15th century German Knees
Page 2
I started with 14g mild steel, cut it into the desired shape and deburred
the edges. I marked the centre line of where I want the apex of the knee
to be with a permanent felt tipped marker.
A slight shape is dished into the piece by striking it with the rounded face
of a small sledge. Only around 15 hits over the dished wooden stump are needed
to give it a beginning shape. These should be pretty hard hits. The hand
holding the steel may get hurt from the shock transfer of the strikes even
if you wear a glove.
The dishing is just to give it a starting point. I don't suggest dishing
beyond this point as any further may cause the centre to stretch too much
and become thin.
Don't worry if it isn't even or pretty. It will get a lot uglier, later in the process,
before it starts to look like a knee.
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Raising the knee
