What is Bladesmithing?
Broadly, bladesmithing is a specialized form of blacksmithing that focuses on the creation of sharp and durable cutting instruments, like swords, using a forge, hammer, anvil, and various other tools.
For Material Advantage, we spend two years designing, crafting, and analyzing a blade that is submitted to the TMS Bladesmithing Competition. The competition, which is hosted by the Minerals, Metals, and Materials Society (or TMS), has certain rules and requires us to not only make a sword, but understand the science behind it.
An Overview of Competing
While making a sword sounds fun (and it is!), it's is not the only thing that is needed to compete in the TMS Bladesmithing Competition. A key part of the competition is understand the science that goes into the blade and the materials used.
Typically, the first year is spent brainstorming, designing, and forging the blade that will be submitted. Then, the next year is spent characterizing the blade to understand its structure and makeup, writing a report to submit with the sword, and creating a research poster to present at the competition.
The History of the Bladesmithing Team
Since 2018, Material Advantage has been forging blades and competing on a national level, winning 2nd place in 2024 and taking home the grand prize and winning 1st place in 2026. We invite you to take a look at our bladesmithing history and past blades.
Sword Making Process
