chyancarrek

This speaks more to frustration with that ignorance - not that the ignorance has any import. It's blacksmithing - we're fundamental to nothing other than an aesthetic. It's become an esoteric craft and we perform it as a luxury to society not a necessity. That folk don't have a dead-on handle on what it entails shouldn't be the basis for taking offense. Let them argue - why participate? We know what we're doing and why - what makes other's perception of it so important? I've found most people are more than happy to come away with a newly corrected perspective. Those that aren't - that's ok too - it's their choice.

I always get a kick out of this discussion What's it matter what someone thinks before they ask you a question? If you're in a position to provide some insight into our world then by all means share the knowledge, but why be offended if they have a misperception of what it is we do? There's no shortage of that - you'll find it in every profession. Myself, I'm awfully glad that there are some quality folk willing to crawl under my horses and do the really difficult job of keeping their feet healthy - if somebody makes a mistake in distinction and thinks that's what I do - I take it as a compliment. I worked with a farrier at the Ft Vancouver Natl Historic site and he said something I'll always remember - " Farriers at least know something about blacksmithing - blacksmith's don't know squat about shoeing horses" (of course he didn't use the word squat). He happened to be one of the most talented smiths there. I think we need to be a little more concerned that some kids don't know where milk or vegetables really come from . . .

I only use reclaimed materials for my work (both metal and wood) so I've got a pretty good network o' folk who give me a heads-up if they're scrapping something out. That being said, I still end up with a large amount of stuff I can't use or brought home that fell into the "I'm gonna use that someday" category so I keep a box under the bench in my shop for all the odds & ends then all my other metal is sorted onto pallets.When it's time for the scrap yard I call up my buddy with his dump-box truck, load it up with my forklift, and it's off we go. I cover gas and lunch and my buddy's a happy guy. Anything non-ferrous goes into the furnace and cast into ingots for later use.

Hey Simmonds, I got a buddy of mine in Castle Rock Wa who makes tongs for a living and buys from Chehalis on a regular basis. His website is: gstongs.com. His contact info is on there - shoot him an email and he'd be able to give you a heads-up on the quality. My name is Neil, tell him I said to give him a shout.

We may as well to try and define beauty. . . It's subjective. I work with a bronze sculptor who being in his eighties now has made his art for almost 60 years. We've had this discussion more times than I can count and he always comes back to . . . "I've never defined art, you can make distinctions but you can't define it". "Come to what's comfortable for you - leave it at that". For myself, artists are people who have something to say . . . a message to convey and they choose a medium to deliver it. A Craftsman takes their chosen trade and blends passion for the work with the highest degree of skill and attention to the details of the process. I consider myself a "craftsman becoming" - I have nothing to say through my work - I follow more the sentiment of William Morris - " Have nothing n your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful" Works for me . . .

I just lay down concrete board around my hot drop areas when I'm doing a demo in a parking lot, wooden floor or on grass the host doesn't want burned. I don't worry about the rest o' the areas where hot drop isn't a problem. Chasing an errant piece and retrieving it quick enough won't present a fire hazard.

Good hammerin' Larry! Time on the tools . . . always makes the difference!

Chy An Carrek Metal Arts is the name of my business. It's pronounced "shun-caruk" My family comes from Cornwall England and I had my relatives there translate the native language there (Cornish) to fit. It means "Home next to the stone" - I chose that because my house and shop sit on top of a rock bluff overlooking an amazing view.

Hey Frosty, I played around with it about a year ago and it's a great little program. Very easy to use - really aimed at folks who are CAD challenged (like me). I used it to create a 3D model of my shop then placed it in Google Earth on my property then wrapped a picture of the outside of the shop around it. Worked pretty well for a freebie. Not sure how it would work as a modeling program for smaller pieces - I've never output anything from it.

6 inch Columbian with custom made bolt-down stand/table combo. Got it in trade for work from the sculptor I work with.

200 lb Trenton Paid $500 for it in 1998 - Been a great anvil - Excellent face and edges, no dish and good rebound

It'd be great to see pics of it as you work on it! What are you going to use if for?

