horse

There ya go

I want to assure you JLP that I think that I would change almost nothing about your style of presenting a video for our education. Maybe the most easily absorbed I have seen. My only point is that myself and I believe others would love to know just a bit about who you are. On the other hand there may be some majic  in a certain amount of anonymity.. who am I to judge, someone said you do you. And that is exactly what you should do. 

I personally very much appreciate your approach with minimal conversation and good video of the process. I think a quick intro “who am I and what I am making “ would be perfect. I believe it would broaden your appeal. Many videos have to much blather going on. 

JLP

I too admire and have learned a lot from your videos. To your credit you seem to be far more motivated by the content than you are “your brand” that is admirable, however it would be great for me to see the person behind the content. That is not a criticism as much as a desire. In terms of editing for spelling etc it is nearly impossible to be the writer and editor. It does not trouble me as I seldom notice misspelled words it is just not how I read. At one time in my Career I needed to write quite a bit and it needed to be perfectly spelled and punctuated I had it read by someone besides myself. Can’t see the forest for the trees. Love your work. 

Ftrosty you make me laugh all the time. I had to read your Meerschaum pipe thing three times to figure out where you were going with that. My tobacco shop pile is corn cob. Yep just burned out the bottom. Loved that pipe. 

I love the “look” of that hammer. Very nice. I would love to see a known size object next to it to get a better idea of size. Great job. 

I know you gave us sizes for both sides but a dollar bill or some such gives me a better idea. My brain just works like that. I am sure most say “ I got it”. Again she is a beaut. 

I know you gave us sizes for both sides but a dollar bill or some such gives me a better idea. My brain just works like that. I am sure most say “ I got it”. Again she is a beaut. I see you are in Colorado. So am I. What part?  I am in northern between Longmont and Loveland. 

I am very envious of young smiths such as yourself that have the talent and perhaps the time to invest in this craft. You have grown expedentially in a short period of time. Stay true, stay humble, as you appear to be and at every opportunity share your talent when you can. I am a bit of a geezer that has toyed in this arena for a number of years and am nowhere close to your ability. God speed young man. 

I am a butcher and currently a chef in a nice Tapas restaurant. I can never be sure a knife suits “me” until I pick it up and feel both the handle and the balance. But I can tell you for sure it is one I would check out if I saw it somewhere. It is a beaut.  A knife that doesn’t feel perfect for me could be absolutely perfect for many others. Nice work. 

Spoiled horses are the most dangerous in my opinion. Specially if the owner is around. Often a good bite on the butt will fix that in a hurry 

Your a cruel and clever man Frosty  I believe I was born to play the straight man for the likes of you. It’s a fate I am comfortable with. I love your puns and creativity. Your mind seems to work in ways I can only imagine. 

I spoke to a farrier some time ago that told me that he and the farm owner literally locked the son out of the barn while shoeing a six horse hitch. The son was apparently the hitch driver and the horses became extremely agitated when he was around. Not sure why “Dad” let the kid drive or work the horses at all. Word is that the kid was a jerk with the horses and the horses responded in kind . The wrong person in the barn can sure make a farriers life miserable. My congratulations go out to any person that can get under a horse and get the shoeing or trimming done. It is hard necessary work every penny is in most cases hard earned. I truly admire the farriers that are both horseman and farriers. Knowing how to get around a horse is a true skill. Sometimes a spoiled horse needs a firm reminder and often an anxious horse just needs calm quiet confidence. Knowing the difference is the truest skill. I used to shoe my own Belgian horses but have grown too old and too stocky to do it without my body paying dearly for a week or two. 

I truly hope y’all are enjoying yourselves by making us common folk declare huhhhh??  Just kidding of course. I have forever been very envious of those that possess this sort of linguistic imagination and breadth of understanding. Ya just keep me scratching my already very sparse pate. So go right on. I will try to keep up. 

Thanks for the Pic. I like the rustic style a lot. 

An Aussie having a beer?  Hard to believe. Visited Australia some years ago. I had the good fortune of getting on the infield at the Melbourne Cup. What a memorable day that was. 

I am going to say this before Frosty gets to you. We can’t believe there is an herb knife until we see a photo. I see two mates having a day of good cheer and a some dallying at the forge. Nothing wrong with that either. It had to be a great day.  It has to be awesome to have an experienced Smith with you for a day. 

I heard recently that he was needing to sell the place and his fear was that his art might get scrapped. I amgiing to check it out the next time I am in that area. My kids toured his place on class trips a bunch of years ago. I don’t believe he ever charged for tours. Just took donations. 

There is a farmer near where I live Fort Collins Co. that has done larger sculptures for years. Called it the Swetsville Zoo. Bill Zwets I believe. His stuff not as intricate as yours but still it took some creativity. 

Das I intend this in the most positive way. You see the world in a very different way than most. My imagination does not get me to the point of seeing a “bug” from a mess of salvaged steel. It amazes me. Very nice stuff. But you gotta be a bit weird  just sayin. 

I don’t know a darn thing about your question but just wanted to say it is a very nicely written post and will have me looking at old taps and dies in a different way. 

You are  a trouble maker Frosty. I like it. Yeah let's see the leaf. 

I love the smell of but in coal in a forge. However close neighbors may not enjoy it as much. I think you are on the correct path. A lot to learn here if you watch and listen/read. It is a great wealth of info. You sometimes need a rather tough hide if the curmudgeons find you lazy and with no motivation for research. Well thought out question with specificity are generally very well taken and you will get great info. Your first post is a well thought out post. Good job.  And yes hitting hit steel and discovering how it moves is not only fun but may be somewhat addicting. 

Unless you are inclined to use it for cooking I would not touch it.  I have no idea of its historical or monetary value but to me patina always tells a story. I sure do like the piece. 

Everyone loves bottle openers

horse shoe hearts mounted on a cool board

toilet paper holders

towel racks

one year I made a swing grill for everyone in the family. A big hit if they love camping and cooking 

Steamboat you can flat out weld. Those welds are purdy purdy purdy. 

Love the simplicity and the lines. I am not a knife maker. I have neither the skills or the forge. But I was starting to get cranky since I had not seen a new knife from the knife makers for a few days. I have spent my entire career as a butcher and a chef and cannot get enough photos from the knife makers on this site.  Keep em coming. This winter I hope to start my first real knife. A good chef knife will be my first attempt.