Knifemaking: making your own forged blade is easier than you might think
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Under Rutherford's tutelage - a mix of hands-on instruction and kindly advice - even novices like myself can produce exquisite blades.
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Even today there’s still something quite magical about forging the perfect blade. However, hammering glowing-red, malleable steel into shape, and then preparing your newly formed cutting tool to last a lifetime, doesn’t have to be a process steeped in archaic mystique. To find out how it gets done, I signed up for a knifemaking course at Rutherford Forge.
Forging a blade is easier said than done, you might think. Not really. Mike Rutherford has been making exquisite knives from recovered metals out of his Johannesburg North-based forge, and selling them at the Bryanston Organic Market, for the last three years. He also runs knifemaking courses, patiently guiding rank novices through the entire process – from choosing an appropriate design for themselves, forging and completing the blade, to fabricating its handle as well as overseeing the making of its leather sheath from scratch.
All materials are provided (however, if you want something exotic such as a warthog bone or antler handle you’ll pay a bit extra), and virtually any design you choose goes – only double-edged blades are out of bounds, because their complexity makes them extremely difficult for novices to make. And, to ensure his fastidious standards never get compromised, he never takes on more than two students at a time. Says Rutherford, “I’ve never had a knife made by a student that I wouldn’t be proud of – I’d be prepared to sell them all at the market as my own.”
What’s reassuring is that you can tackle Rutherford’s course with no metalworking experience whatsoever. On this point, I’d say I’m a perfect example: at school, I dumped metalwork as a subject as soon as possible, dismissing it as a tedious and grimy activity to be avoided.
That said, thanks to Rutherford’s constant barrage of kindly advice, even I managed to walk away with a really cool fishing knife that I was incredibly proud of. And, when he picked up my completed erm, masterpiece, gave it a careful appraisal and announced “I reckon I could sell this knife for at least three grand”, my glow of satisfaction raised the ambient temperature by several degrees.
Rutherford is proud of the fact that he’s never had a failure on his course, saying “Sometimes a student might leave with a blade shaped slightly differently than initially envisioned. But forging is only one part of the process, if the blade gets stuffed up we can always start again.”
Rutherford’s knifemaking course runs for about two and a half days and costs R2 500. Not only do you walk away with exactly what you want, but you get the same lifetime guarantee that he provides with all his blades. Contact him on 082 654 9401 or visit his Web site at www.rutherfordforge.co.za
To read the full article get your hands on the July 2011 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine - on sale on 20 June.
Check out the video of Mike Rutherford explaining the knifemaking process while making a blade.
