Forged in Fire (2015–…): Season 8, Episode 31 - Armed Forces Tournament Part 2 - full transcript

- Tonight in the forge,
we are bringing back

Some of "forged in fire's"
best bladesmiths

And toughest american
warriors to battle it out

In four head-to-head duels.

This is the
armed forces tournament.

Eight former competitors
and u.S. Servicemembers

Will be redeployed
to the forge to battle it out

Building a blade from start to
finish in one five-hour round.

The winner of each duel
will home a check for $2,000

And earn themselves a seat

In the final battle
of our tournament,



Where they will face
tough competition

And battle it out
for a check for $10,000

And that ever-coveted titled
of "forged in fire" champion.

Tonight the dueling continues.

Up first, the "forged in fire"
champions duel,

Where the champion of
the barbarian sword challenge

Goes up against the winner

Of the american eagle
head sabre challenge.

- Last time was difficult.

But going up against
another champion

Is a whole nother level
of difficult.

- I'm here to see
if we can double down.

I was asked to come back,

And I'd never say no
to another challenge.



- And later, the sarges duel,
where a sergeant

From the army will go up
against an active duty staff

Sergeant from the air force.

- When I came back from iraq,
I had pretty bad ptsd,

So I needed to something
to get my mind off of things.

From the moment
that I started bladesmithing,

It's kind of like therapy.

I loved it,
and it's been now seven years.

- I'm currently active duty
united states air force,

And in my career field,

Time management's
very important,

So I know I'm going
to make a plan

And then execute that plan.

- The duels start now.

- My name's ethan lee.
I'm 29 years old.

I think it's pretty cool
to represent the navy

In a competition like this,

Because I get to go up
against an army dude.

And this is what I love
doing the most.

- What's up, "forged in fire"?

The muffin man is back.

My name's mike rizzo.
I'm 32 years old,

And I'm from danbury,
connecticut.

Being ex-military,
I know going into this

That if my plan isn't working,

I need to adjust fire
and continue on.

- Ethan, mike, welcome back
to the forge, guys.

It's great to have you.

You're about to take part
in five intense hours

Of forging competition,
where we're gonna check

Every aspect
of your knife-making skill.

You guys are in the armed
forces redeployment tournament.

This is the "forged in fire"
champions duel.

Now, here's how this
competition's gonna go, guys.

We've got five straight hours
of forging competition,

Where you guys are gonna build
a blade from start to finish.

When that time runs out,
you're gonna turn your blades

Over to our judges,

Who will then critique them,
test them, and decide who wins.

The judges
for today's competition

Are two-time "forged in fire"
champion

Ben abbott, historic weapons
recreation specialist

Dave baker, and edged weapons
specialist doug marcaida.

Now, these guys behind me
are the ones who will decide

Which one of you
will walk out of here

Today the winner of your duel
carrying a check for $2,000.

Winning today also means
you get a spot

In the final battle of our

Armed forces
redeployment tournament

Getting a chance
at becoming a two-time

"forged in fire" champion
and another check for $10,000.

All right, guys, let's get
into the competition.

So next to me we have
a weapons crate

That has three handles
sticking out of it.

There's only three, because
you guys are third duel.

What we want you guys to do
is decide

Which one of these blades

You want to build based solely
on the handle you see.

So, guys, take a few minutes
and make a choice.

- I'm a huge fan of number four.

- Four is the one
I was eyeing as well.

- Number four looks like
a full tang construction,

So I'm thinking easy handle.

Could be a more
manageable build.

- Army and navy
don't always get along,

But I gotta agree
with you on that one.

- So from what I'm hearing is,
you guys are both settling

On number four.
Is that correct?

- Yes.

- All right, guys,
you're gonna be building this,

The woodman's pal.

Instant regret.

- First created in 1941,
the woodman's pal

Is an essential survival axe
used by the u.S. Military

From world war ii
to the vietnam war.

This multipurpose tool
was designed for the pacific

Theatre and features a strong,
axe-like blade

Designed to hack through
dense brush, chop down wood,

And even slash
through enemy combatants.

While no longer standard issue
among the troops,

The woodman's pal
is still in production

For civilians today.

- Bladesmiths, when you're
building your woodman's pals,

They need to fall
within these parameters.

You need to have
a spatulated blade

That measures between
10 and 11 inches.

You need to include
a rear sickle hook

That has a concave,
sharpened edge.

You need to have finger grooves

And a blunt safety toe
at the tip.

