Culver Creek Hunt Club

19 hours ago, Joe Ringuette said:

Hello fellow Blacksmiths, I was curious if any of you guys would know if there was a place to finance Anvils? I have a small 55lb anvil, it works fine, but now that I am expanding, to different projects, I am finding that it is not enough. Though with 6 kids, and holidays coming up, buying one outright, is not an option. I am a disabled veteran of Iraqi Freedom, and Enduring Freedom, and money is tight. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.

Thank you for your service. Where are you located?

Functional art. beautiful work. 

Very nice work. I like it a lot.

When ever I put in posts, either metal or wood, I try to get the concrete to drain and not form a pocket pool. I usually put post in the hole, place a few inches of stone around the bottom and then add the concrete around the sides. This way any moisture that makes its way down the side of the post can get out an not sit against the post. I am sure the coating provides some protection for the post but I try have some barrier to concrete contact. Bare wood or metal seems to fail quicker when in contact with concrete. 

4 hours ago, Dogsoldat said:

Thanks Culver,   good to know that a random grab off the shelf was a good choice.

I know your right Steve,  just have to find it again so it can be bought x3 ...

I really like the sonic blades in stained water or when on the water dusk to sun up. The second pic has a Colorado blade. They make a bunch of different styles but the main four are the sonic, Colorado, Indiana and Willow leaf in order of decreasing vibration. I like coppers or dark colors in stained water. brass or silver as the water clears and sun is brighter. I am also a big fan of hammered finish (seems only right on a black smith forum) becasue I think it flashes more like natural scales would. 

It is an in line spinner. The blade configuration is of the sonic variety. I know Panther Martin makes that blade and Mepps is a great in line company. I like that youare using a ball bearing swivel on that one in the picture. They can be line twisting sun of a guns on a spinning rig.

What size is the metal that you are workign with? If someone answers machete and you only have 1"x2" x1/4" it won't be much help. 

3 hours ago, Frosty said:

If you use a steel rule, tape, divider, caliper, mic, etc. on steel at the SAME temp the COE will be the same within a few hundred thou.

100%. we never had to correct when measuring long steel items like pipeline or large structural when everything was the same temp. 

For steel steel most used in surveyors tapes.   correction = desired lengthx.0000065(actual temp - 67F)

On 8/24/2016 at 4:33 PM, BIGGUNDOCTOR said:

The .30 cal barrels are probably in the 4140ish alloys. The .22 could be anything-I have an old .22 that has a barrel lined in brass and wrapped in sheet metal. Hamilton boy's rifle, they were giveaway items for selling things like magazine subscriptions.  Barrels are meant to be tough, not hard. 

What brand, and models are they?

 

I would have to do a little cleaning. I can't make out any writing currently because of the crud and rust. Might have time to clean them up a bit over the long weekend. 

That is beautiful. Well done. 

I came across 3 old rifle barrels and partial actions. they are not functioning and are fairly rusted but very usable for metal work. I have a couple ideas to use them in basically a metal sculpture application but was wondering is anyone has used them for anything more practical? One is a 22 caliber and 2 are 30 caliber.

I know this probably won't help the OP since he is across the pond but it may for some in the States. Don't know if I can post this link here (Mod's please remove if I am not supposed to) but i have used this site before and the prices of the leathers on here are reallllly realllly reasonable.

http://store.cyberweld.com/leprcl.html

On 6/9/2016 at 7:00 PM, Jackhammer said:

I only picked electrical engineering because I, maybe childishly, thought it would be more vivid and 'magical', more actual machines moving around. Instead I'm looking at papers and computer screens.

From reading the posts it sounds to me like you are not happy or finding satisfaction with the "design" side of the engineering field. I don't deal with Electrical engineers much, most of my dealings are with mechanical engineers. I see any  engineering  discipline as broken into tow sections. colleges almost always focus on one and that is the design side. The other, and less promoted is the application side. This is usually focused on with the contractors building/installing or the client that is using whatever widget we are talking about. I don't mean this to sound like a dig but based on your responses is seems you have a narrow, "college" view of the opportunities that are out there for engineers. You have pushed your way into a great field, hate to see you bail on it without really looking at all options. 

