Steve, Ryan, congratulations.
You have forged your way into the final round
of this competition.
The first two rounds you came to our forge
and used our tools and equipment to forge signature
blades out of salvaged steel.
Now we're sending you back to your home
forges where you will recreate an iconic weapon from history.
That weapon is the charay.
The history of the charay sword is deeply
tied to the violent history of the Khyber Pass,
which separates Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The sharp, single-edged blade was a key asset
of the Afridi tribe.
The charay had devastating consequences
for the Afridi's enemies because it could pierce through armor.
The distinctive T shape of the spine
gives extra strength to the charay's razor-sharp blade.
Good luck, bladesmiths.
RYAN: Feels great being back here
in nice, sunny Jacksonville, Florida.
My day-one goal is to actually get this blade forged.
The only thing I'm really concerned about
is getting the T back of the spine correct.
I'm going to create this T spine by forging in fuller grooves.
Getting that correct is very crucial.
Not good.
The problem is I put a little bit too much pressure,
and it looks like it's pushed through.
It's too thin, and I got a little bit
of daylight showing in there.
So I am going to have to start over.
STEVE: I was able to finish up the layering.
I got the overall dimensions forged out,
but I've never forged a T into a spine before.
If I was in an Afghan desert, this is probably
how I would have to do this.
So I drew everything over length and then just started
to upset that spine, bringing it out in the shape of a T. I
think it's working great.
I mean, it's a nice, even T there.
Went way quicker than I thought it would.
It allowed me to get to the quench today.
Seems like everything went well.
But as I was trying to pull it out--
[BLEEP]
--boom.
[CLANG]
[BLEEP]
RYAN: After yesterday having to trash my blade,
I really need to get this blade done today.
So far, so good.
Looking pretty awesome.
Forging in this T joint is a lot harder than I
thought I was going to be.
So today I'm using my other option,
which is the grinding wheel.
This is very crucial.
I really can't afford to have to do this blade over again.
As I'm grinding in the T, I notice that it's standing out
way better than I ever thought.
I can control it a lot better.
Everything's getting a lot lighter,
and I am very happy at this point.
STEVE: When I was quenching, obviously the blade
fell, but I got lucky.
Everything's fine.
So I'd like to get through some testing early this morning.
Failure during testing here would give me only 14,
15 hours to build a complete charay.
So I don't need a failure here.
Oh yeah.
Ate that up, absolutely no problem.
RYAN: This blade looks extremely sexy.
Now I'm just going to concentrate
on doing my handle scales, inlays, cleaning
up the blade a lot more.
And I decide I want to carve a wolf head in the front of it
just to kind of set it apart, make it stand out.
My wolf looks badass.
The blade's sharp.
The blade's strong.
It's time to test it.
All right, here we go.
[BANGING]
It's pretty good.
There's no edge damage or anything.
Just bring it on, man.
Do whatever you want to do.
Awesome.
Bladesmiths, the charay was a weapon known
to be light, fast, and sharp.
To see what kind of lethal damage your weapon can do,
I will take your charay and deliver slashes and stabs
on this ballistics dummy.
Steve, you're up first.
You ready?
Absolutely.
DOUG: Let's do this.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Well, Steve, I like the Damascus pattern.
And overall, it's got a great fit and finish.
Your edge definitely lacerated.
It even cut into the rib.
On the slash, it lacerates and has a deep thrust
and allows me to disembowel this ballistics dummy.
Your blade, sir, will kill.
- Thank you. - Ryan, you're next.
You ready?
Yeah, man.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Well, Ryan, let's talk about your blade.
For a charay, it is heavy.
But it's sharp enough to lacerate and dig in,
and the thrust allows for a laceration out.
Your blade, sir, will kill.
All right, gentlemen.
Now, to test the sharpness of your blade,
I'll be cutting through these racks of sugar cane forehand
and backhand.
What I want to see is a clean cut with very little
resistance to that blade.
Steve, you're up first.
You ready? - Yes, sir.
OK.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
All right, well, it felt good cutting with this.
You can see these first cuts very clean.
The second cut I kind of blew through this one.
You can actually see where the T back smacked that sucker.
Now, that's typical of this shape blade.
Well done.
Thank you.
All right, Ryan, you're up.
You ready for this?
Do me proud.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
So, Ryan, first off, there's a lot of weight in this play.
That T back is there to take weight out.
But everything's still right and tight.
It obviously cut pretty well.
Cut two of these canes.
Kind of just mash that one out of the way,
but you can see the cut in there is clean.
I like the decorative pieces, you know,
this wolf's head here.
All in all, she's a cutter.
It's definitely sharp.
All right, gentlemen.
Next up-- the strength test.
It's the bullet test, so let's clear the range
and get this set.
Now we've got your blade, Steve, locked into a vise.
We're going to fire one round right at that edge.
If everything's good, it should split that bullet fine.
You ready for this?
Yes, sir.
OK.
3, 2, 1, fire.
[GUN SHOT]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Oh, look at that.
Well, you've still got an edge there.
You can actually see right where the bullet spun
down the side of that blade.
You can see where it caught the T back on that side.
But I think you made a beautiful piece here,
and it certainly held up in that test.
Thank you, sir.
All right, Ryan, you're up.
Are you ready for this?
Let's do it.
3, 2, 1, fire.
[GUN SHOT]
Damn.
That was [BLEEP].
All right, Ryan, I don't see any damage at all.
That bullet painted your blade pretty good.
Didn't touch the T back on this side.
Kind of caught a little bit on that side.
But all in all, there's zero edge damage there.
Nicely done.
Thank you, sir.
Bladesmiths, these decisions are always tough,
but the judges have made one.
There can only be one "Forged in Fire"
champion in this arena of competition,
and that champion is Steve.
Congratulations.
You are the "Forged in Fire" champion.
Thank you.
Ryan, I have to ask you, please surrender your weapon.
Forged in Fire" champion would have meant the world to me,
but you just really have to be on your A game.
You know, no matter what it takes,
you just got to pull out all stops.
You got to make sure to look at the finer
details, and yeah, that's what it takes to win this.
Steve, congratulations.
You are the "Forged in Fire" champion,
and that's a title that comes with $10,000.
Good job.
[APPLAUSE]
Thank you.
Steve, your blade was light and well constructed,
and it did wonderfully in the tests.
And also the fact this is the first time
you've done a T back, it makes it that much more impressive.
Well done.
STEVE: I am a "Forged in Fire champion.
Yay!
I came here to prove that I can compete with some
of the best smiths in the world and beat them,
and I did just that.
[LAUGHS]
[MUSIC PLAYING]