- Why did there have to be
a hook on this thing?

Having to get the tip of it
as wide as it is

And also sharpen
that little hook inside

In five hours, it's a lot.

There's a lot to do.

- You guys know
what you're building,

But let's talk
about the challenge.

What you see in front of you
are four

"forged in fire"
challenge coins.

On the reverse side
of those coins,

There is a challenge
you're gonna need to use

To make your woodman's pal.

So, ethan, come on up
and grab a coin.

All right, ethan,
you got a ladder on your coin,

Which means you've got to build
your woodman's pal

With ladder pattern damascus.

- Laddered pattern
damascus woodman's pal,

That's a lot.

- All right, mike, come on up.

All right, mike,
you got a bridge on your coin.

That means you need to make
your woodman's pal

With a suspension bridge cable.

Go ahead and head back
to your anvil.

- This is just the worst-case
scenario.

I know the method,
but I've never done it before.

- All right, guys,
you have your challenges.

You have the blade
you need to build.

You're gonna have five hours
to complete this challenge.

And when you're done,
you're gonna hand them

Over to our judges,

Who will test for strength
and durability

In a rifle barrel chop.

Then we're gonna check
your edge retention

In a foam tube slice.

All right, bladesmiths,
good luck.

Your time starts now.

- Oh, my god.
This is friggin'...

- This is gonna be exciting.
These guys are champions.

- Yeah.

- So we could have one
of these guys

Going up to be
a two-time champion.

- First thing I'm doing is,
I'm going over the grinder,

Cleaning up my steel,

And then I stack
both my billets up

Alternating the layers.

I'm going with two stacks,

Because I think that'll reduce
the downtime of waiting

For my billet to heat up.

- Last time I was here,
I had one parameter.

And this time I have at least
four or five.

It's much more technical.
I've never done cable before,

But I know the first thing
I have to do is get it clean

And weld up the ends.

Being ex-military,

I know that proper planning
is just insanely important.

I mean, it's really your
mission before your mission.

- I'm scared of the cable,

Because it takes
a lot of cleaning.

But if the first forge weld
takes on both sides,

He's gonna be way out ahead.

- I finally get my steel
in the forge.

It's a big piece of cable,
so I know I need to leave it

In the forge
for at least 15 minutes.

- I walk over to my forge,

And I look to see if the billet
is up to temperature.

And it's about heated
as necessary,

So I think it's just time to go
ahead and make an initial weld.

I just give one quick press,

And I put it back in the forge,

Because if you try to do
too much too soon,

You can have delaminations,

And the last thing I want
is a weld failure.

- Ethan's being really careful
and really patient.

Not a bad idea.

- Looks like everything
goes well,

And that I can move on
to draw both these billets out.

- My billet's up to heat,
and I know before I do

Any sort of squishing here
I gotta tighten up the cable,

So I just throw it
in the press, punch it down,

And then I have free rein
to do as I please with it.

- All right.
- All right.

- Perfect. Perfect.

- That's a picture-perfect...
- well done.

- Smart move.

- Many smiths will go
to the floor vise and use that

Mainly because
they just haven't figured out

You can use the press
as a vise itself.

- This is really pivotal moments

When steel is actually
bonding together.

If the braided steel inside
doesn't bond together,

Then my next few hours
are pointless.

It seems to be solid,
but I still have no idea

What's going on in this cable.

I won't know if this is good
or not

Until I start
cleaning it up on the grinder.

- Looks like yours is coming
pretty good.

- I have no idea
what I'm doing right now.

I'm totally winging it.

- Being out there with another
veteran is kind of comforting

To know that
I'm not the only one

Having to deal with this.

Thought this would be
a little easier at first

Than what you got,
but I'm starting to think

The other way now.

- You got it, man.
Stay the course.

- Yep.
- How you guys feeling?

- Best day of my life.

- Right now,
I'm cleaning my billets,

Because I don't want any scale
in between the billets.

Then I'll restack them.

Then I'll put them back
in the forge

And make a weld again

And hopefully not get
any delaminations.

- So he's just doing
two layers, huh?

- Looks like it.
- That's a shame.

- The more layers you get,
the tighter those

, it's better.

- While I'm cleaning this,
it just hits me...

Let's see.

I might ought to
cut this in half

Just to get a taller stack.

That way,
I will get more layers.

- I think you got
your dream, ben.

Ethan chopped that billet
in two, stacked it again.

56 layers now.

- Yep. Nice.