I wish you luck in whatever direction you choose. 

I am talking about POST graduation employment. Any employment prior to graduation is always a plus and especially if GPA stays up and they show initiative and discipline where they worked they way through school. 

On the comment about changing jobs every few years. I am not certain what other companies look at but I know for a fact that engineering graduates were being told in college that "you are worth more to a company that doesn't have you". That may be true in a boom economy but what it also does is have 30 year old's that have 4-5 employers on their resume and have an income that is inflated above their experience level. You can't even learn all the ins and outs of a company's policies and structure in some of the time they were spending in  a job. As soon as a down turn in the economy starts they are the first o be cut. Highest paid with least experience and a proven history to jump ship. I won't even consider a candidate for a position that  has a resume that doesn't indicate a stable work history. Not worth it for us to invest and train for another company's benefit. 

So where are you located in Upstate?

2 hours ago, jfrost said:

I have just become aware of the unethical mining of precious metals and stones. But I can't seem to find more information regarding, for instance, iron and copper. How can I find out more about how the metals I work with are mined and make sure that I buy ethical or "eco" metals.

Anyone have good info on this?

Wondering if you carry a high level of investigation into all areas of your life about metal? Fabricated consumer products? Cars? In this global commerce era we live in I imagine it is about impossible to isolate the origin of all the raw materials. 

Hope it works out for you. The notch at top of slot is important. or if it creeps out and fold down, dumping laundry on the floor you may end up in the dog house. 

I did something similar for a buddy before I was doing any forging. it was fabricated and was welding lead and extension cord storage but would work as I sketched for a valet hook. Scaled and detailed as you see fit. 

20 minutes ago, rockstar.esq said:

Culver,

Your original post didn't disclose that you conduct any pre-employment testing, particularly as it relates to applicable skills.  Even now, I'm not sure if you're saying that you've got a stack of people who passed the test, or if you're saying that you've got a stack of people who failed the test.

It sounds like you're saying you find some who pass but are nevertheless unemployable due to an attitude or learning deficiency.  It also sounds like you're saying you find some who fail, but might posses the right attitude and learning potential to eventually make up for lacking skills.

If all of that's true, you're actually hiring for different levels of skill, and you're trying much harder than most of the HR folks I've encountered.  I now appreciate that you're working with more knowledge and compassion than you originally revealed.

I don't know if it makes sense to you, but it's desperately frustrating to be an applicant who can't figure out how to penetrate the bureaucracy of HR.  Most firms don't bother with applicable skills testing at all which means that applicants have no opportunity to prove their abilities beyond a resume and cover letter which get six seconds of attention.

Some of our best employees would interview terribly.  Their grammar and spelling are deficient, and they curse enough to make a Marine blush.  None of that matters at all for the job we need them to do.

 

I came from the field. I not a fan of bureaucracy and if it weren't for spell check you wouldn't be able to read my posts....lol.  We are always looking in various region and for various skill sets. It is Construction so it is where the work is. Depending on the region of the country and the staffing requirements of the projects both of your assessments of my comments could be accurate. It really varies with the needs and who is available. You have to be flexible to have the needs of the projects met. We cover Maine to Florida so it can be a little daunting. It is tough to give all an equal shot.. Let me give you a for instance. This isn't skilled craft but I posted two receptionist openings last  week in two different locations. I have 156 resumes for one and 95 for the other. It is about impossible to do a word for word evaluation to even see who should get the skills test. I have resumes with ZERO experience and latterly were a convenient store clerk as experiencing and none of the required software or phone systems. My suggestion to anyone out there is do not submit a resume without a cover letter and spend some time thinking about that first paragraph you will write. I believe it is really won or lost there. To the point and skip all the BS terms like "dynamic". I want a person that can clearly communicate a point. No fancy language needed. The faster the point is made and the more clear, the better the results. Here is how I meet the requirements of the position. 

