Editing Blacksmith (section)

==== Medieval blacksmithing techniques ====
Medieval blacksmiths used a variety of techniques to create metal objects. One of the most common techniques was forging. Forging is the process of heating metal until it is soft enough to be shaped with a hammer and anvil.<ref>{{Cite web |last=yiselaat |date=2020-01-21 |title=Medieval Occupations and Jobs: Blacksmith. History of Blacksmiths |url=https://medievalbritain.com/type/medieval-life/occupations/medieval-blacksmith/ |access-date=2023-09-24 |website=Medieval Britain |language=en-US}}</ref>

Another common technique was welding. Welding is the process of joining two pieces of metal together by heating them until they melt and then hammering them together.

Blacksmiths also used a variety of other techniques, such as casting, cutting, and filing.

The original fuel for forge fires was [[charcoal]]. [[Coal]] did not begin to replace charcoal until the forests of first Britain (during the AD 17th century), and then the eastern United States of America (during the 19th century) were largely depleted. Coal ''can be'' an inferior fuel for blacksmithing, because much of the world's coal is contaminated with [[sulfur]]. Sulfur contamination of iron and steel make them "red short", so that at red heat they become "crumbly" instead of "plastic". Coal sold and purchased for blacksmithing should be largely free of sulfur.

European blacksmiths before and through the medieval era spent a great deal of time heating and hammering iron before forging it into finished articles. Although they were unaware of the chemical basis, they were aware that the quality of the iron was thus improved. From a scientific point of view, the reducing atmosphere of the forge was both removing [[oxygen]] (rust), and soaking more [[carbon]] into the iron, thereby developing increasingly higher grades of steel as the process was continued.