South Dakota Mines is home to a new Junior Bladesmithing Championship. The competition is open to high school
students across the nation who can produce a blade by hand-hammering or trip-hammer
forging.
The
competition is sponsored by the Department of Materials and
Metallurgical Engineering
at South Dakota Mines, which is led by Michael West, Ph.D. The department is
home to the 2017 grand prize winning sword at
The Mineral, Metals & Materials Society (TMS) Bladesmithing Competition.
“In
this competition we are hoping to emphasize the science that underlies the art
and craft of bladesmithing.” says West.
An
application form, competition rules and the scoring rubric for the Junior
Bladesmithing Championship can be found here. The 2020 application deadline is Nov. 15.
Each
summer, South Dakota Mines hosts a free workshop, “The Science of Swords,” for high school students interested in
learning more about the craft of bladesmithing and blacksmithing The weeklong
workshop, sponsored by Nucor Steel, is held in the university’s foundry and instills
concepts in materials science and metallurgical engineering alongside hands-on
bladesmithing and blacksmithing experiences overseen by experienced faculty and
mentors.
During
the Summer 2020 workshop, each student forged their own knives with the help of
Mines professors, master blacksmith and Mines alumnus Kjetil “KJ” Groven and
Mines alumnus Kevin Gray, who is a metallurgical engineer for Nucor. Gray was
instrumental during the start of the university blacksmithing and bladesmithing program and forged the first sword for
the university in 2011. Gray, now an accomplished blacksmith, came full circle
from his time as a student to return to offer his service as a mentor to the
next generation of STEM students.
All
hands-on activities for students in the weeklong 2020 workshop were conducted
outdoors in accordance with CDC guidelines to limit the spread of COVID-19. In
the two weeks following the workshop, all students, mentors and faculty
remained free of any COVID-19 symptoms.
One
of the students, Max Zickrick from Long Valley, SD said, “This was my first
time around a forge, and I really enjoyed the experience. I learned a lot and
discovered an amazing craft.”
Jon
Kellar, Ph.D., a professor of materials and metallurgical engineering at Mines
taught students how raw materials can be used to make steel and Michael West, Ph.D., and head of the materials and metallurgical
engineering department lectured
on metal structure and processing basics including forging, heat treating and
hardness testing of blades.
“The
students really impressed me with their hard work and excellent questions. It
was great to see them connect what we talked about in the theory sessions with
the forging and bladesmithing activities,” says West.
The
Department of Materials and
Metallurgical Engineering
plans to expand the bladesmithing workshop in Summer 2021 to include select
students from across the nation who are interested in careers in materials
science and metallurgy.