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Originally Posted by michaelryannh
He has been under his father's training from a young age (He is 22 now, Started around the age of 15-16.)
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Ummm.... And what has he been up to before 15-16? Apprenticeships usually started between 12-14, and as a blacksmith's son, he was probably helping out informally since he was 7 or 8.
The Book of Swords by Hank Reinhardt will probably give you lots of good details about swords, by someone who's actually made swords.
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The forging process was usually started with a "cake" of steel. This was a piece of steel about two pounds in weight and was usually obtained through trade. A swordmaker was lucky if he lived close enough to a good source of metal. But this usually wasn't the case.
The steel was heated to a cherry red and then pounded into a bar. This process was repeated several times, and eventually it was shaped into the sword blade.
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It's a fascinating book, full of interesting info about swords and sword making.