Ian

Hmmmm, I've got some stuff in the pipeline as far as photo's of other Smiths workshops go, and as far as shots of my own stuff goes, well as soon as I remember to bring my camera and can get a few minutes online again I'll try and post some stuff either here or over in the gallery. Just so you all know I'm currently looking around to get a laptop (yes I know I've said that before but I've finally saved enough money for one, I hope) which means I can work more stuff up as I go. I'm only online at the moment thanks to the good graces of Uncy Chop Chop (AKA Chopper, AKA Dale) so until I get that sorted I'm not going to bust a gut nicking all his free computer time (he uses it as well you know ) Bear with me folks, things are coming along. In the meantime pester Glenn, AKA Ntech, he HAS got a few reports up his sleeve.... By the way here's a picture of Strine demoing at Gulf Station to keep you all ticking over (told you he really did look like that ) EDIT: As the proud owner of a brand new Dell Ispiron 6400 laptop (YES I BLUMMIN WELL BOUGHT ONE!!!!) I finally got round to posting some of the work I've been doing here in Oz under the guidance of Chopper over in the gallery, just look for my name. The ashtrays and fleur de lees stuff is a commission the fish tail scroll work is for a towel rail come shelf for Choppers other half ( the wonderful Sue) Hope you all like them

greeting's boys and girls! Okay, okay, I know.... everyone is wanting to know what the heck I've been up to since I landed down under so I'm taking the spare two minutes I DO have to myself today to post a quick update on all things Antipodean. So far... I've found meself both: a) accomodation and, employment. I've met aproximately another 10 to 20 Part and Full time Smith's over here including (Of course) Chopper and Strine from Iforgeirons own pages and some other guys (From the A.B.A and from the historical museum at Mont De Lancy)... I've taken a xxxx of a lot of photographs of Victoria, and Melbourne in particular. I've got shots of Chopper's forge and his various projects.... I've got shots of our trip over to meet the Boys from the A.B.A. at Bundura Park ('The Barn')...including some strange ones of Strine (the way his face blurs in a camera's view finder isn't thanks to photo shop, it's how he actually looks ) I've got photo's of my trips over to Mont De lancy and Oskar's work-shops sessions there... I've also got shot's of my own works in progress. YUP! I'm actually getting paid by someone to Smith In a few weeks time I'll be heading up towards Queensland for the 'Hot Iron Muster'... hosted by Alan Ball and his wife. I can do that because I saved my pennies and cents and bought myself a little camper van, which Uncy Chop Chop christened 'The Bumble Bee'. Now that I have accomodation AND transport sorted my next goal is to FINALLY get meself a ruddy laptop so I can try and get all the guff (Ahem! Sorry... EDUCATIONAL and INSPIRATIONAL information) into you the viewing publics sweaty palms.... All I ask is for another pair of hands and a swiss bank account... So keep watching this space (it does tricks)

I'm a big fan of the great outdoors, always have been in fact and one of the lovliest places in the UK is the area around Loch Lomond in Scotland.... Myself and a good friend of mine were pottering around the eastern side of the loch in my mates old Landrover (a 4x4 jeep type vehicle). This thing was built like the proverbial tank and it had a huge steel framed luggage rack on the roof that all our camping gear was lashed onto. We intended to drive up to the hotel thats at the end of the road on that side of the lake and then hike/camp around the 15 miles of the shore where there isn't any road. It was getting towards dusk and we were in serious need of a pint so my mate Roy was being a tad heavy with the old right boot. As we came leaping over the brow of a small hill doing around seventy miles an hour the spotlamps lit up a HUGE Deer smack bang in the centre of the road. Cue pandemonium as old Roy tried to both brake, avoid the Deer, and convert to Allah, Odin or any Deity who could magically remove the 200lb roadblock in front of us. Needless to say none of them did and we hit the unfortunate animal at about 50 mph with an almighty bang! Both of us had instinctively ducked (images of sharp pointy antlers coming through the windscreen will do that for you) and when we sheepishly stuck our heads out for a look there was no sign of the Deer at all in the road in front of us. Nor, when we got out to look, was there any sign of it behind us either. Now they come pretty tough in Scotland but both of us could see the huge dent in the Landrovers bull bar and we were certain that the said Deer must surely now be very much an ex-deer. We looked through all the hedgerows for a hundred feet in all directions, there was nothing, no blood trails, no tufts of fur, no tracks, our Deer had simply vanished.... or so we thought. Thoroughly perplexed and slighty perturbed we set off again for the hotel, now in need of somthing a little stronger than a beer. About ten minutes later just as we were pulling into the Hotel car park all hell broke loose from the roof of the Range Rover. Bambi's bigger brother, it seems, had been thrown into the air all right, and had landed smack bang in the roof rack of the 4x4. Out like a light. The breeze as we continued must have helped revive him some because he was now well and truly awake, and well and truly browned off at : a) Being run over by a couple of Halfwits from Yorkshire, and being stuck in a roof rack among all our camping gear. We just stood there in awe with our jaws hanging open as he completley trashed the roof rack and all our gear before eventually bouncing off the bonnet with a mad glint in his eyes. Both of us legged it into the Hotel to watch what the mad Moose would do next. After eyeing up the Range Rover he finally seemed satisfied that there wasn't anyone he could actually KILL for causing all his woes and stalked off into the woods, never to be seen by us again. The Scotsman who owned the place had joined us at the window by then... his dry remark capped it for us. "Yea did'nae hit 'im hard enough then boys?

You know, as a bloke thats done a little bit of silverworking I really did like that, I'd have a crack at it myself. Most rings are cast these days and to see an old silver coin used did me good, ingenuity in action :D

Welcome to the site! Ask questions, and don't be suprised when you get ten different answers, offer up your own experiences, the mistakes are always fun to read (I know I've dropped some real clangers) but mostly have fun beating the stuffing out of some iron. This place is fast becoming THE place to educate yourself about an old and noble craft. Enjoy it. :D