American Farmers: Facing a Cutoff at the Start

Chapter 92 The Eight-Sided Han Sword (Seeking First Subscription!)

Next comes the ridge.

This is the soul of the eight-sided Han sword, and also the most technically demanding step.

Fett switched to a specially made narrow-faced hammer.

He didn't rush to strike, but instead placed the sword sideways on the anvil, squinted one eye, and aimed along the center line of the sword to find the right spot.

"Clang, clang, clang."

The hammering became more frequent and brisk.

He carefully tapped along the center line of the sword, pressing the steel to both sides.

Every hammer strike must be absolutely precise, neither to the left nor to the right. Even a deviation of one millimeter will cause the sword spine to tilt, ruining the entire sword.

As the spine of the sword rose, he used the flat surface of the anvil to trim the blade on both sides, gradually thinning it to form the iconic diamond-shaped cross-section.

After striking the spine of the sword, the next step is the blade.

Unlike the overall tapering lines of Western longswords, the unique feature of Han swords lies in their blade edge.

At approximately one-third to one-quarter of the way from the front of the blade, the edge begins to narrow noticeably inward, forming a sharp and slender tip.

In this way, the penetrating power of the sword tip is greatly increased, making it unmatched in thrusting; while the width of the blade in the middle and rear sections retains sufficient weight and strength, making it unparalleled in slashing as well.

Fett chose a good spot and reheated the tip of the sword until it was red-hot.

He placed the piece of steel at an angle on the edge of the anvil and replaced it with a lighter trimming hammer.

"Ding, ding, ding."

The hammer blows fell in dense clusters.

He carefully tapped inwards along the edge of the blade, gradually narrowing the originally straight lines.

As the steel is compressed, an elegant and smooth arc gradually emerges, and the sword tip becomes increasingly sharp, like a thorn.

This is an extremely physically demanding and visually stimulating job.

Sweat slid down Fett's forehead and dripped onto the scorching anvil, turning into white smoke with a "sizzle".

His arm muscles were taut, and he used all his strength with each strike, but the landing point was as light as a dragonfly skimming the water, as if afraid that a heavy blow would ruin the balance of the entire sword.

After tapping a few times, Fett would stop, pick up the blade, squint at the light, and check from the butt of the blade to the tip to see if it was straight.

"The curvature on both sides is not quite the same."

He frowned, placed a slightly protruding part of the sword on a wooden block, and gently adjusted it with a wooden mallet.

The blade is almost finished forging; next is the hilt.

Fett heated the other end of the steel bar until it was red-hot, and using the edge of the anvil, he forged this part of the steel into a narrower and thicker shape, forming a sturdy rectangular hilt for attaching the guard and pommel.

The hilt is the vital point connecting the blade and the handle, and the thin, rat-tail-like hilt is the most undesirable part, made to save on materials or out of laziness.

Once the hilt breaks, the entire sword is essentially ruined. Even if it's welded back together, its strength will be lost, and it simply cannot withstand the blows of actual combat.

Therefore, Fett deliberately left enough leeway to make the sword hilt wide and sturdy.

After several hours of repeated heating and forging, the prototype of a Han sword, more than three feet long, finally lay on the anvil.

However, at this moment, it is just a four-sided sword with a diamond-shaped cross section. Although it has a spine, it is still far from being a true "eight-sided Han sword".

To transform something from four sides to eight sides, you have to grind it down.

Fett turned on the belt sander and replaced it with a brand new coarse sanding belt.

The first step is to make corrections.

He held the sword steadily with both hands and ran it across the flat grinding plate from end to end, grinding away the uneven marks left by forging and shaping two straight, ruler-like spines, making the sword's lines smoother and more upright.

The hilt was also roughly ground to create a regular shape, which would make it easier to measure the dimensions when making the hilt and guard.

Next is the crucial hilt, or blade.

Originally, the bevel of the sword blade extended directly from the spine to the edge.

But at this step, Fett slightly raised the angle of the sword.

"Zi"

As the abrasive belt cuts, a new, more angled bevel is ground out near the edge, creating a stronger cutting edge.

In this way, the originally single sloping surface is divided into two sections, with a clear ridge running through the middle, like a reinforcing rib.

This is the origin of the term "eight-sided".

This structure greatly improves the longitudinal bending stiffness of the blade. When chopping hard objects, the thick blade angle is not easy to chip, while the support of the spine ensures that the blade will not bend or deform easily.

As the four ridges appeared, a gleaming, six-sided, eight-faced Han sword gradually revealed its true form.

There is one more thing to do before heat treatment, and that is to make the hilt.

For Han swords, a concealed hilt looks better, so Fett decided to use the most classic and stable "burn-through method" to install the hilt.

This method allows the sword hilt to fit perfectly into the inside of the wooden handle, creating a seamless whole.

If you wait until the quenching is complete before firing, the heat conduction will inevitably cause the base of the sword to anneal, reducing its strength.

Now is the best time to do it.

Fett didn't choose Osage Orange Wood; it was too flamboyant and lacked a menacing aura!

The dark color of black walnut wood, like dried blood, conceals a deadly intent.

He first used a band saw to cut the wood into a suitable square column shape, and then drilled a guide hole slightly thinner than the hilt of a sword in the center of the end face.

Next, he put the hilt of the sword back into the furnace and burned it until it turned dark red.

Fett gripped the blade, aligned the scalding hot hilt with the guide hole on the wooden handle, and pressed down hard.

"Ziyi"

A thick plume of blue smoke rose, accompanied by the aroma of burnt wood. The red-hot steel, like cutting butter, slowly burned through the hard black walnut wood, penetrating deep into the wood.

Every inch that Fett pressed in, he would pull it out to clean off the carbonized sawdust and prevent the wooden handle from cracking.

After several repetitions, the hilt of the sword was completely submerged in the wooden handle, with the tip protruding perfectly.

Pull out the sword and let the wooden handle cool naturally.

Next comes the heat treatment.

Longswords are prone to deformation during quenching, and must be normalized multiple times to eliminate internal stress and refine the grains.

Fett reheated the sword to the critical temperature, then took it out and hung it in the air to cool naturally.

This process is repeated three times to ensure that the internal structure of the steel is completely stabilized.

Finally, quenching.

This tests not only technology, but also equipment.

Fett's original quenching barrel was too short to quench the three-foot-long sword vertically. And he didn't have a welding machine to make the extended iron pipe.

He looked around, and the sunlight fell on the abandoned galvanized iron water trough in the corner of the yard. It was originally for cattle to drink water, and it was a good two meters long, just the right size for quenching.

Fett dragged the sink into the garage and filled it with dark, waste engine oil. The oil level was a little low, but it was enough.

When the sword was heated to a reddish-brown, evenly cherry-red, Fett, wearing thick gloves, gripped the hilt with long tongs and took a deep breath.

"Walk!"

He suddenly and quickly pressed the sword horizontally into the depths of the oil tank.

"boom"

The oil and noodles boiled instantly, flames shooting up and reddening Fett's face. He pushed and stirred the oil back and forth, cutting through the bubbles.

Feeling that it was about time, Fett quickly drew his longsword and, while it was still smoking, squinted and glanced along the spine of the blade.

"Oh no, it's a bit bent."