WIL WILLIS: Bladesmiths,
is to forge a Scottish Dirk
that falls within the following
parameters.
The blade must have a single
edge along with a false edge
that covers at least
one third of the spine
with decorative file work in
addition to a through tang.
You will have three hours in
which to forge those blades.
Now, on your anvils
there's a cloth.
Go ahead and lift that up.
That is 50:100 steel
that you will use
to forge your Scottish Dirks.
Good luck bladesmiths.
Your three hour starts now.
Welding.
I've never made a blade out
of a three-inch ball bearing.
I'm gonna wait on
this until it's
almost white on the outside.
Then I plan on beating the
crap out of that steel.
[intense music]
DAVID BAKER: You
want that yellow glow
when it comes out of the forge
before you start hitting it.
DOUG MARCAIDA: Yeah.
And as you're workin'
it, as soon as it starts
losin' color, back in the forge.
This challenge is perfect
for this Scotch-Irish here.
WIL WILLIS: You have 60 minutes
remaining to finish your work.
Yeah.
[intense music]
I'm having a blast
making this blade.
I don't know about you guys,
but I think this is awesome.
Doran doesn't seem to have
a Dirk point on his blade.
No.
DAVID BAKER: He's got a bit
of a chopper point on there.
DORAN: This man's
usin' a hammer.
Well, that looks like
hammered [bleep]..
DOUG MARCAIDA:
Jonathan and Ben have
that Dirk look, same with Phil.
They all dropped to the point.
- Yes.
It really is
concerning, Doran's
doesn't look like a Dirk.
[intense music]
I have minutes to
get this thing done.
I'm lookin' at the temperature.
I'm lookin' at the color.
I don't know this
steel that well.
But I have to quench now.
BEN ABBOTT: There you go.
Doran into the
fire for a quench.
DAVID BAKER: The problem
is if it keeps reigniting--
Agh.
DAVID BAKER: --you know it's
hot enough to ignite the oil.
Put it back in in the oil.
Agh.
BEN ABBOTT: It's still red hot.
Get it in the oil.
I'm not likin' that.
BEN ABBOTT: Now he's checkin'--
WIL WILLIS: It's
still red in places.
BEN ABBOTT: --the hardness.
The thing is still red.
I'm not happy.
Time's running out.
I have to re-quench.
And if that doesn't
work, I'm done.
[intense music]
WIL WILLIS: Five,
four, three, two, one.
Bladesmiths shut down your
machines, drop your tools.
Woo.
Hell yeah.
This round is over.
Bladesmiths, in this first round
of competition, each of you
made a Scottish
Dirk, Dave Baker's
favorite fighting knife.
Now it's time for the
judges to examine your work.
Ben, you're up first.
Please present your
play to the judges.
[technical swoosh]
DOUG MARCAIDA: I like how
you put your false edge.
It's very aggressive in that.
It's a very beautiful
looking blade.
DAVID BAKER: Ben,
you got cracks.
The crack here at the tang
is worrisome, which is
a critical part of that blade.
If you move forward, it's
gonna have to be addressed.
WIL WILLIS: Phil,
you're up next.
Please present your
play to the judges.
[technical swoosh]
DAVID BAKER: When I see
a Dirk, this is very
much the shape I like to see.
It's got a very key
point for thrusting.
But there's enough mass
in that blade for a chop.
A bit of a warp in your tang.
Other than that,
absolutely gorgeous.
WIL WILLIS: Doran you're up.
Please present your
work to the judges.
[technical swoosh]
DOUG MARCAIDA: Well, Doran,
you turned in a solid piece.
You know with a
50:100, you're always
worried about the cracks.
But you maintained your heat.
And that's one of the things
I like about your blade.
I do not see any cracks at all.
All right, you've
got a flat spine
and then it rises
towards the tip.
Most of the Dirks
drop towards the tip.
That's kinda missing
in your design.
It's not the typical Dirk point
that I was expecting to see.
All right Jonathan, you're up.
Please present your
blade to the judges.
[technical swoosh]
BEN ABBOTT: I like the
shape of your blade.
It's got that
classic Dirk shape.
It does drop to the front.
It has a false edge.
But there's some surface
cracking on this blade here.
It would be nice to see
if you can grind'em away.
But other than that,
it's a Dirk, well done.
WIL WILLIS:
Bladesmiths, the judges
deliberation is complete.
And they've made
a final decision.
The bladesmith
leaving the forge is--
[intense music]
--Ben, your blade
didn't make the cut.
Doug Marcaida is
gonna tell you why.
Ben, we really like the
look and design of your Dirk.
But you developed cracks
at critical junctures
of your blade.
You had cracks in your spine.
You had cracks on your tang
that went all the way through.
And we just feel that you
will not be able to fix that.
And for this reason,
we're sending you home.
WIL WILLIS: Ben, please,
surrender your blade.
BEN: I'm absolutely
devastated that I'm not
movin' on to the next round.
Thank you.
I came out here to prove
that I was a great bladesmith.
I worked hard.
I did everything I felt
like I needed to do.
But I never messed with 50:100.
And it is a bitch.
[music playing]