- It's taking me some time,
but I'm feeling pretty good.

- I've got this thing
to the parameters,

And now I'm trying to work
in this spike on the top.

Getting this thing to shape
is one of the most

Challenging things
I've done in bladesmithing.

- The woodman's pal,
when you first see it,

There's a lot going on.

You got this extremely
spatulated blade, this hook,

And a handle
with a lot of contours to it.

- It's really interesting
to get it to shape,

Because there is a lot
of maneuvering

That I've never done before,
but at this point,

I'm feeling pretty good
about the blade shape,

And I immediately go
for the grinder.

- I got the layers welded
together,

So I go ahead and grind
my grooves in the billet

To establish my ladder pattern.

- What is ethan doing right now?

- Cutting in his ladder pattern.

- Wow. Way too early.

- Is it too early for that?
- Yeah.

So, what's gonna happen is,
it's gonna have a ladder,

But it's just gonna be
really spread apart.

- My grooves are to the point
where I'm okay with it.

I stick it back in the forge,
and I get ready

To forge this thing out
to a rough shape.

- Bladesmiths, you have
three hours left on the clock.

- So I'm on the grinder,

And I'm trying to get
all the forge scale off.

Man, oh, man.

This cable, it's just
got lines scattered everywhere.

I never know what could
potentially be a seam,

A crack, a delam,

Which could mean
I have to start over.

- I really think mike should do
less grinding

And more heat-treating
at this point.

- I agree.

- I feel myself going down
the rabbit hole on the grinder

Chasing lines
that are probably solid.

I have to adjust course here.

I'm gonna start setting up
to thermal cycle and quench.

- Let's see.

Last time around, the handle
round gave me an extra hour

To refine the handle.

This time, I've got five hours
to complete everything.

I go over to the bandsaw,

And I do a little work
on my scales,

Get the finger grooves
roughed out

A little bit, anything I can
while I have the time.

- Ethan's really far along
on the handle material,

Which is something
he's got over mike right now.

Mike does have more
of the blade shape,

Where ethan's
still gotta fill it.

He's got a lot of work
to do there.

But he's way ahead
in handle time.

- All right, guys,
you got two hours left.

Keep it going.

Mike's quenched.

- I have absolutely no idea
how my quench went.

I have no idea if it's hard.

There isn't enough time
to do my due diligence here,

And there are more
important matters at hand.

- You see, this is where mike
had a tunnel vision

Working on that blade,
right, and see the big picture.

Time management was lost.

- I still have to get my final
grind in, get this handle fit

And glued up and shaped,
and get this blade etched.

- My plan is to forge

A really large shape
that I can grind away.

- It's gotta be a beast
to swing.

- Well, this is not designed
to be a weapon.

It's designed to create
momentum to cut brush

But not be so heavy
that it wears you out.

- I'm happy with my shape,
and I'm ready to quench.

- Ethan quenched.
- Nice.

- Oh, yeah.

- It has a slight crook in it,

But it's something I can fix
with the grinder.

I know I'm not gonna be able
to achieve the weight I want,

But this is as good

As I'm gonna
be able to do for right now.

I have to put it in the temper.

And my plan now is to do

A little
bit more work on my scales.

- The clock is still ticking,
and I have to get my handle

- All glued up real fast.
- Holy.

I realize that I have this
gaping hole

Right at the front of my blade.

This is worst-case scenario
at this point.

The clock is ticking away,
and I'm worried

That this could be something
that sends me home.

Dude.

If I don't fix it,
I might see my blade

Break apart
in the strength test.

- Maybe he quenched a little
on the hot side,

And some of those welds
might have gone and opened up.

- I just don't have time
to start over.

I make the decision
to weld it shut

So that it's a structurally
sound piece of steel.

Now that I have
the tip welded up,

I make the decision
to torch temper.

It's really my only option
at this point,

With the handle assembly on.

I don't want a brittle blade
to be tested.

It could shatter into pieces.

- Bladesmiths, you are down
to one hour remaining

Before the testing.

- It's incredibly important
to get this handle

The right way.

That ain't happening.

Because the last time I was
here, my handle was too large.

- Well, ethan,
the handle is big.

There's a lot of handle
left over on this knife.

- And I don't want to make
that same mistake again.

I'm liking the handle.

It's starting
to be more comfortable,

And that's my main goal.

- My blade looks okay,

But I want to make sure
that I'm within parameters.

From the end of the handle,
this blade needs to be

Between 10
and 11 inches overall.

