Drew,
I think that you are quite correct that we can learn a lot by examining items that were made during the 19th century. I really would like to see some items from Belgium.
BTW; I couldn't get the link in your last post to work.
Coincidentally, a friend of mine very recently made a knife from some parts from an old buggy. Below are a couple photos of the knife. You can clearly see the inclusions and banded layering of materials in the blade. The blade was etched slightly with ferric chloride to display these features.
The gentleman who made this knife is Master Bladesmith, Lin Rhea. Lin is the blacksmith at the Historic Arkansas Museum, in Little Rock. Below is Lin's own description of the knife and the materials used in making it.
I just finished a hunting knife made from 19th century buggy parts. The blade I forged from a small piece of the axle spring. The guard is a bit of the wrought iron tongue strap. The wood is the last scrap of the tongue that was not dry rotted.
