The 4 Weeks Of Forging, June 2020

What is the 4 Weeks of Forging?

Welcome to the 4 Weeks of Forging!

We're incredibly excited to announce our first ever community challenge: 4 Weeks of Forging! The idea is simple; every week, Alec will introduce a project for the community to make. Participants will submit their best attempts via Instagram and entered to win prizes based on their work, as well as a chance to randomly win the piece that Alec makes in the demonstration video. 

Announcements will be made on Instagram, and demonstration videos will be posted on the Alec Steele YouTube channel every Monday during the challenge starting June 1st, 2020.

The weekly video will feature participants submissions from Instagram, as well as a detailed walk through of how to create the project for that week.

Participants will have until Sunday the following week at 11:00pm MST (6 Days after the video is posted) to finish the piece and submit it as a post on their personal Instagram tagging #4WeeksOfForging and @alecsteeleco in the description. Alec and the team will then pick a 2 winners from the posts in the tag, based on the creativity and the cleanliness of the project. One winner will get one prize, the other winner will get the remaining one. The winners of each weekly challenge will be announced on Monday on the @alecsteeleco Instagram, and featured in the video with the next challenge.

Everyone who participates will be entered to randomly win the item that Alec crafted in the demonstration video that week. You don't have to do all 4 challenges, but we're encouraging everyone to get out there and give it a shot!

(Multiple submissions will not be counted, post your personal favorite, and best attempt!)

InstagramYouTube

Week 1: June 1st (Submission Deadline is June 7th at 10PM MST)

Week 1's challenge is a combination of two classic beginner-level pieces, a leaf and a bottle opener! The winners of this week will get an Alec Steele Merch Pack and a Steele Stock Pack to keep learning and improving with!

As the challenge begins, and moves forward, we will be adding videos to this article, so be sure to check back in from time to time!

Prizes

  • Merchandise Pack: T Shirt, Sweatshirt/Hoodie, and a Hat
  • Steele Stock Pack

Rough Recommendation of Materials

  • Mild Steel Bar Stock: 1/4" x 3/4" Flat, 1/2" Round, 5/8" Round
  • 4140 3/4" x 1/8" Ended Slot Punch
  • Mild steel 5/8" Slot Opening Drift

Week 2: June 8th (Submission Deadline is June 14th at 10PM MST)

Week's 2 Challenge is TONGS! Any kind of tongs that you'd like to make, the more unfamiliar you are with the design the better. Remember, submission are judged based on cleanliness and creativity. 

Prizes

  • Hammer Eye Drift
  • 85$ to the online store

Rough Recommendation of Materials

  • 2x Mild Steel bar stock 5/8" to 3/4" Round (At least 12 inches)

Week 3: June 15 (Submission Deadline is June 21st at 10PM MST)

Week 3's challenge is a Hammer! As with the tongs, this hammer can be any style you'd like to make, the more creative and clean the design, the more likely you are to win! The entire point of these 4 weeks is to craft something that you haven't done before, so give it a shot!  This week's winners will get a 2.5 LB Square Circle Rounding Hammer and a $100 gift card to the Alec Steele Co. store!

Prizes

  • 100$ to the online store
  • 2.5 LB Square Circle Rounding Hammer

Rough Recommendation of Materials

  • 1" 3/4" Round x 4" 1045
  • Hammer Eye Drift made of 4140 or 4340

Week 4: June 22nd (Submission Deadline is June 28th at 10PM MST)

The final challenge is a Hatchet or Axe! We will pick our top 3 favorite builds to receive the following prizes: a SelfSave Kit, a complete Ankle Medical Kit, and a custom damascus billet forged right here in our shop!

Prizes

  • SelfSAVE Kit
  • Complete Ankle Medical Kit
  • Custom Damascus Billet

Rough Recommendation of Materials

  • 4140 3.000" x 1.000" x 1.500" OR 4140 4.000" x 1.250" x 1.750"

Conclusion

The materials we have recommended are just that, our recommendation. These challenges are still plenty possible with your own materials!

If you have questions about the #4WeeksOfForging, send us an email at support@forgedsteele.com with the subject line "4 Weeks Of Forging" and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Thank you all so much for your time in reading, and we can't wait to see what you create in this exciting event!