And it's well over 11 inches.

Son of a bitch.

I would love to be able to
shorten the end of this blade

At the tip, however, if I take
too much of the tip off,

Then I'm under parameters
on the width.

So I need to modify my handle
now to make parameters.

- If mike decided to do some of
the sort of hail mary maneuvers

We've seen,
you'd take a little paracord,

You'd wrap it around and around.

Bam, your handle
just became an inch longer.

- So, I braid up
a paracord bolster.

- Oh, my god, he did it.

- And it gets me
within parameters,

And it's back to the grinder.

- Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

Bladesmiths,
turn off your tools,

Put down your blades.
This round and duel is over.

- Time's up, and I'm happy

That I put together
a piece in five hours.

But it's definitely the ugliest
thing I've ever made.

- Ethan, mike,
welcome to the strength test.

This is the rifle barrel chop.

We're gonna be taking
your woodsman's pals

And smashing them
against this rifle barrel.

We don't care really
what happens to the rifle,

But we do care
what happens to your knives.

Ethan, you're up first.
You ready for this?

- Sure.

Going into this test,
I'm pretty nervous.

It's steel on steel, and that's
about as brutal as it gets

When it comes to testing.

My hands are sweating.

I'm starting to shake
a little bit.

I just hope that
it'll hold together.

- All right, ethan.
Your edge held up great.

It's a little dull
where it hit the barrel,

But there's no chipping,
there's no major rolling.

Overall,
I think you did a great job.

- Thank you.

- All right, mike,
you're up next.

You ready for this?
- Sure. Let's do it.

- Your mouth says yes,
but your head says no.

- My confidence level's
a solid four right now.

I'm concerned with the spike
being brittle

And just flying off.

Whew.

- All right, mike.
First things first,

Really, your edge
took some serious damage here.

There's a lot of compaction.

It just kind of smushed back;
it's peened over.

There's a little delamination
running here,

And I know you had
some issues up here at the tip

With a pretty
major delamination.

But the welds look good,
and it stayed together.

Nice job.
- Thanks.

- All right, "forged in fire"
champions.

This is the sharpness test,
the foam tube slice.

To find out how sharp
your edges are,

I'm gonna try to cut through
all these foam tubes.

Ethan, you're up first.
You ready for this?

- Let's do it.
- All right. Let's do it.

All right, ethan, let's talk
about your woodsman's pal

Right here.

There is some weight
and heft to this,

But it would definitely lead
itself to be a good chopper.

Your edge did cut
on the first three tubes.

But the fourth,
because of some dulling,

It didn't cut
all the way through.

But overall, your weapon, sir,
it will cut.

- Thank you.

- Your turn, mike. You ready?

- Have at it.
- All right.

All right, mike, let's talk
about your woodsman's pal

Over here.

Right in this section
right here,

Where we tested it earlier
in the strength test,

It's completely dull.

You have some sharp edges
in this area,

And that's probably the area
that also helped cut

On the first two tubes.

But that's as far as it went.
But overall, sir, it will cut.

- Thank you.

- All right, ethan, mike,

The last time you guys
came into this forge,

You both walked
out of here champions,

But this is
the redeployment tournament,

And only one of you guys
is moving forward

Into the final round.

The bladesmith who's gonna be
moving forward

In this competition is...

Ethan.
Congratulations, man.

You're moving on
to the final battle.

Mike, you fought hard,
but unfortunately

You're not gonna be moving
forward in this competition,

And ben's gonna tell you why.

- Well, mike, you did a great
job consolidating that cable,

But your blade took a lot
of damage in the strength test,

And it really affected
it's performance

On the sharpness test,

And that's why
we're letting you go.

- I understand.

- Well, mike,
just like last time,

It was a pleasure watching
you work in the forge.

But unfortunately your time
in the competition has ended.

I'm gonna have to ask you
to please step off

The forge floor.

- Good job, man.
- Good fight.

- I may not be moving on,

But I worked to the best
of my ability.

And I think all of us in this
redeployment tournament

Are really representing

What servicemen and women
are capable of.

- Well, ethan, that means
you are the winner of the duel,

And you are moving forward
into the final round

Of the armed forces
redeployment tournament, man.

You just got yourself
a check for $2,000.

Congratulations.

- Feels really good to know
that I'm moving on

To the tournament,
but it's a small win.

- Feeling good?
- Yes, sir.

Can't wait to see what's next.