Couple other tid bits for others that aren't bored of me. Never never leave gaps in employment history that is not explained. Capture multiple postilions with one company showing advancement in one period duration not 2001-2003    then 2003-2005 then 2005-2009. If for same company list  list with ABC company from 2001-2009 and the the positions under it. AVOID the look of multiple jobs. 

Most recent jobs first and don't be afraid to customize what you did on those previous positions to emphasize the skills you think they want for the new job. 

I run into this a lot with entry level engineer candidate and as they move up into their careers. When I got into construction the mentality to move up was "let me do my job the best I can, prove myself and learn the job of the one above me" Then when opportunities came up you were golden. This sometimes meant doing things to learn the new position that were not compensated. I never minded becasue I wasn't doing it for the company directly but for my career. Today the mentality is they want the promotions based on time on the job and expect to be trained once in the new position. It's a new world out there.   

If you have confidence in your ability and there is an opportunity to take a position where you can get experience but it is less money that you are 'worth" , if you can swing it, take it. Especially if their is upward advancement opportunity. It is tough but Leave the pride at home. I remember one of the biggest fights I ever go into with my wife. I took a promotion to supervision. great promotion. cost me $25,000 a year. In a little over a year I was back even but I was able to get onto a different career ladder. One with a much higher ceiling. 

It's still a tough market out there. If this economy take off in the US again I really don't think the current skilled trade numbers will support it. 

14 minutes ago, rockstar.esq said:

Culver,

I can understand how frustrating it must be to have hundreds of people who simply won't follow your instructions.  There's a job on offer, and the company sets the terms for how that process takes shape.  It makes sense that someone who stares at resume's full time is bound to become a connoisseur of the medium.

Working off what you wrote, you seem to be implying that a less qualified candidate who follows HR's directions better is more likely to get the job than a more qualified candidate who didn't format the information per HR's directions.  Basically the opportunity  is controlled by how easy the applicant is on the gatekeeper.  Shouldn't, the opportunity should go to the applicant who's best for the job? 

If HR wants to get the best qualified candidates, wouldn't applicable skills testing provide a uniform and easy to rank hierarchy among applicants?  People who don't follow instructions won't test well, and won't waste your time either.  It's also provably unbiased because you could show that everyone got the same questions and the same opportunity.

Honestly, if the resume system was even halfway good, then HR professionals should be able to establish a universal template for everyone to use.  I suspect that hasn't happened because it would doubtlessly make their job even more boring.

We strive for the best candidate for any position that is open. Reality being what it is you may not get enough "qualified" applicants for the number of positions and it happens frequently.  The next logical step is to identify the next level of candidate that has promise and I certainly am more successful with candidates that have demonstrated their ability to read, understand, take direction and execute. This type of candidate has proven the best to actually teach the skills required. We sue a very similar approach to Identify candidates for the Apprentice programs. It seems that the younger and unattached an apprentice candidate is the less likely they will succeed. 

All candidate for us go through a pre-employemnt drug screening, skills assessment test or multiple tests in the case of the welders. Even the apprentices go though basic testing to assess the abilities such as basic math, fractions and reading a ruler, to name a few. The assessment is only a portion of the process. I am sure you have some across the type of employees that may have the best knowledge and skill set going but can not function safely, productively or with the attention to detail that puts out a quality product for whatever reason. There are people that carry a chip and are just down right disruptive to the crew setting. Even with all the knowledge in the world about any skill set, when I supervised personnel I would rather take the person that can be taught over that disruption. 

