Level I: Basic Blacksmithing.

This certificate will be awarded to those who have completed the Level I, basic training or the equivalent. They will have presented to their instructor the Farm Gate Latch (see website) and have passed a safety test. By doing so they have shown an understanding of the basic skills of a blacksmith, including:

Safety
Nomenclature of the anvil
Hammers and types of hammer blow
Tapers (Square octagon, round)
Handheld punch in a round hole
Hot cut (chisel or top tool)
Heat treatment
7/8 x 1/8 slot Punch (or equivalent)
Hammer, eye drift (1/2 by 7/8)
Monkey tool (precursor to making a hammer - level 2)
Butcher (chisel or top tool)
Upsetting
Round tenon
Tenon Tool
Forge welding
Bending over the bick or horn

Level I Student Checklists

There are no time constraints or expectations placed on the completion of this level, as each individual has different levels of learning and access to the blacksmith shop.

Class Project

Gate Latch Updated July 2023

Handout for a Level 1 student

It has the introduction taken from CBA material, a sign off sheet, list of projects from Mark's The Skills of a Blacksmith, Vol 1, and a drawing of the final project.

Additional Resources

If you do not have a CBA class in your area, or just want to prepare for an upcoming class, we recommend checking out YouTube videos. There are lots to choose from. Below is a list if the best ones we could find for the specific projects or skills. In the future, we hope to have our own CBA instructions videos for our members. Be sure to check out this list again in the future.

CBA Level 1 YouTube Videos. pdf