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I Forge Iron

P. Bedard

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Posts posted by P. Bedard

  1. Nash and sons?
    You don't often see those anvils without a lot of damage. I think I read on here that the larger ones were used in ship years and obviously lead a hard life.
    The step over the flat horn is just the style of anvil.
    All the best
    Andy


    Hey Andy.
    I've never seen a Nash & sons anvil like this though. Brooks and Cooper made one, but mine definitely says "&sons" on it.
    Not that it matters much, I'm just curious.
    Thanks for the suggestion!
  2. Hey all!
    I bought this anvil about 2years ago from a friend in the UK. Loved it ever since.
    However, I'm still not sure why the second step is there.
    My friend and teacher, who has been a full time, professional Blacksmith for over 40 years, says he's never seen one like this either.
    Hopefully someone can shed a bit of light on it.

    ThZNl0Z.jpg


  3. Cut them off a 1/4" from the bottom! (for real---not a joke.)

    A lot of the ones I've seen in European medieval history were lapped and forge welded (easier with real wrought iron) the ones that were not looked like they were lower grade and so they didn't care about the seam so much.

    The Medieval ones were very often forge welded it's true. I'm making replicas of Anglo Saxon and Viking age spear heads though. Those were very rarely welded (only two examples I can think of offhand and those were VERY high quality. Literally, Ferrari's of the Spearhead world at the time).
    But yes, I should start cutting them, just to make em look better.
    Thanks!
  4. Hey all.
    I had a few requests for spearheads, so it gave me the incentive I needed to finish a tool to help me form the sockets.
    However I cannot for the life of me, get the XXXXXX sockets to line up. They have that little gap at the bottom. And I can't seem to do anything to change that.
    Looking at period examples of spearheads, you do see this, however, you do see many of them that line up laser beam straight too!
    So, if anyone has any suggestions as to how I can get these things looking a bit neater, I'd love to hear them!

    Socket tool;
    002-19.jpg

    Smaller spearhead (for a throwing spear);
    001-13.jpg

    Two smaller ones and a longer one (Tall one is Viking era, the original is in the London museum)
    003-12.jpg

    Thanks for looking!


  5. Maybe you need to pitch these outside of Winnipeg. You do nice work, you should get paid appropriately for it. Don't let the Wal-Mart effect bring you down. Like said earlier, you just need the right buyer. Yes, finding them may be a little work, but it will be worth it. Cruise the Business Side forum threads for suggestions on how, and where to sell your products.


    I certainly will!
    And thanks everyone not only for the advice, but for the encouragement. I find that I sell myself short on many occasions. Maybe I should stop doing that.

    Again, thank you.

  6. Yup I'd do a smaller line that matches the larger one too.

    And that $26 an hour is NOT your salary it covers the cost of your shop---rent, utilities, consumables, etc + your salary. if you are getting only your salary the first time you have a big ticket shop repair you are SOL!
    I tend to source my consumables on sale, scrap yards, yard sales and fleamarkets that helps keep them down but it's a hobby for me so I generally have time to find them. If you have to run out and buy something *now* good consumables are pricey!


    True enough. However when the potential customer can simply walk into walmart or costco and get something *vaguely similar* for less than a quarter of the price, many of them will do just that. It's an unfortunate reality of the times. I just have to make sure I find the right balance between what price the item will still sell at, and not be too low for me to cringe at. Always a balancing act.

  7. Good idea on the hanging glass enclosed candle. I hope they sell.

    Where did you get the candles in the glass and what are they called? Seen a smaller version in Churches but nothing that large. I'm looking to do a set of table lites with forged surrounds for a resturant. The wax becomes an issue when it runs and the glass containment solves that problem.

    Peter


    Hey Peter,
    I get them at the local Dollarama store. They're $1.25 each. They have a sticker of some Catholic saint or another on them so I just peel those off and toss them.