It seems as though you are suggesting some universal "form" as opposed to a resume. I would have no desire to entertain that. The resume and even more so the cover letter is one of the most telling things about an applicant. I guess I am trying to make my life easier, if "easier" is having good employees.  I feel that if a person won't take the time to follow the directions, give clear explanation of their understanding and at least make the effort to compose them specifically for the posting you have put up, how much effort are they likely to exert for you once they have the job? As I tried to convey above, skill set in not everything and in many cases it may not even be the most important. 

41 minutes ago, rockstar.esq said:

Human Resources.  The personification of the gatekeeper mentality in every business.  I have a theory that our cycle of decline will correspond fairly directly with the proliferation of HR practices in business.  They have definitely promoted the education as proxy for suitability nonsense while resisting any attempts to promote applicable skills testing.  They'd rather spend 6 seconds per resume looking for composition suiting their editorial bias because job placement is "an art" you can't outsource to a scantron machine.  Composing a resume has absolutely nothing to do with the relevant skills for most careers.  If you're not willing to test the merits of the resume's claims, there's no protection against fraud.  At some point, intentionally not checking becomes it's own form of fraud.

 

I deal with hundreds of resumes a day. Some things that are looked for by me are stable work record, relevant/comparable experience and meeting the basic requirements to the posted position. Every Ad I have out there requests a cover letter be included to explain how their experience meets the requirements or explain any area that does not meet them. 80% of the resumes I receive to not include the requested cover letter and many of the ones that I do a boiler plate and include topics about how they have always wanted to be a banking clerk while applying for a receptionist position. It is very refreshing to get a resume that, while maybe lacking in the required experience, shows their ability to understand the request and actually fulfill it. Let's face it. No matter what company you go to work for in any industry, there is a learning curve to understand the procedures. I really look for a candidate with the right attitude, one that has a desire to learn and one with a demonstrated work ethic. I don't have a problem teaching anyone the job, but you have to have a willing pupil with the basic aptitude. 

I am in charge of all the labor for a large Mechanical Contractor. I see many of the same thing mentioned in here. Our projects are longer duration. 2-4 years so the time to get an apprentice pipefitter or plumber through the program usually doesn't run to far over for us. Finding individuals to get into the program hasn't been an issue. Finding the ones that will stick with it and actually show up for work and put forth the effort is. In our 4 year program I have pretty good luck if I can get them into year 3. We are an East coast US company so our wages vary based on the region. In the Northern Mid-Atlantic region a level 1 Apprentice (8 level@ 1,000 hours each for a 4 year program) makes 50% of Journeyman wages. That is starting out at $17 an hour with raises every 1000 hours (approx 6 months), At the end of the program the rate is $34. We have another level of skilled craft that requires another year as a Journeyman that adds $4  and hour more. I have 23 year olds making $38 an hour. That is just shy of $80,000 a year without any Over Time. And I struggle gettign them to show up for work. Makes me wanna scream. Oh, and we pay for their formal class room training and their books. 144 hours of classroom instruction a year. 

Pipe Welders is where I see the biggest deficit in the trades we deal with. I can shake a tree and get a plate, sheetmetal or structural welder (no offense to anyone), but the pipe welding numbers are sorely lacking. 

34 minutes ago, Charles R. Stevens said:

Originally from Arizona, elk make a heck of a dent in truck, don't even want to see what a moose dose. 

The elk and dear around Oklahoma are puny

I know three EMT's in Main and New Hampshire. The unpublished horror of hitting a moose is when you actually survive the collision. In a car, many times you take out the legs and it ends up coming through the windshield to you. You usually end up killed or pinned. The crash is usually fatal to the moose hit like that and the dead moose, that has you now pinned in the seat, loses body temp. The thousands of ticks that are on them start looking for the next warmest thing. One guess what that next warmest thing is? I can't imagine being pinned and having that army of ticks crawling on me and burrowing in while I wait for rescue.

I am a manager for a Construction company, Surveyor by trade. Hunting, fishing and bad golf are a couple of my other hobbies. I enjoy hobby Carpentry work and take on some side work doing home renovations, which could get much bigger for me, but I just don't want to take the leap.