Japanese Double Edge Ryoba Saw
This is a great saw for making very clean cuts on handle scales. Unlike Western saws they are a pull (draw) cut configuration and with their teeth geometry provide very precise clean cuts.
Hardness testing files
To make sure our heat treat process works as intended we bought a set of these Japanese hardness testing files. Whilst not as accurate as a proper hardness testing machine they are a a hell of a lot cheaper and give us a result within 2-3 points of Hardness on the Rockwell Scale.
Axminster Trade series Pillar Drill
Having a decent drilling set-up for all materials is crucial to a lot of our work. The Axminster Trade series is a really serious bit of kit. We bought it as a bench mounted drill press but built a custom stand so it would fit into our workshop. The machine is a beast and so far there is no job too big or small this beauty cannot handle.
Vecstar Heat
Treating Furnace
To properly heat treat a blade you need a combination of knowledge of the materials and the ability to bring the blade to a very precise temperature. Vecstar is a UK company that makes specialist furnaces and ovens for laboratories and specialist manufacturing processes. Each furnace is custom built to suit the customers needs. Our furnace has a controllable temperature range of about 450 - 1200 degrees C and is able to treat 8 blades of up to xx cm at a time.
Victory Tools Blacksmiths Hammers
The standard tool set for any smith has to have first on the list a Smiths hammer. We purchased these two hand made hammers from Victory tools in Norfolk. These are traditional blacksmiths producing blacksmiths tools by blacksmiths.
Modified Bar Twisting Tool
This is just any monkey / pipe wrench with a bar welded on so that when your twisting hot metal you have far more control over the process. This was a simple but very effective modification to a shop bought tool.
Iron Mountain Welding Flux