- My name is fermin lopez.
I am 52 years old.

I work for the va hospital,

And I'm a part-time bladesmith
from north carolina.

When I first joined
the military,

I got into the aviation brigade.

Our unit got activated;
we ended up

Heading over to iraq,

And pretty much everything
just flew from there.

Last time I as here
in the battle of the branches,

I was very nervous.

This time I feel
a lot more confident

That I can actually go further.

- You look excited
to be here, fermin.

- Man, you have no idea.
Ooh.

- Name is joseph collett.

I'm an e-5 in
the united states air force.

And hope I kick some army ass.

I am currently active duty
sere specialist.

Sere is survival, evasion,
resistance, escape.

I teach them how to survive
the worst days of their life.

The last time I was on,
my blade suffered a failure,

A crack down the handle
that eliminated me

From the challenge.

I'm here today to prove
that I can

And will win "forged in fire,"

Even if it's the last thing
I have to do.

- Well, bladesmiths,
welcome back to the forge.

This is the armed forces
redeployment tournament.

Because the two of you guys
share rank,

You're gonna be taking part
in the sergeants duel.

Now, the winner of this duel
will go forward

In the final battle

Of the armed forces
redeployment tournament

Giving you a chance
at a check for $10,000

And the title
of "forged in fire" champion.

Now, you guys
are probably wondering

What kind of blade
you're gonna be building.

As you see next to me,
there are only two blades here.

That's because you guys are the
final duel in this tournament.

Gentlemen,
what we want you to do

Is select which blades you're
gonna build by talking together

And deciding which
one of these handles

Seems most suitable
for a knife build.

Start chatting, guys.

- All right, man, it's simple.

We do one,
it's a sword-ish thing,

And you're gonna have to
cast the guard.

- Yeah.

- We do three...
what is that, a bayonet?

- Yeah, it looks like a bayonet.

- I look at one, and one's... nah,

I'm not making a sword today.

And three looks like a bayonet.
I can do a bayonet.

- I go three.
- Three, yeah.

- Bring it in.
- Got it.

- Made a decision?
- Number three.

- All right, guys, you decided
to go with number three.

You will be building...

- Yes.
- The m1915 bolo bayonet.

- The m1915 bolo bayonet
was a hybrid version

Of the bolo knife
and a traditional bayonet

Originally designed at
the turn of the 20th century.

This versatile battle weapon
featured the lightweight

Curved blade of the bolo,

Ideal for slashing
through dense jungles.

The muzzle hole guard
attaches the blade

To the end of the rifle,

Where it's used
to inflict deadly stabs

Against rival troops.

Only 6,000 bolo bayonets
were issued

Before they were discontinued
by world war ii

Making it extremely rare
and valuable to collectors.

- Now, guys, when you're
building your bayonet,

You need to make sure
the blade length

Is between 14 and 16 inches,

And it needs to swell
to at least an inch larger

Than it is at the base.

You guys have to have
a muzzle ring guard

And a bird's head pommel
on your blades.

- I have to make this.

Not something that looks like,
I gotta make this.

So if I don't go
regularly check this thing,

I'm gonna blow parameters
and never have a chance.

- So, guys, in this competition,

We started off with eight custom

"forged in fire"
challenge coins,

But you guys are the last duel,
so there's only two left.

When I call your name,
come up, select a coin,

And that is the technique
or challenge

You have for this duel.
Fermin, you ready?

- No, but yeah.

- Too bad.
Come collect your coin.

- Please, not a ball bearing.
Please, not ball bearing.

- All right, fermin, you chose
the chainsaw coin,

So that means you've got
to make your blade

Out of chainsaw canister
damascus.

- Yes. I've never backed down
from a canister.

I enjoy it. I like it.

- Joe, you're up. You ready?

- I mean, it's the last one,
so...

Please, please don't be
high-count damascus.

- What have we got there?

So you've got the coin
that says 150.

That means you have
to make your blade

With at least
150 layers of damascus.

- My heart sunk.

To get to 150 layers
as well as finish a blade

Within the five-hour parameter,
I got my work cut out for me.

- Now, guys, you have
your challenges and you know

What blade we want you to build.

So when the time runs out,

You guys need to have blades
that are ready for testing.

We're gonna check for strength
and durability

In a jerrycan stab and chop.

Then we're gonna check
your edge retention

In a military cot slice.

We've put five hours
on the clock.

So good luck.
The duel starts now.

- Hey, where's the canister?
Canister, canisters.

