Al Stephens

Hi Josh, nice work, you'll have to come up and visit the Athens Forge. Our meeting date for Dec. has been changed to the 3erd Sat. 12/16/17 www.athensforge.com Al

Knots, I switched over about 10 years ago. The only difference I saw was the pilot flame was not as strong. Blows out in a breeze coming through the shop. Al

Ranchmanben, That is a very nice vise. Thanks for sharing , does the cam hold everything tight? Al

To conclude our years focus on knife making Dale Huckabee of Maylene, AL. will be our demonstrator at the Nov. 25 meeting of the Athens Forge. He has been making knives for many years. He is a member of the American Bladesmith Society, ABS, and has achieved the Journeyman rating. Dale will be forging a small blade, with the focus on explaining the criteria of reaching the Journeyman rating. Dale will bring examples of his work and it can be viewed at https://dalehuckabeeknives.weebly.com/ We will have an Iron In The Hat, so bring something nice. Visitors are always welcome, for more info see www.athensforge.com, or Athens Forge on FB.

You might try just bolting down to a heavy sheet of 4'x8' plywood. That will give it a big footprint,so it doesn't dig it self down into the dirt, and give you a solid place to stand. It would also help you figure out right where you want the hammer to sit, to match your work patterns. Concrete pads are real hard to move! Al

Brian, 25 years ago, I quit my job and turned my "hobby", blacksmithing, into my occupation. I've worked for others, but for the last 13 years have only worked for myself. Never missed a meal, always paid my bills on time, been much happier. I'm not taking the credit, I've had a lot of help and support over the years. But blacksmithing can be a profession. Al

Anytime anyone burns something up at our forge meetings it winds up nailed to the wall, as a example to beginners that we all do that. I've always said any smith that said they've never burned anything up will lie about other things also. Al

Judson, thanks for sharing the pic of Bob Valentine' work. The little rams head are very nice, Aus. I don't think I've ever demoed anything smaller than a snail out of 1/4", I'll have to practice and try some of these. Al

Nice work LBS. Here's some lapel or hat pins I made several years ago. The leaf was all forged, the door knocker and latch were mostly file work. Al

Nice buckle C-1, always something to be gained while in the "file zone". For me it's always been patience. Al

Welcome Greg. If you haven't done so you might want to touch base with a local group. Check out alaforge.org. Under the Contact Us, tab you can find other info. Looks like the Bayou group is close to you. If you ever get up north visit us in Athens, 4th Sat. of every month. Al

Great stuff Wicon. The tong ring I never thought of, but will try in the future. Really like the snails and trivets. Thanks for sharing. Al

Gergely, I really like the mushroom and snail. Thanks for sharing. Al

Small stuff is fun and challenging. Nice work everyone. Check out "Miniature Shop Equipment" in everything else. Al

Side effect 29: You spend more time looking for a tool, jig, whatever, you know you had, than it takes to make a new one. Al

Thanks Kevin, the handle is held on with 2 small flat head screws. The heads are in the barrel and are filed off smooth, the treaded ends are filed flush with the handle surface and can not be seen. I've done several of these over the years, tried riveting, and silver shouldering, but was never happy with the results.

The Athens Forge, a member of the AFC will meet sat. Oct 28, at 10 AM. This meeting will be an open forge for members, so bring you material, tools, ideas, problems. If someone can't help with it we'll make something up! Visitors are always welcome, for more info see www.athensforge.com, or Athens Forge on FB.

I've been piddling around with this one for about a week, at the end of the days when the real work was done. Al

Grant, if you are using a"cursive" style, try starting with some soft wire. Write your name on a big sheet of paper, and bend the wire to wire to match. That should show you how to do it with heavier material. Al

Good job, Just Another Biker. Way better than my first forging. Enjoy the journey. Al

Just think about all the basics that have been listed here, and many of them are found in a simple "J " hook. If you start with 3/8" round, have the student forge it square, hammer and stock control. Taper it, flat, or square or square, octagonal, round. Freehand a small rat tail. Bend hook around horn. Cut off. Half face blows for boss. Punch a hole. Twist. Now they have a first day project to be taken home, and used the rest of their lives. Al

My first thought is that by the time you have the work positioned in the tongs and everything locked in place, you won't have enough heat left to get much work done. I would think a simple chain hold down would be much faster and versatile. Al

Nice vise, good repair, should hold up to anything you will ever do in it. I like both of the stands pictured, and also your anvil bases. Al

Very Nice. Very Clean. Thanks for the pic. Al

The Athens Forge a member of the AFC will meet Sat. Sept. 23 at 10 AM. This meeting will focus on materials for knife handles and their decoration. There will be an Iron In The Hat. A special item, a completed knife by Calvin Garland, will be a separate drawing. There will be open forge time for AFC members. Altho this years meeting have been dedicated to knife making, we are a general blacksmithing group and plans are in the works for next years meetings, so bring your ideas and suggestions. Visitors are always welcome, for more info. see www.athensforge.com, or Athens Forge on FB