Dan W

My wife and I have 12 hens and a rooster and we furnish eggs to family and friends.
We're located in the piney woods of N. Florida and our chickens roam free during the day but come back to the pen to roost and nest. So far we havnt lost a one to critters and I know of a bald eagle nest about two miles away.
We do have a catahoula hound that is a herder and can be found around the chickens most of the time. She actualy scared away a hawk one day.
I dont mind losing the occasional hen to a hawk or eagle. To me its worth it just to sit and watch those predators sometimes. The dog keeps most of the other animals away.
We also have a big Road Island red rooster that is one mean S.O.B. and I have the spur scars to prove it.

Folks around here call that 'riding the lightining'
My brother had to go thru that as part of his police training.

Decent notebooks are a must for any profession. I have a file cabnet in my shop and keep everything I feel I can use from this forum, my internet surfing and my local blacksmith friends.
Besides, I'm married to a retired English teacher, I have to keep good notes.

Never tried the fillet knife but I have made small carving blades and inletting chisels for wood. 2-3 inches of hacksaw blade ground into a sheepsfoot congiguration and just wrapped with electricial tape makes a good general purpose shop knife.

And all these years I thought I was just an ole fart. Now I know what I am.

Hope the picts come thru.
This old Hobart welder sat in a friends backyard for years, one night he told me to take the dang thing home with me. I was over the following saturday and pulled it home. Needs some cleaning, tires, fuel lines, battery and plug. It has the old Wisconson motor with generator, two 220 outlets and four 110 outlest.
I also get to keep the vise and toolbox.
Hopefully I'll have this thing up and running by mid summer.

Nice work! It takes a real artist to do something like this.

I'm now convinced that it would be a good idea to keep a container of viniger in the shop.
What do ya'll think about using it to clean out an old gas tank on a generater?

Still learning and would like to know what is the best or most prefered overall blade grind for a general purpose work knife.
Something I would use in the shop and put on my belt for hiking the woods.

I'm with 'thecelticforge' on this one. My main motovation is making something for someone else just to see the expression on their faces when I give it them and I dearly loved the look on my little brothers face the other day when he asked me if I had any eyebolts he could use for his deer stand I told him "I sure do, hand me that piece of threaded rod and tell me how many and what size you want" I really got a kick out of that.

Definitely the old files.
I forge to shape-classic 'C' being my favorite- bring to critical heat three times and air cool to black each time just by holding in the tongs, on the thrid time quench in motor oil. Dip in edge first then lower the whole striker into the oil and leave it to cool until you can handle it, polish the striking edge and have fun.I used to bring to critical heat just once and quench but the three time thing just seems to give me bigger and better sparks.
I've made dozens of these things and the only failures I've had is from my own poor choice of what constitutes good striker material.
I now only use old Black Diamond or Nicholsen files for my strikers or knives.
My wife and I belong to an 1814 Living History group and since matches wernt invented untill around 1836 and if I wouldnt use one of my own strikers to start our fires with I wouldnt trade or sell it to anyone else.

I'm not sure I'd cry but I would darn sure drink three or two beers getting over the loss of those tools.
I'm fortunate enough to have 100' between home and shop.

What about teaching? I know there are a lot of BS schools scattered throughout the country, and darn good ones at that. So maybe put in a call for some side work as a part time instructor?
Personaly not my cup of tea as I no longer have the patience to deal with classroom sized groups.
Just a thought.

I keep a coffee can full of oily sand in my shop-high humidity in Florida-and for surface rust I just put on a pair of heavy leather gloves and rub the anvil or whatever tools I have with a handful of the oily sand then just wipe it off. Around here I have to do that about once a week. I also keep a slightly oiled rag drapped over my anvil and bench vise.

Having the good fortune to live in Florida I can hunt feral pigs all year round and ike to use the Bess for that.
I always make sure I'm next to good climbing tree before I touch off my flinter, nothing like a flash in the pan to alert your quarry. Of course at 9 !/2 lbs, I reckon I could always beat the thing to death with the gun.

I've made the Tim Lively type firepot/forge from an oval washtub, used old farm disc's, steel woks, old cast iron sinks. You can use basicaly anything that has a dip or hollow in it, line it with some kaowool, reffractory cement. firbrick or whatever,throw in some charcoal (personal preference)add fire and air and forge away to your hearts content.
First ask yourself 'am I doing this for fun or profit?' If for fun do it anyway you want, if for profit, build the forge for long lasting heavy work.

Yet another reason why I have more than one hobby. I can always do leather or wood work if I get frustrated with the blacksmith thing, and believe me I can get frustrated real easy sometimes. :)

Looks like you'll eat good for awhile.
What type muzzle loader do you use? I'm a muzzle loader fan myself, have a .75 cal British Brown Bess and a .62 cal northwest trade gun. Trade gun is cut down to 36 inches. Both are flintlocks.

If your going to use it or trade it, then by all means attempt a restore.
Do you have picts?

A lot of the briquettes use sawdust as a filler and some have chemicles added to make them easier to start.

After reading all those definitions, I have to add that my wife told me the other day "No using power tools till mommy gets home from work"
I have cut the tip off my rt index finger in the band saw, used the drill press to bore a hole thru the web between my fingers, I have set myself on fire using a right angle grinder and am still looking for various items that my bench mounted wire brush threw across the shop. I have also used the wire brush to fling hot scale into my belly button. Try getting that out!
All in all, after reading thru this thread and a few others I can honestly say that I'm in good company and I no longer feel alone.

I managed to get my hands on an old Hobart welder/generator combo with trailer and tool box.
I am going to get it running and learn how to use it.

Formaly JAFO now Dan W. of Crawfordville Fl. About 25 miles south of Tallahassee for those not familiar.

I reckon I'm lucky, I dont have to work to pay the bills so I forge strictly for myself and my wife. I will offer to make something for a friend or family member if they can catch me in the right mood
Most of the stuff I forge I just throw in a pile and take to our 1814 Living History events and put on a trade blanket. I've been known to trade tent stakes for a string of beads for my wife, a forged knife for a set of buckskin leggings, etc....

Are you using charcoal briquets or hardwood charcoal?
Stay away from the briquets.
I have used seasoned hardwood chunks as well as hardwood charcoal and there is a thread here about using shelled corn