CLASS: Basic Blacksmithing
2025-03-15 - 2025-03-16 | Bridgetown Forge, 1812 N. Columbia Blvd. Building A-2, Portland, Oregon, 97217, United States
Saturday and Sunday
9 am – 4 pm
This class is designed to introduce a beginner to the fundamentals of smithing techniques: drawing down, upsetting, cutting, slitting, punching, twisting and bending. This class seeks to impart a solid understanding of the various ways hot steel can be shaped with just a few simple tools. The students are introduced to the Hofi Ergonomic Forging Method, which allows for very fast and accurate forging with less effort and strain on the body. We will make, among other things, wall hooks, square-cut nails, leaves, a chisel, a bottle-opener, and a fire-poke.
Each student will have his/her forging station, complete set of tools, constant access to a forge, and unlimited stock.
Class fee is $380, inclusive of all the materials and safety equipment.
This class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Cable Damascus Knife
2025-06-28 09:00 - 2025-06-29 16:00 (America/Los_Angeles)
Saturday and Sunday
9 am – 4 pm
In this class, we will forge a practical, beautiful Damascus knife using a 3/4″ diameter steel cable. Students will fuse the cable into a billet, and will proceed to forge it into a knife. The top quality steel cables consist of allows us to make a high-performance blade, and the layering of the wires fused together create a beautiful, unique pattern in the steel. Mechanical Damascus has a very long history, as it was used to create, through forge-welding and various manipulations, some very striking and unusual patterns. A modern take-on is the cable Damascus, which is one of my favorites due to its availability, predictability, practicality, performance, and pleasing appearance. Skills learned in this class include forge-welding, drawing out, shaping, hardening, and tempering. We will forge and heat-treat our blades and hand-hone the edge. No previous experience required.
The class fee is $480.
The class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Camping/Utility Knife
2025-07-12 - 2025-07-13
Saturday and Sunday
9 am – 4 pm

In this class we will forge a 4-inch blade, camping/utility knife from a single bar of high-carbon steel. This type of knife is very solid and versatile, and can be used while camping, for daily use, or in the kitchen. Skills learned include hand-forging a blade and heat-treatment. Students will gain a solid understanding of proper steps in designing an knife, choosing the right steel, shaping it with a hammer, and the steps necessary for creating a tough knife with a keen cutting edge. Throughout the class, Hofi’s ergonomic forging method is practiced.
The cost is $480, which includes all materials and safety equipment. No previous blacksmithing experience required. The class is limited to 8 students.
The class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Japanese Carpenter’s Knife - Kiridashi
2025-10-04
Saturday
9am – 4pm
In this class, we will make a Kiridashi knife, which is an essential implement in any Japanese carpenters tool kit. This versatile knife is used for marking, planing, whittling and any other woodworking task where controlled, precise work is required.
We will start with a flat bar of high carbon steel, forge it to shape, emboss a pleasing and grip-improving texture into it, stamp our initials into it, and harden and temper it to take a perfect edge. In the process, we will learn various skills of the blacksmith, such as drawing down the steel, shaping the curvature, flattening, hot – cutting, striking with a sledgehammer, and heat treating.
The class fee is $240, which includes all materials and supplies.
The class is limited to 8 students.
No previous experience necessary.