- All right.
- This will be a good one.

Two different techniques.
The same blade.

- We're trying to honor
the armed services

With this competition.

Joe being active right now
and coming on,

I really appreciate that.
That's an honor.

- I bet you he appreciates
his command letting him.

- A lot of people
don't like canister,

Because they have a hard time
getting the canister off.

I'm not planning
on removing the canister.

I'm actually planning
on forging it out.

Once it gets to length,
then I'll be able

To grind it off,
'cause it's thin enough.

- Fermin made a good choice
by not putting

The white out in.
If he had put the white out

In, he would have been
setting himself up

For a 10 to 15-minute
can-peeling episode.

- Every minute counts
in this competition,

So while I'm waiting
for this canister

To get up in temperature,
I say to myself,

"let's get started on the guard.

Let's get started
on the pommel."

- 150 layers of damascus
on joe's.

He started off with
26 layers of 1095, 15n20.

- Once I got
all the material prepped,

I dump it on the table,

And I quickly realize
this is too tall.

So if I go ahead
and put it in the forge now,

Then I can't even use the tools
I need to make this happen.

So I'm just gonna gamble here
and go with two billets

And hope that I can weld
both of them out.

Here's my quick math in my head.

I got two billets.
Each have 13 layers.

My plan is to draw those out
and then cut them into threes,

So that's gonna be
39 layers in each billet.

Once I forge weld
those together,

I'll have 80 layers,
give or take.

Now, just in case I didn't do
the math right in my head,

I cut it in thirds,

And then that puts me up
past the 150 mark.

If one billet fails,

Then I'm kind of sol,
gotta start back,

And that's time
I just don't have.

- Well, a good thing about
the five-hour competition is,

They can be working
on things like the handle

When they're waiting
for their steel to heat up.

- I have never made
an eagle head pommel.

My game plan on this
is to go ahead

And look at the actual 1915 bolo

And try to copy it
as much as I can.

I get a marker,
and I start painting my shape,

And I take it over
to the portaband,

And I start cutting to shape.

- All right, guys, you have
four hours left in your duel.

Four hours.

- Hot metal. I probably ought
to set these welds.

And I'm like,
"yeah, this is gonna work."

I get my welds set and pressed,

And then I move over to big blu.

The plan is to draw those out
and then cut them into threes,

So that's gonna be
39 layers in each billet.

Every time I cut and stack
it's just as important

As the first, initial weld,

And if it doesn't stick on
one of these times, I'm done.

It's a good weld, but time
management's very important.

I need to move on.

- When the canister looks like
it's almost white,

That's when
it's forging temperature.

- Oh, screaming hot.
- Yeah.

- Look how easily that folded.

- Yeah.
- It's squished it like butter.

- Yeah.
- And what's nice about that

Is, he can make several passes,
'cause of the heat.

- Oh, see, this is beautiful.

This is exactly
what you want to see.

- I figure one more pass
like this,

Fermin can go to big blu
and draw out a bolo.

- I have to be very careful,

'cause I don't want
to press it too hard.

I just want to go ahead
and compact it together.

But it's moving the way
I want it.

It's nice and hot.
It's just moving great.

Man, I gotta get me
one of those.

- If I'm gonna make
these things weld without

Wasting time, I'm gonna throw
a flux on there.

I want that flux to cook
and eat away any mill scale

That I have on my material.

- Tacking flux between
two pieces,

And then putting welds on,
I wouldn't be surprised

If there were occlusions
in that weld.

- Bring it over to the press

And give it
a little bit of loving.

- All right, joe's
consolidating those welds

In the over 200 layers of steel.

- Well, you don't want too much
on that first pass.

Just want to get her
moving a little bit.

- I finally have 234 layers
in this billet.

I'm good to go.

And I look up at the clock.

My heart sinks.

I still don't have anything
that resembles a blade.

Time is ticking down.
This is a lot to do.

But I still have
a couple tricks up my sleeve.

- Going to big blu.

Now that the billet
is the size that I want,

I go over to big blu,

Because the belly has to be
at least 2 inches.

But I'm keeping
a close eye on it.

I don't want it to banana on me
or open up or split up.

I'm just taking my time.
Patience is a virtue.

Now that I have the belly
to the parameters that I need,

It's time to get it ready
for the quenching.

- So I'm in the middle
of this build,

And I have to make
an m1915 bayonet/machete.

And it's not just,
"oh, it's gotta look like it."

