10-06-2012, 07:58 PM
Yes, splitting a piece of large enough stock at both ends is easier, as there is no join to make, requiring less effort and you do not need to heat the iron to near melting to make the forgeweld. But the low carbon irons used then welded very easily (so they say, have yet to try myself), so if you have two pieces of stock too small to split and bend, forgewelding them into an X is a quick way of making a caltrop. Same goes is you have three scraps, draw them out at one end to a point, then weld them at the other end into a single point, bend out the pieces and presto - caltrop. But that last one is the least efficient sollution, as in the picture you can see you just do not get the same effect of a prong always pointing straight up, which you go get in the X weld or the split.
