Useful Suppliers Directory

Courses

Graham Clarke – Vlakvark Forge – Knife and Axe making courses. Graham has been around for a while and also offers heat treating and damascus billets.
Owen Bush School of Bladesmithing – Owen has been around a long time and has a huge amount of experience.
Patrick Joseph Knives – Based in Ireland. I’ve done a course with Patrick and absolutely loved it. I left with a nicely finished neck knife that I use almost every day. A highly skilled knife maker.

Swan Forges – I have the twin burner Cygnet and find a great size. Portable too.
Morgan Thermal Ceramics – Superwool – an alternative option for fibre lining your forge.

Rapid Tools (Cheshire UK) – I one of their 2×72″ tilting belt-grinders. Nice quality and their sales support is awesome.
Multitool Products (Seighford, UK)

Adjustable Knife Grinding Jig – Aluminium with two handles. Great for getting more consistent grinds when starting out.
TR Maker Adjustable Grinding Jig – Anodised T6106 Aluminium.
Derraco Gen2 Tungsten file guide – Great for consistent grinds and resistant to ceramic belts.

GFS Knife Supplies – a great supplier for steel, handles, knife kits and a lot more. Join their mailing list for the latest deals.
Barmond Special Steels – Damasteel, Bohler, Silver Fox and more.
Edgy Supplies – Liners, handles, steels
Furnival Steel – EN45 and other spring steel, 80CrV2, O1

Honeywell North 7700 – Reusable respirator. Filters are separate.
3M Half mask 6300 – Reusable respirator.
Safety glasses – I’ve heard people mention that forges give off IR and UV light. Borosilicate glasses appear to have great protection against sodium flare, IR and UV while still retaining good colour recognition. Not met anyone who uses them but might be worth a look if you forge a lot and enjoy staring into a charcoal forge!
Most smiths use regular safety glasses from places like Screwfix.
Full face mask – a full visor protecting the face. Safety glasses should still be worn as sparks and debris can still reach your eyes.

The Museum of Knife Design – one to watch as they may have a library at some point.
The Complete Bladesmith: Forging Your Way to Perfection – by Jim Hrisoulas
Knife Steel Nerds – a great online resource for steel types, heat treating and more.

Knife Print – Knife CAD – Design knives with CAD precision and accuracy with the Knifeprint Editor – Based in the US.