Forging the Steel Path to Freedom
It was a plan for after I became an adult steelmaker and retired, but the high-value product I'd decided to produce was steel. In this era, they were probably making it by carburizing wrought iron on the surface, then repeatedly folding and forge-welding the mixed iron lumps until they hit the desired quality—a process that demanded insane amounts of time, fuel, and labor.
This was the tech used worldwide before the Industrial Revolution in my past life. Korea had stories about Japan; their local iron was crap, so they folded it over and over to make katanas. That's the method.
Even just hearing it described sounded brutal, and the tiny yields of steel from it had to cost a fortune—reserved for top-tier weapons or tools. So if I could produce steel, I figured peddling it bit by bit through cities would net enough profit for independence.
But saying I'd make steel didn't mean copying that method. Sure, I knew the theory, so with trial and error, I could probably match a skilled artisan. No point suffering when I knew a better way.
The single reason bloomery-era folks before blast furnaces couldn't mass-produce iron? They couldn't hit the temperature to properly melt it.
To get the "molten metal" from the furnaces we know, blast temps need to top 1500°C. Firewood in a basic kiln maxed out around 1300°C no matter what. Charcoal and bellows pushed past 1400°C, but then the furnace itself started melting, ruining everything. Ironworking stalled until refractory bricks came along.
Flip side: develop refractory bricks, and blast furnaces were inevitable. Bloomeries built with them boosted wrought iron yields up to 30% and cut fuel use by 20%. Ones rebuilt every 2-3 firings now lasted 10-20, so folks naturally stacked 'em higher for better per-run profits. Stack high enough to tap molten iron, and boom—cast products everywhere.
World hits Age of Sail-level iron civilization. No cast goods in the village yet, so even if refractory bricks existed somewhere, it'd take at least a century to get there. Doubt I'd live to see it.
Anyway. Wrought iron, cast iron, steel? Just carbon content differences. Refractory bricks mean sustaining melt temps for liquid iron. Tweak the process right, and controlling carbon's straightforward.
Make refractory bricks + know carbon control = replicate steel!
But first, infrastructure.
Blacksmith said Dad had a pioneer mining village with iron ore as the main vein. Those spots didn't just dig and ship raw ore; they smelted it into higher-value-per-weight wrought iron ingots and sold those as pigs.
Pioneer villages were 3-4 days away at most, so wrought iron bars here should be dirt cheap.
Spotted a charcoal kiln in the village recently, so forests nearby were likely, and charcoal was no issue.
Processes like that hurt the soul—better to buy.
Problem: zero coin.
Unavoidable. A ten-year-old's only cash is allowance, and while parents neglected me, they ensured I lacked for nothing.
Begging for pocket money? They'd grill me on the purpose. Couldn't say "charcoal and ingots."
Could make other stuff, sell for seed money... but no empty lots in the village.
Wait till I'm older?
Buildings packed tight, palisade wall around it all. Paced it out: diameter just shy of 600 meters.
Tiny village, no spare dirt inside. Production needed infrastructure, which meant diggable space.
Never left the walls—clueless outside. Fingers crossed for nearby woods.
Anyway, learned most of what I wanted. Last question for the blacksmith: metal weapons or armor?
"That's count's castle stuff. Here, we just sharpen."
"Could you make some on commission?"
"Hmm. Dagger or spearhead, maybe. But longsword or arming sword? Buy from specialists. Balancing the center of gravity's a nightmare."
"Ah."
Heard it all, thanked him, and left the forge.
Today's visit was just the forge, but I'd poked around enough before to know the village pretty well. Unless leaving it, no need for more scouting.
Next: wait for peddler day.
On the walk back to the manor, I mulled over the chat. Steel went mainly to weapons, so minimum was a city like the count's castle.
No point rushing steel till I could roam cities. I'd test the recipe a few times to verify...
Ah, peddlers? ...Nah. They'd need to recognize steel quality.
Knight house third son wouldn't convince 'em it was premium.
Even the blacksmith explaining? Doubt it'd stick. If they knew, they'd feign ignorance to haggle.
Real validation? Dad handing a sample to a merchant: "Take it to the city, check it out." Till then, no fair price from peddlers.
So what's the play? Till adulthood and free travel, steel's unsellable.
Infra first anyway, seed money from other goods.
Those'd be consumables—village demand dries quick. Inventory piles, idle facilities.
Sell steady to peddlers, time left over... make steel?
Piles up again. No wagon to haul it all, can't trash it...
Ah. Idea.
As squire, I'd get family gear, trail a knight on real work. But it wasn't great: chainmail, sword, spear—top treatment.
Roland said: family-owned, return 'em post-knighting.
Unless I begged Dad or big bro, they'd reclaim it. I'd leave the territory buck naked.
Quitting knight life? That's locked future.
Dangerous fantasy land travel? Need solid gear to not croak.
So stockpile steel pre-adulthood, forge my own kit.
Yeah. Makes sense.
List: Tools first for gear-making. Hammers need impact resistance + hardness: mid-carbon steel. Tongs endure wild temp swings—tough over springy: low-carbon. Anvil takes hits, face wears: low-carbon body, carburized mid-high face.
Weapons next: mid-carbon like hammers, heat-treat key. Longsword, arming sword, dagger, mace, spear.
Armor: shock absorption + toughness: low-carbon. Breastplate, helmet, pauldrons, vambraces, gauntlets, chainmail, greaves, sabatons, shield fittings.
Damn, that's a haul.
Not an artisan—quality iffy. But no sweat.
Infra done, test-fit, bash fixes on the fly.
Crude steel gear? Still does the job. Ugly wavy plate blocks blades fine.
Heh... sounds fun.
Did I used to dig this? Imagining it got me hyped.
Lots to do, but step-by-step, goal's quick. Time's what I got plenty of.