A Blacksmithing Primer: A Course in Basic and Intermediate Blacksmithing Paperback – January 1, 2004

I bought this book for my husband to begin forging at home. He has had it in his hands since. It has so much information in it that has helped him to build his own forge, make some tools for forging and also finish a few projects including a nice one handed blade. I would recommend this book to both beginners and for those with some experience to keep on hand as a reference. It covered not just techniques but also knowledge of metals, temperatures, forges, and even making blacksmithing tools.

I work in a museum, and among other things, I demonstrate blacksmithing and teach courses in it. This book really zeros in on teaching the very first steps of blacksmithing in a very clear and understandable way. The pictures are simple line drawings. They are not beautiful but they serve to focus the reader very clearly on the basic first steps. I find other blacksmithing books, while they may be excellant in other respects, are less successful at doing this. If you want to start blacksmithing, and have no teacher to guide you, (as I didn't) this is the book for you.

Nice addition to my collection

I had the opportunity to spend the day with a Master Blacksmith recently and decided that I want to learn more; so I bought this book to help give me a little more background before I see him again so I can be prepared to get the most out of the session. The book arrived exactly when promised and in good condition. The first 60 or so pages were awesome introduction to the tools and basic procedures. The book then launched into projects, since I do not have a forge set up I cannot judge if the projects help to learn or not but they seem to start slow and build to harder, more complex skills.The book is easy to read and understand with a good use of diagrams, though at times I think actual pictures might have been better in certain circumstances. The authors style is easy to follow and enjoyable and certainly made me want to read more and look forward to being able to practice on my own. So why didn't I give it 5 stars? The binding, the printer really let the author down here. The binding of the book in a word sucked. It started to come apart as soon a cracked it open for the first time and some of the pages are already loose. Other than that I recommend it for the inexperienced or novice blacksmith, I do not think that anyone who has been at it for a while will get a lot from the book.

Well written and informative

Very informative. It's filled with things you may know and a lot of things you didn't. Tips to help improve your skills and plenty of projects to practice those skills....

Mr. McDaniel has the ability to teach using the written word. His instructions are clear, easy to comprehend, and interesting. I found the book fun to read. "A Primer" is an apt title, with projects progressing from easy beginner work to designing, each new project building on what was taught/learned from the previous projects. Highly recommended.

This book is great for beginners I have learned alot some of it will be useful later on but alot I put to use right away excellent read and a must have for all smiths

Step by step instructions with pictures to help you understand. Excellent for the library

Il manuale è realizzato in maniera molto dettagliata e le immagini molto esaustive, lo consiglio vivamente a chi vuole avvicinarsi al mondo del ferro battuto

Turned up on time and in fantastic condition. The book is full of great information helping you to get started in Blacksmithing. Well written with clear diagrams and plenty of practical examples and projects to improve your skills.Worth noting that the units of use are feet/inches but nothing a pencil or conversion chart on the wall can't solve!

Just what I wanted!

Good read