Hello. The name's Bert Olton. My wife Bonnie and I live in Palmyra, NY which is a little village about 20 miles east south east of Rochester, NY. Nope, we're not Mormons but we do have six kids and one grand son on the way.
I've been a heavy equipment mechanic/operator, truck mechanic/driver, certified welder and rigger for more than 30 years and for most of that time blacksmithing has been at the back of my mind. I've read about it over the years and drooled over pictures of other people's work on line and in the ABANA magazine. 25 or so years ago I even purchased a little starter set from a guy named Don Newcomb, a blacksmith in the greater Rochester, NY area. But, until a little while ago, I never had the time to get going with it all. Well, I've finally forced myself to get started and am enjoying the heck out of it. This forum has been a real inspiration and an incredible resource. I want to thank all of you for the incredible amount of information you post here. Every time I log in, I learn something, jot down notes, and book mark pages. I probably won't post much - there's still too much to learn, but again, my real thanks to you all.
Best regards,
Bert