When it comes to being self-reliant and not tethered to society it is good to be handy. Better yet, it is good to be good with your hands. This can come in the form of fixing your own vehicle, tying a flyfishing fly, having a gentle touch to handle honeybees, or the dexterity to form, manipulate, and mold materials. While it is convenient to buy many material possessions for our everyday lives, it is valuable and resourceful to craft our own items. Whether it is a potter on their wheel making a clay coffee mug, the carpenter cutting wood to form a chair, the knitter fashioning wool into clothing, or the blacksmith forging a knife. With the abundance of natural sustenance we discuss harvesting on AllOutdoor from venison to fish to upland birds, we are constantly deploying knives to process game animals. So, why not make our own?… My wife and I decided to try just that when we signed up for a Railroad Spike Knife Forging Class with Northstar Forge in Minnesota. Let’s dive into our experience forging a knife at a professional forge with ABS (American Bladesmith Society) Journeyman, Jason Kraus, who has the pedigree of having competed on the HISTORY channel’s “Forged in Fire” show!
The railroad spike knife is the Wooly Bugger fly of the knifemaking world. It is what everyone makes they first time they try it.
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Home on the Range #051: Railroad Spike Knife Forging at Northstar Forge