Date: October 12, 2023

Time: 6 PM – 10 PM

Location: Adam’s Forge

Adam’s Forge instructor Dossain Valencia gives a feline slant to the punch and drift bottle opener.  In this class, you’ll use a slot punch to pierce steel, then drive drifts through the hole to progressively enlarge the opening before shaping it on the horn of the anvil.

In this case we will be using these techniques to create a bottle opener, but they are essential skills for a blacksmith to understand and master in order to create additional projects like hammer heads, axe eyes, and a myriad of other projects from creating tooling to artistic endeavors.

In this class we will cover skills like…
Marking steel to ensure you punch in the intended location.
How to punch and pierce steel efficiently without damaging tools
Using progressively larger drifts to widen the slot to hole shape, then enlarge the hole to the desired size
Forging on the horn to chamfer internal and external corners
Using a handled ball punch and a triangular fuller
Creating curves in the overall shape to make it more ergonomic

This is a fun class that will allow you practice these essential blacksmithing skills and walk away with a handsome piece and the skills to make many more.

Prerequisite: Any Discovery or Letter Opener Class. This class is for the experienced student. Students should be confident in hammer control and basic forging skills. This is NOT a class for beginners.