Crowd Control

[civilwarblacksmith]

I demonstrate at many different places. One place is the Union Mills homestead which is dated at 1797. The blacksmith shop there is my main shop where I smith at. The build ing That I'm in is over 200 years old. We use wooden stanchions with rope through it to hold the crowd back. The anvil at the smithy is roughly 10 to 12 ft back but not too far that the spectators can't see what is going on. I eventually want to build a railing in ther in order to be more sturdy.

The other demonstration area varies. I am also a Civil War re-enactor and it takes me to different places and different types of spectators. The set up stays the same generally. A 12 X 12 dining fly that has metal stanchions driven into the ground about 2-3 feet out from the edges of the fly.

With spectators that aren't blacksmiths, I won't forge weld when they are around.

Reb

The Civil War Blacksmith

[Tald the dead]

Good stuff guys.

I have noticed that the women seemed to be more open and interested mean while the men seem to spout out (most if the time talking a bit loud) of what they know, which isnt much by the end of the convo.

Maybe its me, or where I demo? Anyone else have similar experience?

[Donnie]

I've never done a demo at any type of event. But, the best crowd control around my little shop is to ask for help. They all back up FAST!

[ThomasPowers]

Tald, nope that's common in my experience too. In fact one of the things to learn is how to correct them without making them seem like an idiot in fron of their SO or kids.

One method is to say "That was a very commonly held belief; but modern research has shown that actually...."; or "That was very true with older low alloy shallow hardening steels; but in modern ones alloying and heat treat are used to counteract grain growth and so that does not help anymore."

[NateDJ]

This brings up a question of what you guys do when a beginner blacksmith comes up and wants to learn a few things?

As a beginner I would like to know what the best way to approach a demo so that I could actually see "The right way to do it" as apposed to the way I have envisioned it by reading trying it my self.

I usually try to keep the idea of the more I learn the more I realize I don't know and refrain from "Spouting off"

[Finnr]

A simple honest approach is what works with me, If someone comes up and says they are a beginner and how would I do , what ever. I am more than happy to explain or demonstrate if I can at the particular event.
Finnr

[ThomasPowers]

I try to hook them up with the local smithing group and give them some urls to check out---like this one...

[UnicornForge]

One of my favorite quicky items is a screw driver with a twist and a closed circle for a handle. They work are great paint can openers also. It gives me a chance to explain how screw drivers evolved a bit since colonial times, how one can fit a screw driver to a screw especially the type used on guns which require fitting to a slot in the screws with straight walls rather than the normal slanted walled screws... that tends to get them to pause a bit and realize that slotted screws usually accept a driver that is tapered on all four surfaces. That can lead into hardening and tempering of tools, as a chisel is not much different from a screw driver.

As far as the question about shoeing horses, I simply explain that my wife never let me try shoeing hers, but I would be happy to give it a try if they would bring their horse around. Of course no one who owns a horse will agree to that! Plus I explain that horses only need shoes if they will be walking across a surface that required their hoofs to be protected. When my wife had horses, they never needed shoes as they never went on rocky surfaces and never walked on hard surfaces such as roads.

As far as not being a real smith, I can only agree since I have only been doing it as a hobby for over 36 years, but I still hope some day to be considered a "real" smith.

I have a handout that attempts to cover as many of the questions that people ask, including information about the equipment used, web addresses to find out information, the basic steps in making a knife, my contact information, and the local guild that offers classes.

As a professional psychotherapist I recommend avoiding traumatizing kids or adults for that matter. Some people are pretty fragile.

[unkle spike]

On the horse shoeing question:

My family is banned from shoeing horses. Back in the late 1940's my Grandpa and Dad were shoeing a draft horse. While Granpa was shoeing a back foot, the horse bit him, he turned around and knocked the horse out with his hammer. He said "there you *** we will do it my way." He shod the horse laying down, and then my Dad, 10 at the time, had to run next door to get a bucket of water to splash on the horse to wake it up. I asked a current neighbor to Grandpa's shop if this story was true, he said it surely was as he remembers my Dad running into their barn with a bucket to get the water to get the horse up, and going back with Dad to see the horse laying there on it's side while Grandpa finished up....

This usually ends the horseshoeing conversation or try this one:

My neighbor wanted me to shoe their horse. I insisted the only way to get a good fit was to "hot shoe" that is have the shoe red hot, and hammer it on so it would be a "shrink fit". The neighbor wouldn't let me do it, so I never really got into shoeing horses.


As far as "My Grandpa was a Blacksmith" I usually ask where, when, and what did he do. Then I refer them to the binder I keep at Demo's with pictures of the 5 generations in my family. I know some are full of it, but at one time in Clinton TN where I demo, there were 8 blacksmiths at one time, and this is a very small town. I also point out there were "specialties" in Blacksmithing: Silversmiths, tinsmiths, shipwrights, coopers, wheelrights, and farriers.

[civilwarblacksmith]

I would also take those questions in the perspective of where you are demonstrating. My main shop is in Union Mills, Maryland. This is a little unincorporated town (no mayor or council or town govt), of probably 200 -500 people.

In a small village/town like that your general blacksmith would cover all the blacksmithing bases. He was your blacksmith, farrier, probably did a little bit of wheelwrighting. In the winter his forge would be lit 24/7. It wouldn't be uncommon for a resident of that town to go to the blacksmith shop in the middle of the night and get a small shovel of hot coal to restart a fire that went out, they would of course rebank the fire.

It isn't until you get into the larger towns/cities where you find the trade begomming more speciallized into "blacksmith"; "Farrier"; "wheelwright"; etc.

I also find that everybodies grampa was a blacksmith. Usually from the seniors, and it is very possible that they did some form of smithing. You need to remember that you may be doing a demo in farm country and the seniors remember grampas anvil and forge. Most old farms had them. Does it make grampa an avid smith, no, but he probably used it to make his own repairs.

As far beginner smiths. I love 'em. I will do what every I can to grow the interest in the hobby. They may become a full time smith in the end. If they live close, invite them forge with you if you are able. If they is a local guild or blacksmithing association around, get them plugged in. You just might make some new friends that way.

Handouts are always good to have on hand. Especially if you have handouts from a local blacksmithing organization. You can pass out this information, but it doesn't take the place of face to face, I care and am willing to take the time, communication with the interested party.

Many women are interested in blacksmithing which tends to be thought of as a man's type of work. I had a 19 yr old stand there and stare at the smithing that i was doing, totallt enthrawled. He parents were with and noticed the interest she showed. I explained that anyone can do this, that my daughter was smithing at the age of 13, and also told her of alot of the well known lady smiths. Also that our guild has many women that smith. Hopefully she will join.

Very cute too.

I've rattled enough.