  8. I would hope you could clear more than $30 per hr, after overhead.


    Well that WOULD be nice, but I have to live in the real world. Here in Winnipeg, people are notoriously cheap (we're famous the world over for it).
    If something is too expensive, even if it's hand made, they'll simply find something vaguely similar at the wal-mart and call it a day.
    There is a very fine line here between getting paid an appropriate wage for handmade goods, and actually getting any money for it.
    The $30-40 range I cited is probably on the high side here and I'll most probably sit on them for quite a while at that price. However, I do want to get paid for my work, and $26.00 an hour here for hand labor is quite a high salary. So, I'll have to content myself with that.
    Thanks for the advice though.

  9. So i am starting this topic because i got suspended from school today... i am out for the rest of the week for getting into a fight, i got into the fight because i have been putting pics of stuff i make on facebook... a small group of guys had been picking on me saying that i was a geek for blacksmithing

    I quickly and sharply informed them that blacksmiths are alot tougher than any hockey player (thats what they are) could ever be... The captain decided to test that.... long story short i ended up in the office with sore hands and he ended up in the sick room with a bloody nose and black eye (turns out that fighting on ice and on land is very differant)... i tried to explain that he had been bugging me for a while and i ended it but they didnt buy it EXTRA SHOP TIME FOR ME!!!!

    so the question is... atany point were you ever ridiculed for being a blacksmith???


    Sounds like you're in high school. Don't worry, that attitude will dry right up after graduation. Heck, in later years, some of them will actually pretend that you and they used to be friends (happened to me twice)
  10. A local heritage railroad (the Prairie Dog Central) uses quite a bit of this stuff and a friend of mine volunteers on their "black gang" loading coal and doing general maintenance on the steam engine.
    He says I can come and buy some of their coal at a very good price.
    Now, before I go get some, has anyone used this coal? I'm using heating coal right now and it's not great stuff. It does keep burning while I'm having lunch but other than it's cost (about 5c a pound) that's the only advantage.
    Though, right now, it is just about my only option.
    It would be nice to know if this other stuff is a good alternative.

    So, if anyone has any experience with this type of coal, please let me know.


  11. Strictly beginners.
    And it turned out very well. At least, the two students I had seemed happy.
    I took a few photos;
    I'm the one in the middle, for some reason I look stern;
    013-1.jpg

    Demonstrating a technique;
    018-1.jpg

    And the rewards of a good day's work. From top to bottom,
    Two hammer wedges (to teach spreading and pointing and cutting on the hardie)
    A "Thingus" (it's not anything but a way to teach forging from round to square and how to forge square and round points )
    A hook (they made two of these. Mine shows two different decorative ends, they got to pick the ones they liked best)
    A steak turner (I kept this part secret until the end. They really like them.)
    020.jpg

    Janet said after the class was over that she "never would have believed that she could make a steak turner like that after one class" that made me feel pretty good.
  12. And it turned out very well. At least, the two students I had seemed happy.
    I took a few photos;
    I'm the one in the middle, for some reason I look stern;
    013-1.jpg

    Demonstrating a technique;
    018-1.jpg

    And the rewards of a good day's work. From top to bottom,
    Two hammer wedges (to teach spreading and pointing and cutting on the hardie)
    A "Thingus" (it's not anything but a way to teach forging from round to square and how to forge square and round points )
    A hook (they made two of these. Mine shows two different decorative ends, they got to pick the ones they liked best)
    A steak turner (I kept this part secret until the end. They really like them.)
    020.jpg

    Janet said after the class was over that she "never would have believed that she could make a steak turner like that after one class" that made me feel pretty good.


  13. Acme, the highest point, the highest quality, yeah, that's a good brand alright. And I bet all of your other tools are "Acme" brand too! That was a very nice shot piece of online journalism. He didn't paint you as some kind of retro Luddite anyway but as a very conscientious smith that did nice work. Way to go! B)


    I think it helped a lot that he knows my brother and used to follow/photograph his band in the 80's and 90's. He always was a good guy and didn't have an agenda other than showing people that this craft is still practiced.
    And, I've already gotten two commissions from the story so WOOT! :)
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