CLASS: Forging a Rocker Knife
2026-01-24 - 2026-01-25
Saturday and Sunday
9 am – 4 pm
In this fun class, you will forge a 6-inch, rocking knife out of a high-carbon steel bar, stamp it with your initials, clay-harden it to produce a Japanese-style differential heat treatment, temper it, and hand-hone it to a razor sharpness on a water stone. Rocking knives are very useful for chopping and mincing herbs and vegetables; it also works great for slicing pizza and cutting up chicken. The knife is unique in that the blade and handle are forged from a single piece of steel, which is aesthetically pleasing while providing a great learning opportunity in manipulating hot steel. The photo represents the knife you will be making. The class will also cover the ergonomic forging method, and the theory and practice of heat-treating steel. The knife, and anything else you make is yours to take home.
The class fee is $480 and includes all materials and safety equipment. The class is conducted on Saturday-Sunday.
The class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Tool Making
2026-03-07 - 2026-03-08
Saturday and Sunday
9:30 am – 4:30 pm
The making of tools has always been one of the mainstays of a blacksmith’s set of skills. Not only is the smith expected to make most of their own tools — traditionally, a smith would make the tools for every other trade and craft, from a nail to a sword. In this class, we make a varied set of tools, and learn the simple, logical, no-nonsense ways in which steel bars can be turned into sturdy, useful and beautiful hand tools. In this class, you will forge a center punch, cold chisels, screwdriver, pry bar, hammer head, and blacksmith’s tongs. The photo represents the tools you will be forging. You will also learn how to heat-treat tools, how to identify the various tool steels, and how to use recycled items in tool making. Throughout the class, you will learn and practice Hofi’s ergonomic forging technique. All the tools made are yours to take home.
Class fee is $380, inclusive of all the materials and safety equipment.
This class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Chef's Knife
2026-05-09 - 2026-05-10
Saturday and Sunday
9:30 am – 4:30 pm
A knife is perhaps the most basic, elemental tool, and a good chef’s knife will make a big difference in the kitchen. Forged properly from a good carbon steel and ground and honed to a razor edge, the Japanese-style blade will give many years of reliable, versatile service.
This will become the blade your hand will automatically reach for when you need to prepare a meal. In this class, you will forge a 7-inch, Japanese-style chef’s knife out of a high-carbon steel bar, stamp it with your initials, differentially harden it to produce a Japanese-style heat treatment, temper it, attach a handle, and hand-hone it to a razor sharpness on a water stone. The photo represents the knife you will be making. The class will also cover the ergonomic forging method, and the theory and practice of heat-treating steel. The knife, and anything else you make is yours to take home.
The total cost is $480, which includes all materials and safety equipment. No previous blacksmithing experience required.
This class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Japanese Hatchet — Nata
2026-05-23 - 2026-05-24, 2026-11-07 - 2026-11-08
Saturday-Sunday
9:30 am – 4:30 pm
NATA
A nata is a traditional multi-purpose hatchet; many regional and task-specific versions are still being made in Japan. We will make a version I find particularly useful; it utilizes a square blade and a slightly tilted handle for good balance and cutting angle. The blade will be forged from 5160 spring steel, which is extremely durable and can handle high impact applications but still hold a sharp edge. Will will forge the nata hatchet using both hand and pneumatic hammers, and heat treat it to the proper hardness. The handle will be made from American hickory, and pinned to the hatchet tang with copper pins. The result is a very useful, versatile, handsome, and unique tool.
Class fee is $580, Which includes all materials and supplies.
The class is limited to eight students.
No previous experience necessary.

CLASS: Forging a Cleaver
2026-06-20 - 2026-06-21, 2026-10-17 - 2026-10-18
Saturday and Sunday
9:30 am – 4:30 pm
In this class, we will forge an 8-inch blade cleaver out of a bar of high-carbon steel, stamp it with your initials, harden and temper it to have a tough back and a hard, durable edge, attach a hickory handle to it and hone it to razor sharpness. This cleaver will feature a progressive bevel, which allows it to handle both tough jobs like cutting through bones, and yet makes it possible to easily slice ripe tomatoes and chop and dice vegetables. It’s weight and size are perfect for almost any task in the kitchen. In fact, a good, properly designed and forged cleaver is a wonderful tool to have in your kitchen — I’m still using the one I’ve inherited from my grandmother! This class incorporates both hand forging and the use of a power hammer, the latter being an exciting and crucial skill for any modern blacksmith. It is also a necessary procedure in this class, as the cleaver we will be making is quite substantial.
The class fees are $580, which includes all materials and safety supplies. The knife, and anything else you might make, are yours to take home with you.

