Forged In Fire Did A WWE Special

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

COMPLETE WITH CUSTOM WWE CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY RIC FLAIR

TWO OF MY FAVORITE THINGS IN ONE EPISODE

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

(And one bladesmith did the Orton pose. I LOVE THIS ALREADY.)

[No Longer a Produceman]

But will the WWE Championship KEAL?!??

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

They have to start with getting their steel outside of a mini Hell In A Cell in homage to Taker/Mankind and make a 40-layer damascus billet. Not surprised they won't be using the actual cage for anything since it's galvanized and you cannot weld galvanized steel. The strength test will involve J. Neilson going ham with a steel chair and Doug will cut up a turnbuckle for the sharpness test.

One smith already has trouble because he messed up trying to make his billet pieces equal length (the judges feel the easiest way to get the 40 layers is stack and get four pieces), while another is trying to just do twenty layers and fold it over.

ANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNND we got a blister in a billet with under an hour left. Ruh-roh. AD BREAK.

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

Apr 21, 2021 23:07:41 GMT -5 No Longer a Produceman said:

But will the WWE Championship KEAL?!??

I don't know but Doug seems truly excited this episode.

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

And we're back!

So our blister victim has decided to work around it by using that area for his tang (handle, for those unfamiliar with bladesmithing). And then with five minutes left, he finds ANOTHER bubble and all he can do is grind it down.

So for the judges:

HUNTER: Dave likes the K-bar profile but noted the warp.
JOSH: Dave appreciated the 100-layer kephardt. He is concerned about everything being too lean, especially the handle.
BILL: J. noted a big crack.
NICHOLAS: Doug noted that it's a nice chopper but also saw problems with the cracking, missed welds, and generally rough shape.

Unsurprisingly, Nicholas gets sent home as a result.

2ND ROUND TIME!

Hardcore weapons are to be used for weapons. Included are brass knuckles, barbed wire bats, kendo sticks, sledgehammers, and regular bats.

Bill went for a bat and is trying to fix the handle before fixing the cracks. Josh is using a barbed wire bat but the tang is much too thin so he gets a sledgehammer to fill in as scales. Hunter was panicking about drilling the holes for the tang but got them in fine. Bill is not having the same luck as the drill press wants to not cooperate.

FORGED IN FIRE ROLLS ON AFTER THIS!

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

WE BACK.

Hunter isn't being too fancy with his handle, meanwhile Phillip (kept writing Bill) is trying to fix the crack. Except he's grinding the crack with seconds left, to the concern of the judges.

STRENGTH TEST: J is going to clamp the knives upright and then slam the chair down.

PHILIP: Crack is still there but aside from a bit of dulling the blade is intact.
JOSH: Edge isn't super sharp but still good, but J thought the handle squeezes the hand too much.

SUDDEN AD BREAK AS WE ARE REMINDED THAT RIC FLAIR IS PRESENTING THE TITLE AND ALSO IS A GUEST JUDGE!

[A Platypus Rave]

... a bastard sword.

You know if only there was someone with a finisher named after a sword they could use...

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

WE RETURN!

HUNTER: His edge took some chipping, possibly from being too hot in the quench, but it survived.

SHARPNESS: Doug will slash at a turnbuckle with the knives.

PHILLIP: The blade is heavier but well balanced and the sharp spots cut through the fabric. It will cut.
JOSH: The damaged parts glanced off but the sharpned parts still cut. The handle still is a problem as it tends to spin around in Doug's hand but it will cut.
HUNTER: His blade DESTROYED the turnbuckle so Doug declaring that it will cut was a given.

Josh's issues result in him being sent home. Josh admits he should have made the blade to survive the sharpness test as well.

The weapon for the Home Forge Challenge is: THE BASTARD SWORD. A version is used by Jon Snow in Game Of Thrones and is so named mostly because of the handle. There's a lot of parameters that they have to make and I lost track but it has to be 35-39 inches long.

Phillip is doing a damascus billet and at the end of Day 1, so far so good.

Hunter has the blade and guard where he wants it as well.

DAY 2: Phillip is now going for the heat treat and quench and AD BREAK AS HE'S WORRIED ABOUT THE BLADE WARPING OR BREAKING.

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

Apr 21, 2021 23:48:02 GMT -5 A Platypus Rave said:

... a bastard sword.

You know if only there was someone with a finisher named after a sword they could use...

They actually have done claymores but those have proven to be a NIGHTMARE for the bladesmiths. First time they tried, one blade WRAPPED AROUND the pig and the other simply snapped on the first strike. Ben Abbott is the only one to have one come out fine so far and it's part of why he and J rotate as judges.

[A Platypus Rave]

I've seen the claymore thing before but if you're doing a WWE thing and using a big sword like a bastard sword.

It seems like an obvious choice.

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

We return to see Phillip's heat treat and quench go perfect.

Hunter's quench went fine and now he's tempering it, only to overheat it on Day 3. He's trying to tweak the thickness as a result to avoid it breaking.

Phillip finally runs into trouble as he makes his pommel. Seems he has the wrong drill bit so he ends up having to pin it down instead of thread. Meanwhile, Hunter's guard has a gap but he adds some wire to fill it in.

RIC FLAIR MAKES HIS ENTRANCE INTO THE FORGE! No Doug, oddly enough, so Dave does the Kill Test.

HUNTER: His sword almost takes the head off the dummy. Dave refers to it as a "performer" because of how deep the cuts were but wishes the handle had been 1/2 inch longer.

Phillip is panicking because the handle is mostly held on by epoxy and some hammering and doesn't want the blade to fly out. AD BREAK AND A PROMO FOR THE "BIOGRAPHY" EPISODE OF RODDY PIPER!

[Gus Richlen Was Wrong]

Apr 21, 2021 23:53:55 GMT -5 A Platypus Rave said:

I've seen the claymore thing before but if you're doing a WWE thing abs using a big sword like a bastard sword.

It seems like an obvious choice.

I legit thought it was a full-on claymore at first but yeah, the bastard sword looks really nice.

As a side note, would love to see a video game edition where they either make Mileena's sais or a zanbato sword similar to the Buster Sword.



BACK FROM BREAK and Phillip's sword holds up and does a lot of damage to the dummy as well. And now, J's STRENGTH TEST is TABLES, TRASH CANS, AND LADDERS!

HUNTER: His sword slices through the table and does well with the can, but on the first hit on the ladder, it breaks at the handle. J notes the very coarse grain from the heat treat.

Phillip has to survive one shot on the ladder or else Hunter's CATASTROPHIC FAILURE will still let him claim the title.

PHILLIP: The sword smashes the table, works over the can, AND SURVIVES THE SHOT ON THE LADDER!

Hunter admits that his welding on the card ruined the heat treat and cost him the win.

PHILLIP WINS THE TITLE OF FORGED IN FIRE CHAMPION, $10,000, AND A WWE CHAMPIONSHIP AND A WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO FROM FLAIR!

Golly, that episode was FUN.

[Perd]

What’s the big deal above using Flair? Wasn’t he a Forge Horseman?

[Mighty Attack Tribble]

Apr 22, 2021 0:42:40 GMT -5 Perd said:

What’s the big deal above using Flair? Wasn’t he a Forge Horseman?

Flair knows all about 'tang.

[No Longer a Produceman]

You mean Hunter DIDN’T go over?!??

[evilhomer]

So disappointed that when asked "are you ready", not a single competitor thought to say "OHHHHH YEAHHHHHHH!"

[Susan "Poison" Candy]

Forged In The Scared Fire And Wielded By The 4 Horsemen Of The Dirty South