Thai village smith.

[A. G. Maisey]

A friend sent this link to me, it is a really good video of a Thai smith making a machete type knife using all traditional techniques.

I have not seen a smith in Jawa or Bali working in this way for more than 35 years. Nobody wants to do things the hard way when electricity becomes available. But I reckon that in some of the out of the way desas there would still be smiths in Bali & Jawa who used these old methods.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GM0Mlt4YgxM&feature=youtu.be

[Ian]

Alan,

Thank you very much for posting this film clip. The traditional ways are still found in several places in mainland SE Asia, as well as areas of the Philippines. Xasterix, who posts here, knows a cadre of traditional Filipino craftsmen who still use many of the old methods to make blades of yesteryear. These crafts are not yet totally gone.

Ian

[naturalist]

Have been living in several places in Indonesia (mostly in Borneo and Sumatra), mostly remote places, or at least i have to go to very remote places before entering the forest (i am biologist-conservationist). I have seen blacksmiths working with very basic tools, not even having blower.

[Oliver Pinchot]

Very interesting video, thanks Alan

[David]

You just gotta love that sledgehammer anvil though. The ingenuity of making use of what you have available and still being able to produce a good quality product. :)

[DhaDha]

Great video! Thanks for sharing it.
Here's a related post post from a few years ago from a trip to Myanmar.
Where we stumbled onto a forge at a market on the shore of Inle Lake.

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=17514

[A. G. Maisey]

I just put a post into this same thread:-

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=17514

maybe it should be in this current thread, but it seemed to fit well where I put it.