CLASS: Forging a Sushi Knife
2026-07-18 - 2026-07-19
Saturday and Sunday
8:30 am – 3:30 pm
The traditional Japanese sushi knife is constructed of two layers of steel — a soft, low-carbon body fused to a very hard, high carbon cutting edge. The result is a blade of truly awesome sharpness, as the soft body allows the cutting edge to be much harder than a conventional knife, while providing the necessary toughness for top-notch performance. An additional advantage is that since the body of the knife is made from a relatively soft material, it’s very easy to sharpen by hand. As form follows function, a tremendously pleasing shape emerges, known in Japanese as yanagi-ba (willow leaf). This type of knife performs extremely well not only on fish, but is terrific for tasks like slicing a roast or butterflying chicken breast. We will forge-weld the carbon steel to the softer body, forge the knife to shape, and heat-treat it. As in all other classes, the knife is yours to take home.
Please Note: Some forging experience is recommended for this class.
The total class fee is $580.
The class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Japanese Carpenter’s Hammer
2026-08-01 08:30 - 15:30
Saturday
8:30 am – 3:30 pm
In this class, we will forge a Japanese carpenter’s hammer, a very handsome and handy implement, found in the toolbox of every carpenter in Japan. Deceptively simple in shape, it is properly balanced and weighted, which makes it suitable for many tasks, such as driving chisels, hammering in nails, or tapping joinery into place. We will start with a 1 in.² block of steel, punch it through, draw out the cheeks, grind it, harden it, and attach a handle. Throughout the class, we will learn many hand-forging skills, as well as the proper use of a sledgehammer.
The class fee is $240, which includes all materials and supplies.
The class is limited to 8 students.
No previous experience necessary.

CLASS: Forging Spoons
2026-08-02 08:30 - 15:30
Sunday
8:30 am – 3:30 pm
in this class, we will forge various spoons out of a stainless steel bar, creating unique, beautiful and useful kitchen tools.
We will employ both hand hammers and a pneumatic power hammer, allowing for a very varied and productive experience. This is a fun class, which also imparts a lot of information on the various techniques of forging hot steel efficiently, such as fullering, upsetting, drawing down, texturing and dishing.
The class fee, including all materials and supplies, is $220.
Class is limited to 8 students.
No previous experience necessary.

CLASS: Forging a Chef's Knife
2026-09-19 - 2026-09-20
Saturday and Sunday
8:30 am – 3:30 pm
A knife is perhaps the most basic, elemental tool, and a good chef’s knife will make a big difference in the kitchen. Forged properly from a good carbon steel and ground and honed to a razor edge, the Japanese-style blade will give many years of reliable, versatile service.
This will become the blade your hand will automatically reach for when you need to prepare a meal. In this class, you will forge a 7-inch, Japanese-style chef’s knife out of a high-carbon steel bar, stamp it with your initials, differentially harden it to produce a Japanese-style heat treatment, temper it, attach a handle, and hand-hone it to a razor sharpness on a water stone. The photo represents the knife you will be making. The class will also cover the ergonomic forging method, and the theory and practice of heat-treating steel. The knife, and anything else you make is yours to take home.
The total cost is $480, which includes all materials and safety equipment. No previous blacksmithing experience required.
This class is limited to 8 students.

CLASS: Forging a Sword
2026-10-03 - 2026-10-04
Saturday-Sunday
9:30 am – 4:30 pm
In this class, we will forge a double-edged sword, using a combination of hand-hammering, striking with a sledgehammer, and pneumatic power hammer work.
In spite of having been apprenticed to a sword maker in Japan, I have long resisted offering a sword class. However, I confess that as a kid, I really wanted to make one after reading The Hobbit. Yes, I really wanted to have that kind of handy hobbit-sword to swing at dragons, I mean weeds. I’ve consequently have forged a lot of swords, but almost always either for myself, or as a gift.
Well, now you can, too.
In this two-day class, we will make just such a sword. Starting with a square bar of steel, we will forge a unique sword that features an integral handle, forged entirely from the one piece of steel with no welding, riveting or welding.
I’ve perfected this design while developing my take on the Caucasus Mountain dagger, and it works great with this type of sword as well.
Class fee is $580, Which includes all materials and supplies.
The class is limited to eight students.
No previous experience necessary.

CLASS: Forging an Axe
2026-11-21 - 2026-11-22
Saturday and Sunday
9:30 am – 4:30 pm
In this class, we will forge an axe out of a square bar of high-carbon steel, stamp it with your initials, harden and temper it and grind and polish it to a razor edge. It will become your go-to axe to swing whenever chopping wood becomes necessary. The class incorporates both hand-forging and the use of a hydraulic press and a power hammer. The addition of power equipment adds another layer of skills, not to mention the sheer excitement of moving a lot of hot steel in a fast yet controlled manner.
The price is $580, which includes all steel, safety equipment, and an axe handle.
