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George Geist

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Posts posted by George Geist

    S7 hot fit tongs

    in Farriers and Horse stuff

    Posted

    Maybe so, I don't look at the trades as separate like a lot of people do. Not every Blacksmith shoes horses but every Horseshoer is a Blacksmith. Is a specialty within the trade.

    Many innovative ideas and inventions we take for granted came from the brains of Blacksmiths over the centuries. In many cases they invented themselves out of work.

    Horseshoers..... well, not quite so much. Why does everybody use side clips on front shoes? Why does everybody use Kerkhart shoes? The list goes on and on with the same answer. Cause it's what everybody else is doing. Even the word, The word "Farrier" didn't come into common American parlance before the 1970's Why do you guys all call yourselves that?

    Come on guys, I know I'm poking a hornets nest. Who wants to play?:D

    George

    S7 hot fit tongs

    in Farriers and Horse stuff

    Posted

    On 3/1/2018 at 1:59 AM, swedefiddle said:

     I can't see why so many people would play "Follow the Leader". Just askin', not wanting a fight.

    Don't worry, I'll stir the pot for you.

    You stumbled upon something about horseshoers. They're copycats. Biggest ones I know. The whole so called "Rugged Individualist" and " Independent" labels they wear with pride are a myth. Truth is most of them have never had an original idea in their lives and will copy one another right down to the style of business cards.

    Go ahead guys, fire away:P

    George

    Powerfist anvils

    in Anvils, Swage Blocks, and Mandrels

    Posted

    On 1/24/2018 at 8:20 PM, bigb said:

    I'm no expert on anvils but I may be an expert on looking for one as I've been watching CL for a couple years now. I have a nice Swedish anvil that I got for $150 but only 65 lbs, my 112 lb Mousehole is very, very rough and I'd like to replace it with a nicer one someday but if nothing comes up I am thinking about the NC Tool Cavalry anvil. It sells for $440 and from what I have read seems like very good quality. Powerfist on the other hand has some sketchy reviews and QC seems poor with inconsistency from anvil to anvil . A Google search brings up a thread about them here on IFI, the consensus seems they are cast iron and they don't seem too knowledgeable on their website. I would rather buy something made here from a company that has been around and knows what they are doing, NC tool anvils are made  in North Carolina.

     

     

     

    There are plenty of decent American made anvils out there. NC is a poor excuse for a Horseshoers anvil and just barely out of the ASO class.

    Rather than be redundant I'll refer you to this thread:

     

    George

    New School to Open

    in Blacksmithing, General Discussion

    Posted

    That place has been around for a long time. Was an old railroad shop if I remember correctly. They've been trying to figure out what to do with it for at least 20 years now as yours truly looked into the place back in the '90s.

    Biggest problem is the location. Johnstown is an impoverished, depressed, rust belt town that died with the steel mill. It has no real hope of recovery. If somebody out there wants to try a school while there are already plenty of them in better places, best of luck to them.

    George

    Hay Budden

    in Anvil Reviews by brand

    Posted

    12 hours ago, Josh England said:

     The face is hard. So hard that my machinist buddy that I took it to, to clean up the face, went through two diamond flywheel bits on his milling machine,
     

    :o:o:o

    I think it's stuff like this that keeps the alcoholism rate in this trade very high:rolleyes:

    George

    American Legacy Firearms

    in Gunsmithing, Muskets, Flintlocks etc

    Posted

    I'd say commemoratives are really a world unto themselves. Like any other form of art, investing in them is hit and miss. Sometimes they appreciate. Sometimes they don't. 

    The Blacksmith rifle is one that I'd wager most folks engaged in the trade would probably buy to keep so future value isn't really a high priority to most of them.

    George

    Can you tell

    in Blacksmithing, General Discussion

    Posted

    On 11/20/2017 at 11:19 AM, Zeroclick said:

    the guest said he was teaching a class. With one guy attending and he said within 10 mins of forging he could tell that this guy was never going to be able to go professional.

    To a large extent I think so for this reason. I can't remember the name of it but I saw some years ago a movie about Beethoven. In one scene he was giving a piano lesson to a student. After the student finished playing a piece Beethoven told him I think you need to find another occupation. Music is not for you. The student got angry and asked how he could say that especially being deaf and unable to even hear what he played? Beethoven then said what I thought the best line in the film. He said " I can't hear but i CAN see, and I see you have no passion"! "If you have no passion for what you do you'll never be good at it and you're wasting your time"!

    I think this applies to the trade as well. You gotta love it. It's a lifestyle first and foremost. It's not what you do it's what you are.        If you don't have that connection or see it as a business with a buck to be made, definitely find something else. You won't last regardless of talent level.   

    On 11/20/2017 at 7:49 PM, John McPherson said:

    There are those that strive for technical perfection, art for art's sake, etc.  Slavish attention to historical accuracy, period methods and tooling, endless study and cataloging of examples. And go broke doing it, or just get frustrated because no one "recognizes their Genius" and quit.

    There are those that take one or two classes, buy $20K of tools, convert their garage, copy someone else's stuff from a website, set up at one show, and wonder why they are not making six figures already because no one wants to buy their lifeless imitations of art.

    And then there are the bozos that mutilate (way too heavy to be historically accurate) bar stock in a forge to give it that 'Old Timey' look,  MIG weld (poorly), plasma cut, drill all the holes with a drill press, and huckster $10K of dubious historical accuracy items at weekend shows. Every month. For twenty years. MIG welded squirrel cookers, anyone? ("Got a hunnert of em, jest like Johnny Reb used on th' march.")

    LOL! Only in America!

    George

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