A buddy forwarded this to me - don't know if this one's been making the rounds but I thought I'd post it. So, any thoughts as to why'd you'd make this? Advertisement - promotion - a gift for that special someone - cuz ya could? Whatever the reason - it looks to be a quality job!

Well, shoot . . . Anyone can see that's art! Look how beautifully they've captured the tension of our struggle to maintain balance as we ponder the unknowable universe . . . . . . or it's a door stop . . .

Hey Gobae, Not sure how the insurance regs read in NY but don't count on the fact that your policy NOT mentioning your blacksmithing or other similar activities means that they'll cover any mishap related to it. A friend of mine just went through it when his propane forge caught his small shed shop on fire and his insurance (Farmer's) not only refused to cover it but dropped him like a sack o' spuds. Something about due diligence to inform on his part. He's playing xxxx trying to get new coverage because of the conditions of claim he filed. Them insurance companies is funny critters - for being in the risk business, they sure don't like to take any . . .

Nice Work Don! I like the hold-back idea. My free hand scrolls always come out looking like something out of a Tim Burton movie . . .

It's market season again - here's a few o' the items I have for my booth at the open-air market I sell at.

Hey Farravis, I'm thinking I might have a stick of wrought you can have if you want to try it. I got it from a dismantle of a 19th century fence that got taken out by a car. Given you're in BC and I'm in Washington, shipping wouldn't be too bad. If I remember right the stick is 3/4" - 1" square and about 20 - 30 inches long. I sold a bunch of it at a BS conference a couple years ago and the fellas who bought it really liked working with it. It's rusty and looks like he** but it forges up nice. I just don't do anything with it. Give me a shout if you're interested - I'll go dig around in the ol scrap pile and see if I can find it.

I've always liked a product called Bee-Natural. Beeswax based and they have a great distressed leather re-conditioner that's great. I've been using it on my horse tack for years and it's held up really well

I never got to see any kind o' Dremel . . . My doc came at me with a weird little suction syringe to take the metal out then used a tiny scalpel I swear looked just like a miniature 9 iron and scooped out the rust ring. I guess that's one time when you wouldn't replace your divot . . .

That it was Gary! I had a number of those "poppers" that really got my attention. Luckily none did any damage. It was just so darn easy to forget to purge the bellows if you had a fairly green fire running . . . You're being familiar with that incident I'm thinking you put in some forge time down there. If so, still there?

I used to be an interpretive blacksmith at a National Historic site and we used ceiling mounted double chamber bellows - We'd get gas rising into the chambers if we let the fire idle while we were giving a talk - if we forgot to pull slowly to expel the gas - BAM! It blew one bellows completely free of it's mounts and shattered the frame - we then installed openings in the pipe with a taped on can lid - this gave the pipe of point of least resistance so the lid would blow first. It'll wake you up that's for sure . . .

A friend of mine got into one of those "my husband died and I don't know what to do with his tools" deals. (He was friends with the woman and late husband) Goes out to look at the shop - crumbling down, blacksmith equipment inside getting wet and muddy. My buddy tells her he'll pull it out and help her price it for consideration on being given a good deal to buy the whole lot. He spends a weekend getting things pulled and sorted out and the son comes roaring up in his car (after all the work is done) and says that "mom just told me what's going on" - "You're not going to rip her off!" That stuff is worth thousands of dollars!!". Widow tells my friend - " my son's pretty upset - maybe we better let this stuff sit until I talk to him" That was two years ago and according to my buddy it's all still sitting out in the rain. Makes ya wanna cry . . .

Welcome DCL, You've hit on a great site with all sorts o' information and some truly nice folks. Enjoy!

Hey Bruce, I'm located about an hour South of you - 15 mi. East of Woodland. The shredder was in Vancouver Wa. If I had to guess, I'd say when the commercial trucks go through, the scale operator stays on the up and up because he's figuring they know their weight but when a couple o' guys in a pick-up come in, they can fudge the numbers because so many of the sketchy's would never draw attention to themselves by complaining.