What tools does a blacksmith need to start?

A cross-pein hammer of about 1 to 1.5 kg, a pair of well-fitting tongs, mass beneath the work such as an anvil or steel block, and a forge fire that reaches bright orange. Everything else is added as specific jobs demand it.

What size hammer should a beginner blacksmith use?

About 1 to 1.5 kg. Heavier hammers move steel faster but cause fatigue and injury far sooner, and accuracy matters more than force while hammer control is being learned.

Can blacksmith tools be made at home?

Yes. Punches, drifts, hot cuts, hardy tools and swages are traditionally forged by the smith from scrap coil spring or old tool steel. Making your own tooling is part of the training, not a shortcut.

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Blacksmith Tools: What You Actually Need, and What You Do Not

Four tools forge. The rest is convenience bought later.

The four that forge

A cross-pein hammer of roughly 1 to 1.5 kg. Heavier hammers move steel faster and ruin your elbow faster still; control beats mass every time in the first year.

A pair of tongs whose jaws actually fit your stock. Ill-fitting tongs drop hot steel, and that is the most common injury in the shop. Wolf-jaw tongs cover the widest range of sizes.

Mass beneath the work — an anvil if you have one, a rail or steel block if you do not.

A fire that reaches bright orange, with air beneath it and depth enough to bury the work.

The second rank

A wire brush for scale, a slack tub, a hot cut or hardy chisel, a punch and a drift, and a set of files. Files are the quietest and most useful tools in a blade shop; most of the finishing on a hand-forged knife happens cold, at the vice.

Tools you should make, not buy

Punches, drifts, hardy tools, bottom swages and hot cuts are all forged from scrap coil spring or old jackhammer bits. Making your own tooling is the traditional apprenticeship, and each tool teaches the operation it is used for.

What most smiths never need

A power hammer, a hydraulic press, a belt grinder above the smallest useful size, and a full stock of commercial swage blocks. All are wonderful; none are the difference between forging and not forging.

Asked of the house

What tools does a blacksmith need to start?: A cross-pein hammer of about 1 to 1.5 kg, a pair of well-fitting tongs, mass beneath the work such as an anvil or steel block, and a forge fire that reaches bright orange. Everything else is added as specific jobs demand it.
What size hammer should a beginner blacksmith use?: About 1 to 1.5 kg. Heavier hammers move steel faster but cause fatigue and injury far sooner, and accuracy matters more than force while hammer control is being learned.
Can blacksmith tools be made at home?: Yes. Punches, drifts, hot cuts, hardy tools and swages are traditionally forged by the smith from scrap coil spring or old tool steel. Making your own tooling is part of the training, not a shortcut.

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