Since the knifemaker's aunt's project so far has involved nail knives, there hasn't been much discussion about other metalworking products.Blacksmithing involves much more than knives as many intuitively know. Metalworking is massaging metal into all kinds of shapes with the use of heat and force. For example, railroad spikes used to make the railroad spike knives can also be elongated, twisted, and made into steak turners. The long handle makes flipping a steak on a grill quite easy. The twisted area is done much the same way as the knife handle but when twisted in two directions at the middle adds a decorative flair. Notice how the end of the spike is retained in both instances.
Another example of using materials to a different end involves the cut nails the knifemaker's aunt used to make her nail knives. Imagine two cut nails at right angles to each other so one is hammered into a wall. When the other is forged to a curve, there is a hanging hook. Pretty handy...much as forging, twisting, and curving any metal strip would be as shown by the S hook. It only takes a small bit of imagination to figure out ways to use hooks around the house, barn, or garage!
