Abstract: A shaped metallic article such as a crankshaft is produced from a hollow pipe which is commercially available. The hollow pipe, which has a predetermined wall thickness, is squeezed into a hollow blank pipe having a predetermined shape and wall thickness. A region of the hollow blank pipe is then heated, and the heated region is upset and bent into a crankshaft, for example. The hollow blank pipe is upset and bent by dies positioned one on each side of the gripped portion of the blank and moving toward each other, and also by punches. After the crankshaft is forged, one of the punches is released from the crankshaft before the dies are separated therefrom.