It's gotta be pretty darn close,

Or else I'm gonna fall
out of parameters

And just not make
what they asked me to make.

I've got my billet
into a blade shape,

And I'm trying to get
to a quench.

The time is ticking down,

And I'm not going to have time
to heat everything up.

So my plan right now
is just to do the edge quench.

So my edge quenching,
I ensure that the edge is hard

Without causing a warp

And without taking the time
to heat everything up.

- There's another way to do it

That works
pretty quick and fast.

- Throw it in the forge?
- Yeah.

- Let the forge heat it up.

If that edge has got
any kind of a bevel to it,

You can watch, that's gonna
heat up first anyway.

- Yeah.

- Saying, "don't crack.
Don't bend."

I pull it out.
It's good enough.

And then it's on to the grinder
to grind this thing to shape.

- When you quench, it can
create stress fractures,

It can create warps,

So I want to make sure
that it's non-magnetic.

I put the magnet to it.
It's not sticking to it.

I go in for the quench.

- There we go.
Fermin's in the oil.

- I pull it out,
and I see no bends, nothing.

Whoopah!

At this point,
I'm looking at my knife,

And I'm like, "let's start
putting it together."

- Bladesmiths, you have 1
hour and 30 minutes remaining.

- I'm having too much fun.

- So I'm on a time crunch.

Now it's time
to put my handle on.

I've already prepped
my two pieces of micarta,

Put a little bit of glue on,

And I have a handle that is on.

- Wow.
Joe's handle is half-brass.

That's a lot of counterweight.

- Yeah.
- It's got that... enough

Of a bird's head
on there, though,

That it should have
plenty of retention.

- Yeah.
- The problem is, with a blade

That swells the way that does,
it can want to roll on you.

- Oh,
so if he's too cylindrical,

The whole thing could want
to spin in his hand?

- Yeah, exactly.

- I'm just trying to hit the
inside of the stupid burrs

So that there's no excuse
why this can't be tested.

- All right,
let's get this party started.

When I was here in season six,
the v-42 stiletto had,

Actually,
a leather stack handle.

That's why I picked
the leather stack.

It's quick, it's easy,
and it works.

- Bladesmiths,
you have 30 minutes.

So joe's got a blade.
He's got it quenched.

Now he's on the grinder.
He doesn't quite have

The same shape as the bolo
that we have up as the example.

He doesn't have that belly.

- No. But he has room to remove
where the belly isn't.

- I've got my blade shape,

And I look in,
and I see this little bubble.

I'm like,
"oh, great, we got a blister."

Like, really? You have
an air pocket, essentially.

I got a bad weld
or a flux pocket.

It can grow
and just delam everything.

- That looks like
a delamination blister.

The only way you can
deal with those is,

Either you grind them out
or you pierce them.

- The last time, I developed
a crack in my handle.

- For purposes of safety,

We cannot continue
to test your weapon.

- I know going into the testing

That if I leave the blister
on there and doug

Or anyone else can get
their finger in there,

That's it for me.
Safety call.

I can't let that happen again.

But the fact is,
I have no time to go back

And start another blade,
so I just do a quick weld,

Try to get
as much of it off as possible.

- The only thing we can say
was different about what he did

Is that he put flux

In between before putting
the two billets together.

- Yeah.

- That's the only thing
we can suspect, you know,

Because we had said that.
- I weld it up.

I got this soft spot that's now
developed on my blade.

While it's still hot, I just
shove that thing in the water.

It's better to be hard
than soft,

So I can just move on,
continue on grinding

And finishing my blade.

Coming down to the last seconds
of the round,

I need to try to get as much
of the blister off

As possible,
'cause I almost guarantee

They're gonna whack that blade
right on that spot.

- Five. Four. Three.
Two. One.

Bladesmiths, this round is over.

- Whoopah!

When I looked at my knife
and I looked at joe's,

And I said,
"oh, damn, these look good."

But wait a minute, I can go
for another five hours.

I'm having fun here.

- All right, gentlemen,
it's test time.

Up first is the strength test.

I'll be taking
your 1915 bolo bayonets

And stabbing them
into these fuel cans

And then striking the fuel cans.

Fermin, you're up.
Are you ready?

- Yes, I'm ready.
- Okay. All right.

- Going first is very stressful.

Anything can happen.

At this point,
my knees are buckling on me,

I am shaking,
I'm losing my breath.

I'm about to pass out.

- All right, fermin.
It's a comfortable handle.

