primtechsmith

never argue with a woman...she's always right... Peyton

Being in the south where humidity never sleeps there always seems to be a problem with mosquitoes. They need water to facilitate more of these blood suckers and it seems the slack tub is a perfect place for them. I usually put a drop or two of cutting oil in there. It works okay. But it does not kill them off completely. I am scared to do more than that because I may jeopardize the quenching qualities of the slack tub itself. How do you keep the swarm out of your slack tub? Peyton

My parents are both engineers. So for me growing up fabricated steel was hypothetical to me. I only knew them by the drawings they worked on... Now being older and more able to grasp the "real world" I see the smith in every part of daily life. I am reminded a lot of thinking into some of these old tools, machinery, and buildings to see the smith there in the shadows creating opportunity for all other trades. From the saw that cut the tree, to the chain that pulled it from the forest, to the hammer and nails used to build the home. To the kitchen where meals were prepared using iron implements...This can go on, and on. The smith created the machines to create better machines that are faster and more accurate. It is hard for me to wrap my brain around the influences of the blacksmith from the bronze age up through the industrial revolution, and now. A trade of artistic contrast, rather than pure necessity. I hope this does not make anyone "lose their temper", but I must "forge a head"! Peyton

Jeremy no worries! I had a poor description of the torch! Peyton

That is exactly what I am talking about. I have a very poor description above. I have seen many for sale with soldering irons and hooks on the torch to hole the iron in the heat...Thank you for pin pointing the tool at hand. Peyton

It is tough living in a town or city limits where homes are plentiful and land is scarce. And usually when in town limits there are restrictions on things like open fires. How is it some of you "neighborhood smiths" get around the restrictions and limitations? And the irritable neighbor? Peyton

I have seen quite a few of these old blow torches for sale in antique shops, flea markets, and ebay. The thing is that I have seen stuff that says they run on gasoline, kerosine, or alcohol. How can I tell the difference between them? I wouild hate to put the wrong fuel in one and have it ruin the torch, or me, or the shop. Anybody know any insider tricks on telling which torch burns what fuel? Peyton

It is funny to see the prices of some of these things. But one thing is for sure. They are worth only what someone will pay for it. Maybe not me or you, but someone is going to walk up on it and say "my grandfather had a pair just like that!" And the dealer will make the sale. Peyton

Looks like you are well on your way! Nice anvil. You will find this place to be extremely helpful in all facets of the trade from tooling to project ideas. Welcome to the party! Peyton

I am all up for a good muddy game! some of the most fun I have ever had was playing in the rain and mud! Thanks for the post Strine! :-) Peyton

Here are my anvils. They are just a fraction of the size, and all fit in the top of my box! Peyton You guys have any of these things? I am starting to collect them. I know these were usually salesman samples given out, or souvenirs from events...

yeah. no matter how nice you try to be you get assassinated!!! Peyton Don't get angry ya'll. I am joking!

You know speaking of worn out hammers. I have seen a lot of smiths using a cast iron/steel hammer. These have also come across my sight in some recent antique adventures. They looked very worn out. Almost like a mushroomed punch or chisel. Jr thanks for the picture. I am a sucker for pictures! Peyton

Thank you Mike. I stand corrected.

Well put Jr. I hope this thread reaches all corners of this forum!

Good point. There were some pictures taken. I will see what I can come up with... Peyton

It was a great day Saturday for a gathering. Great weather. Great place. Great everything. There were some really nice tailgaters selling numerous anvils, swage blocks, tongs, hammers, vices...etc We had 5 people go for the big prize money. The morning session was Dale Morse, Glen Bryant, and...me. The afternoon session was David Tucciarone, and Mike Tanner. We all gathered around and voted by secret ballot to find the winners and this is how it turned out: 1st: David Tucciarone 2nd: Dale Morse 3rd: Mike Tanner The results shocked a lot of people. Dale Morse has studied in Italy, England, and Germany. This guy is the real deal. And many people turned down the invite because they knew of his skill, and did not want to lose to this guy. David pulled out the upset win getting the most votes to become the winner of the First Annual Challenge. He is also a professional smith with a shop in Rustburg Va, and also teaches some courses at the John C. Campbell School in NC. Mike Tanner(yesteryearforge) has also been working around the anvil for close to 25 years on and off as a hobby. And had a great showing. 1st-3rd was seperated by only a handful of votes. Was extremely close!!! I also got to meet Jeremiah. He is a new member here on the forum, and joined the Old Dominion Blacksmith Association. He drove 4 1/2 hours to hang out. Awesome! We will be doing this again next year. So if anybody out in cybersmith land wants info on the organization, or the challenge just let me know, or check out the website. www.odbsa.com A special thank you needs to go out to Danny Ward who owns and runs the "Danny Ward Horseshoeing School" in Martinsville Va. First class place, with a first class host. His hospitality was a key factor in the success of Saturday's event. Thank you to him, and all who participated, and showed up to watch!!! Peyton Anybody out there who was there and wants to add anything that I missed please do so!

I draw a lot too. For me I try and draw out the basic form of the piece. I heard a fellow smith say that you need to be able to draw out the silhouette of what you want to make. I can not draw to save my life but the more I do it the more okay it becomes. For me the actual drawing of the piece helps me visualize the steps needed to create the desired look, than to want to put a frame around it and hang it on a wall. I also take lots of photos of things I think are cool, and try to use those as my drawings. Now if I could only forge as much as I draw... Peyton

Show us how you store your chisels and punches. Peyton

Here are a few photos of how swage blocks were sitting in some of the "tourist smithys" I have seen.. Peyton

nice job. Peyton

Here are some vices I have seen in my travels. Peyton

I do not have an anvil....I just use one of yesteryearforge's. But I do have some pictures of other people's anvils! Peyton

Maybe the problem will resolve itself. There are many ant colonies in the rain forest that travel into different areas and exploit the food supply, then move on to the next place. I suppose it is possible for the lizards to move on when there is no adequate food resources available. You could be mean and just kill them off. Survival of the fittest says those that make poor decisions will not live to breed the next generation. You would be doing the lizards a favor for not having house broken lizard generations running around! I wish you the best of luck with whatever you decide to do. For those lizard lovers out there do not get all bent out of shape. I was just joking, and after all they are just lizards! HA! ;-) Peyton

I forgot to add that in. The pritchel hole did look drilled. Peyton