Speaking briefly and to the point: the knifemaker's aunt needs to strike hot metal harder, and the knifemaker has an extensive amount of patience. This initial hammering produced nothing but additional explanations from the knifemaker. The hammer felt heavy, the tongs felt clumsy and there was the ongoing fear that even when the metal was not red, it was still hot.
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| One more time.... |
The point is to broaden the face of the cut nail so there is a bigger surface area to work with, and to relieve the metal of any curves.
Tap, tap, tapping does not cut it and in this morning of learning curve, the hammer became heavier and heavier as the nails were going back into the forge over and over. In the end, the knifemaker's aunt made 14 acceptable pieces of forged nails to use for the knives (devoting about 3 hours of time) whereas the knifemaker could make 17 in 20 minutes.
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| 14 that passed inspection... |
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| Broaden the nail.... |
The knifemaker's experience certainly explains some of the that; the knifemaker's aunt's timidity does too. Watching the knifemaker actually make his 17 made it clear what needed to be done. Modeling was better instruction than verbal teaching. The aunt must remember that when teaching her students!
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| The undesirable curve. |
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| Straightening the spine.... |
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Notice the hammer-holding posture but it produced
the blisters and red marks on the knifemaker's aunt's hand. |
