Crafts & Restoration
Blacksmithing Basics
Start Forging Steel Today
12 lessons4 modules9h 0m durationbeginner level
About this course
This course takes you from a cold shop floor to a working blacksmith's station. You will learn how coal and propane forges behave differently, how to read steel heat by colour, and how to control the hammer to move metal precisely. By the final module you will execute drawing-out, upsetting, bending, and a basic heat treatment sequence — the four operations that underpin every project a blacksmith makes.
Curriculum
Module 1: The Forge — Fire, Fuel, and Shop Safety
- Coal vs Propane: Choosing Your Heat SourcePreview
- Shop Layout and Personal Protective Equipment🔒
- Lighting, Maintaining, and Shutting Down the Forge🔒
Module 2: Reading Steel — Heat, Colour, and Metal Behaviour
- The Colour Scale: From Black Heat to White🔒
- Steel Grades for Beginners: Mild Steel and 1084🔒
- Diagnosing Forge Problems: Scale, Grain, and Burning Steel🔒
Module 3: Hammer and Anvil — The Four Core Operations
- Grip, Stance, and Hammer Selection🔒
- Drawing Out and Upsetting🔒
- Hot Bending, Punching, and Hardy Tool Use🔒
Module 4: First Project and Heat Treatment
- Forging a Wall Hook from Mild Steel🔒
- Forging a Knife Blank from 1084🔒
- Normalise, Quench, and Temper — The Heat Treatment Cycle🔒
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