Black Smith tongs

[Two Feathers]

Howdy folks Two Feathers here:
   Just curious, but about 4 years ago, right before Christmas, I contacted someone here who forges black smith tongs. They told me to get back to them after the first of the year. I did, but never heard back. Can anyone tell me if there's anyone else here making them? I'm in need of a set for my blade making that's about 18" long total. I don't use "S" clips. I'd prefer tongs that hold my blades upright, but at this point I'll settle for almost anything? I'm trying to use 18" long needle nose pliers from Harbor Freight and they just bend and the jaws open up. This morning, I dropped a brittle blade on my driveway and shattered it.  There went hours in the trash!
Thank you for any help You can give me.
God bless:
Two Feathers

[Elnathan]

Blacksmith tongs are commercially available, including those specifically made for handling knives: https://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/products/tongs-pliers.html

If you already have the forge and other tools, forging one's own makes sense, but if you have to get someone else to forge them anyway, I suspect that the commercial ones are less expensive.

[beagle74]

Kens custom iron sells tong blanks of all types that are easy to finish to your desire.  Quite affordable.  Good luck.

[David R. Pennington]

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I bought two pairs of these last fall from a fellow blacksmith at a festival I was demonstrating blacksmithing at, one for me and one as Christmas present for a friend. I can make them but these were so well done and reasonably priced, and made by a really nice gentleman, plus I like supporting other craftsmen.
Most of my tongs are used ones I bought at flea markets etc. I modify them as needed for specific tasks.

[Two Feathers]

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I bought two pairs of these last fall from a fellow blacksmith at a festival I was demonstrating blacksmithing at, one for me and one as Christmas present for a friend. I can make them but these were so well done and reasonably priced, and made by a really nice gentleman, plus I like supporting other craftsmen.
Most of my tongs are used ones I bought at flea markets etc. I modify them as needed for specific tasks.

Hello David:
 Thank you for your reply. They look fantastic, but I just realized that I'm looking for something that may not exist?
 My "quench tank" is a piece of 18" long 2" diameter black pipe with a cap on one end and a steel plate welded to the other.
 The tongs I'm finding (I believe) are much higher that 2" across that opening behind the jaws so they wouldn't fit into my quench tank anyway? I may have to go with straight jawed tongs? NOT my preference, but.....
Thank you and the others for your time. I'll keep looking.
God bless:
Dave Two Feathers

[RVAH-7]

check out the you tube videos by black bear forge in colorado.

[Two Feathers]

Hello RVAH-7:
 Thank you, but I found a set last night. They're NOT precisely what I wanted, but for what I do they'll be fine.
 I don't forge blades anymore (health and age prohibit it) so I just use the tongs to get my blades in & out of the forge for hardening.
 I will forge a few small things occasionally, but not blades anymore.
Thank you again and God bless all the kind folks here who helped.
Dave Two Feathers
Proprietor of:
The Mountain Man Emporium