I like your choice.
- Thank you.

- As far as your blade goes,
it's held up very well.

It's sharp.
Got some weight in this thing.

- Yeah.
- But that's fine.

I mean,
this is a chopping machine.

This was meant to be chopping
through a jungle.

- Mm-hmm.
- All in all, nice job.

- Thank you, sir. Thank you.

- All right, joe, you ready?
- Yeah, let's do it.

Biggest concern
with my blade is,

My blister sits right

At the sweet spot
in the curve of the blade,

And if I was able to fix
that thing right,

It will be strong.

If not, then it's just gonna
break in half.

- All right, joe. We realize
that you had that delam,

That blister on the side.

I think you made a really good
choice to fill that with weld.

And I hit the edge
right above that thing,

So you didn't lose the temper
on that edge.

- Nice.

- But you're kind of missing
the waist on this blade,

So the profile becomes a much
more elongated cutting edge

As opposed to the belly
and then the waist.

As far as your handle goes,
it's a little on the round

And smooth side.
It has the ability to turn.

Could easily lose
an inch of that handle.

Probably would have made it

A much more secure blade
in my hand,

'cause it's got
a lot of weight to it.

But the blade is in the same
shape it started out in.

And you didn't really lose
any of the sharpness.

So, really well done.

- Thank you.

- All right, bladesmiths,
this is the sharpness test:

The military bed stab and slice.

Now, to find out how sharp
your weapons are,

I'm gonna take your bolo
bayonets and stab

And slice on this military bed.

Fermin, you're up first.
You ready?

- Yes, sir.
- All right. Let's do this.

- Yeah.

- Okay, fermin, let's talk
about your bolo bayonet here.

First up, in profile, it looks
very much like the sample

That we had out there.

Now let's talk about your edge.

Your edge is sharp.
It was so sharp,

That I actually... because
of the weight... whoa,

It surprised me... cutting
into this military bed.

Overall, sir,
your bolo bayonet, it will cut.

- Yes.

- All right, joe,
your turn, sir. You ready?

- Oh, yeah.
- Let's do this.

- Nice.

- All right, joe, let's talk
about your bolo bayonet here.

First up,
your handle construction.

It is a little bit
on the longer side.

I really need to hold on
to this a little bit more

To be able to get
that retention going.

Your edge
and your tip are quite sharp

Stabbing through and cutting on
this cot with no resistance.

And overall, sir,
your bolo bayonet, it will cut.

- Awesome.

- Well, guys, you both nailed
it with your bolo bayonets.

They're both strong.
They are both extremely sharp.

But only one of you guys
is gonna move forward

In this competition
to the final round.

The bladesmith who's gonna be
moving forward into the final

Round of the armed forces
redeployment tournament is...

Fermin.
Congratulations, man.

Now, joe, unfortunately,

You're not gonna be moving
forward in this competition,

And dave baker's gonna
tell you why.

- Joe, first off, I want to
thank you and your entire unit

For coming out
while you're on active duty.

Proud to have you here.
You did a great job

Fighting through
some things to turn in a blade

That performed excellently.

But a large part
of this competition

Was to replicate
that 1915 bolo bayonet,

And your blade doesn't
really have that shape.

That, combined with that long,
thin, cylindrical handle, well,

Those are the things
that led us to our decision.

- Completely understand. Thanks
for the opportunity to be here.

- Well, joe, it was great
having you in the forge again.

Thank you for your service.
But unfortunately, your time

In the competition has ended.
I'm gonna have to ask you

To please step off
the forge floor.

- Thank you, joe.

- This was truly down
to the details, and no excuses.

Having the opportunity
to participate again

And compete against
my fellow brothers-in-arms

Was extremely challenging,
but at the same time

Very rewarding that I actually
was able to turn

In a piece that could be tested
and performed very well.

- Whoo.

- Well, fermin,
your hard work paid off.

Your m1915 bolo bayonet
is taking you on

To the final round of our armed
forces redeployment tournament.

You just got a check for $2,000

And a seat in the finals, man.
Congratulations.

- Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you.

I just cannot believe
that I'm actually moving

Into the next round.
Whoo. Man, I almost passed out.

- You ready to bring your
a game for the finals?

- Absolutely.
- Good job, bud.

- I am so excited to move on
to the next round

Of the competition.

I want to become
the "forged in fire" champion.

I'm on my way to it.
I want to do it.

Someone needs to stop Clearway Law.
Public shouldn't leave reviews for lawyers.