Forged : Making a Knife with Traditional Blacksmith Skills

Richly illustrated, this manual guides readers through forging a frontier-style utility knife using traditional hand tools. Over 150 visuals detail every stage- from steel selection to heat treatment - while practical tips and blacksmith secrets breathe life into time-honoured techniques.

Forged: Making a Knife with Traditional Blacksmith Skills by Paul White is a beautifully illustrated, straightforward manual that teaches readers how to forge a complete, functional knife using the same time-tested methods once practised by traditional blacksmiths.

Across 132 pages and more than 150 colour photographs and drawings, White explains each stage of the process—from steel selection and forging the blade to shaping, heat treating, riveting, and sharpening—using only hand tools. The book’s centrepiece project, a frontier-style utility knife, serves as a model through which readers learn essential forging techniques, heat control, and fit-and-finish craftsmanship.

Written in a conversational and encouraging tone, Forged is filled with “Tips,” “Notes,” and “Blacksmith Secrets” boxes that provide extra insight into real-world workshop practice. White’s emphasis on low-technology, affordable tools makes the book especially appealing for new bladesmiths, hobbyists, and teachers of traditional craft.

Reviewers across the international blacksmithing community have praised Forged for its clarity, depth, and authenticity. Publications such as The Anvil’s Ring, Knives Illustrated, California Blacksmith, and The Hammer’s Blow describe it as an indispensable beginner’s guide, noting its effective presentation of core techniques like heat treatment, annealing, normalising, hardening, and edge quenching.

Paul White—a practising blacksmith with over forty-five years of experience—writes not only as a craftsman but as a teacher preserving a vanishing tradition. His goal is to help readers honour the heritage of the forge while developing their own skill and confidence.

Printed in hardcover (132 pages, 24 × 17 cm) and richly illustrated in colour, Forged is both a practical workshop guide and a tribute to the timeless craft of hand-forged knives.