Gobae

Yes, I'd already been to his site before I asked here. The reason why I prefered to ask here is to get opinions from end-viewers to see what they thought of the DVD's.

I was looking at these DVD's Forging a Viking Bearded Axe http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006OBC5D4/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=5T6E8LBDPU1X&coliid=I1C5DD5K0IJV5Z Forging a Viking-Age Broad Axe http://www.amazon.com/Forging-Viking-Age-Broad-Axe-Austin/dp/B00PW9WDKE/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1422470187&sr=1-1&keywords=forging+a+viking-age+broad+axe Does anyone have experience with them? Is there a significant difference between the two processes, such that having both is helpful? Are there any other Axe making tutorials that are better? Thanks!

Depends on the anvil, and what's actually reverberating. It didn't do much for mine (a PW), while placing a magnet under the tail did wonders.

Nope, no problems at all. The amount of noise/smoke I make when smithing isn't any more than when my neighbors have a party, burn wood in their stove/fireplace or let their dogs bark incessantly so both "live and let live".

Only if you rinse your pipes with vinegar (or some other acid) to release it and then drink. Which is where it becomes a problem with cooking. If you're cooking an acidic food the oxides are released from the copper and enter your food.

I'm merely trying to correct inaccurate information.

The copper is not the issue it's constant exposure to copper oxides. (The green stuff)

I've seen the same done with RR spikes. The spike head was folded back and welded to give enough mass to make a ladle.

Yes, very true. They don't necessarily do better in the strength category, but the girls tend to be more willing to listen & be diligent and therefore come out ahead. Many of the boys come up with excuses for their poor work ("I wanted it to look rough/rustic/Orcish", etc) instead of practicing.

We just use a swage block and round stock to form them. Once you get some practice it's pretty quick; my wife can make around 200-250 nail rings and hour. Initially we tried to protect the nail from marks by lining the swage with a piece of copper sheet, but the nails are often harder than the block and the round stock so marring is minimal. Final sizing is done at the time of sale with a standard ring sizer.

My wife usually tells her students "HIT it! Don't scare it!"

Oh, I almost forgot; "Iron for the Eagles: The Iron Industry in Roman Britain" by David Sim & Isabel Ridge

Yeah, the question is pretty broad, "Ancient" means a lot of things to different people. But here's some 'Celtic' and Migration era stuff I've found helpful. "The Mästermyr Find: A Viking Age Tool Chest from Gotland" by Greta Arwidsson & Gosta Berg "Early Irish Ironworking" by B.G. Scott "Pagan Celtic Ireland" by Barry Raftery "The Celtic Sword" by Radomir Pleiner "Werkzeug und Gerät aus dem Oppidum von Manching" by Gerhard Jacobi "Celtic Britain and Ireland, Ad 200-800: The Myth of the Dark Ages" by Lloyd Robert Laing & Jennifer Laing Some of these dive really heavy into the archaeological metallurgy side of things (which you may or may not find interesting too), while others are general history books that happen to a chapter or two on metal/iron working.

You could turn it into a flute. http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-57543385-1/requiem-for-lives-lost-making-music-from-mexicos-guns/

Yes, technically it is a fob. Though many people refer to the whole thing (ring and fob) as a key-ring.

And although it may seem like a no-brainer, be friendly and acknowledge people as they come up. You'd be surprised at how many crafters/vendors sit down, read, text or otherwise ignore customers. Even having a disinterested or bored look on your face sends a real strong signal that you don't care about them. It's a lot of emotional work to stay pleasant and focused all day long but you'll need to in order to get the event to pay off. Remember the rule of thumb for a successful craft fair is that at the end of the day your table fee should represent no more than 10% of your gross take for the event. But back to key rings. We often cut apart interesting sections of failed projects to make them instead of making them from scratch. No two are alike, and you can end up with more variety than trying to design something.

Absolutely true! I would love to see a research paper or book on how available tools have affected design throughout the ages. I would say it plays a larger part than most artists/designers admit; especially once that limitation becomes "tradition".

Nope not at all. I've had plenty of experience CAD programs but I find them far too time consuming for simple projects. It's more a matter of the "right tool for the job".

Since I do like to do reproduction work, for me it's usually the other way around. Usually the client shows up with sketches or photos from archaeological digs and I make "copies". Even when I do have to make a presentation to a client I typically just use sketches. The learning curve is just too steep on most drawing programs to bother with; especially given the limited number of times I'd use it.

Nope, not when it's a hobby. You're paying an "opportunity cost" (just as with everything you do), but that doesn't necessarily mean literal cash.

It doesn't have to take money to get into blacksmithing. Bellows wood - scrap Bellows leather - from the deer from last hunting season Tuyere - clay from local swamp Anvil - block of scrap Hammers - scrap Stock - scrap & smelted magnetite and/or geothite (also from local swamp) Cost $0

Abosultely!!

I've seen this mentioned a number of times but no one I've seen has ever sourced it. Do you have the actual source by chance?

If you want a career in blacksmithing take BUSINESS classes in college! While it may seem like a good idea to know how to blacksmith the bulk of a SUCCESSFUL blacksmithing business has NOTHING to do with blacksmithing. In fact it has so little to do with blacksmithing that I quit the smithing business I had to go back working full time with computers. Instead I enjoying blacksmithing as a hobby instead of dealing with it as part of the xxxx of running a business. IMO it's far better to work for ANYBODY ELSE and let your extra cash support smithing as a hobby rather than to prostituting yourself out at craft shows and Renaissance Faires hoping to support yourself (and/or a family).

A fellow Iron Age Celtic re-enactor has contacts with some of the participants that took part in that show. According to them (the participants) the BBC has no plans to release a DVD copy of that broadcast. Since it is aired regularly on the History Channel (albeit at very odd hours) and given that there is no official edition available, I decided to DVR the program, edit out the commercials, and burn my own copy. Oh, BTW, a retrospective of the 1978 living history experiment was broadcast on the BBC and can be found on YouTube "Living in the Past"