handle. I sharpen each blade to hair-shaving razor sharp and then it is ready to go out the door! Of course I still have to make the custom leather sheath, but that is a whole other process that won't be discussed in this section.
