For the Beginning Blacksmith - How to Track your Progress

How can you tell if you are making progress in developing your blacksmithing skills? What techniques should you be working on? The following standards were developed by the APPALACHIAN BLACKSMITHS ASSOCIATION and registered with the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training, United States Department of Labor. The following is a basic checklist which will help you tack your progress in blacksmithing.

SKILLS EXPECTED OF AN APPRENTICE

1. Drawing out:
Draw out a bar to a point or dress an edge or point tool.

2. Upsetting:
Upset to at least 1 1/2 times the diameter or width of a bar on the end and in the middle.

3. Bending:
Make a ring out of bar stock or flat stock; forge a square corner right angle bend in square stock.

4. Punching, slitting and decorative punch work:
Show an example of decorative punch work; punch a hole in a bar the same size as the width of the bar.

5. Drifting:
Make a drift and us it to smooth, shape or enlarge a hole.

6. Mortise and tennon:
Make an assembly from at least two separate pieces using this technique.

7. Collaring:
Make an assembly from at least two separate pieces using this technique.

8. Scroll work:
Make two different types of scrolls.

9. Splitting:
Split a bar with a hot cut in the middle or at the end of the bar.

10. Fullering, grooving, veining, set hammering:
Show examples of each or if used as an intermediate technique, describe how and why the techniques are used.

11. Riveting:
Make two assemblies from at least two separate pieces for each assembly using hot riveting and cold riveting (pop riveting not acceptable).

12. Forge welding:
Show at least three different techniques.

13. Arc welding, brazing, soldering, oxyacetylene torch welding:
Show an example of each.

14. Hot rasping, filing:
Hot rasp the torch cut end of a bar to reasonable straightness and eveness; show a workpiece which has been filed to a smooth, flat surface; describe the types, care, and use of files.

15. Sinking, raising, metal spinning:
Make or show a hemispherical or hollow object made from flat sheet using any one technique.

16. Grinding:
Know how to use a body grinder (portable grinder), pedestal grinder, belt grinder, sharpening stones and abrasive papers; know the types of abrasive and how they are graded and classified; show an edge tool that you have sharpened.

17., Drilling, tapping, diework and threads:
Drill and tap a hole; thread the end of a bar with a die; know the common thread classifications; know the common drill size classifications and the care and use of twist drills.

18. Heat treating,hardening, tempering annealing, case hardening:
Know how to properly anneal, harden and temper carbon tool steel; know how to case harden mild steel; know the colors for tempering; make or show a tool you have made that has been heat treated that will cut or forge mild steel without breaking or deformation on the working end.

19. Heading:
Head two bolts, one square headed and one hex headed; head a nail ; head a rivet.

20. Cutting and shearing:
Know how to use the hot cut, cold cut, hacksaw, tinsnips, or bench or floor shear; know how to use the oxyacetylene torch for cutting - demonstrate each technique.

21. Swaging:
Swage a tennon or make the end of a square bar round using a swage.

22. Twisting:
Show two different twists in square bar.

23. Shop safety:
Know first aid techniques for cuts, burns, abrasion and other shop related injuries; describe methods of hearing, sight and body protection and why they are necessary; know power tool and machinery safety including welding equipment safety.

24. Basic metallurgy:
Know the properties and use of wrought iron, mild steel, carbon and tool steels and their classifications, castiron, brass, copper, aluminum; know sheet and plate gauging for ferrous and non-ferrous metals.

25. Fire and fuel:
Know the constituents of good shop coal; know the different types of coal fires and fire maintenance.

26. Jigs and dies:
Make both a jig and a die for doing repetitive production work and show examples of work produced in them.

-- AlbinDrzewianowski - 01 Feb 2009