JustAnotherViking

I got a great quote from Ian Wallace (mentioned above), for the craft aspect of it (public liability, tools, etc), but the second you mention 'blacksmith' to a home insurance company they freak out, and start spitting silly figures because all of a sudden you need 'bespoke' insurance for your 'business' and you also need to use their over-priced home insurance to avoid a conflict of interest (should multiple parties insure the same property should there be a dispute).

The fact is, I would love to sell a few bits and pieces in the future to help with the fuel bill (operating at a loss, or breaking even), but this makes the hobby a commercial activity, and standard home insurance doesn't cover it, and anything i'd consider selling wouldn't even come close to covering the additional business/insurance costs as a result.

I'm sure plenty of folk do it and keep quiet, but i'd rather be on the right side of things should something go wrong.

I have spoken to one insurer who is following up with their underwriters, but I was hoping someone else in the UK has been in the same boat and could recommend a particular company.

Quite and old topic, but rather than starting up a new one, I thought i'd just ask here.

Does anyone in the UK operate their workshop (hobby, part-time, or full time) on your residential property?
If so, have you had any issues with your home insurance, or found an understanding broker/insurance company who offers suitable cover?

I have been reading through my current policy documents, and while it doesn't explicitly exclude any activities; after speaking with them, if I wanted to operate a part time business in the future, I would have to go elsewhere due to the 'increased risk of fire' (yet cookers, bbqs, patio heaters, open fires, etc are fine).

Came up on ebay and I just had to have it 

Shall give it a cleanup with a wire brush and a good coat of oil. 

Might make a nice part of a shop sign or display stand 

Anywhere in the world?

How about England.

Loads of anvils, good quality farriers coal readily available, plenty of blacksmithing heritage,  small geographic area (compared to the states) allowing for travel to see the historical sites, classes to learn, visit other smiths, etc. 

Thanks. I made it about half a mile this morning heading to work, then the road completely vanished. Almost zero visibility, and it was all down hill from that point. Quick handbrake turn and headed back. 

Unfortunately being a programmer, I don't get snow days, I just get the pleasure of working from anywhere that has power. 

Worst case I can probably get a small gas cylinder from the local store if the power drops out tomorrow and my laptop battery dies 

Made a few leaves, then ran out of gas. 

Hopefully can get some delivered soon, but the roads are currently invisible due to the snow, so might have to wait to next week. 

52 minutes ago, ausfire said:

Only us old fellas know about Triffids!

The BBC did a day of the triffids mini-series in 2009... was pretty decent.

How to last longer swinging a heavy hammer.... do it more often 

Just think of it as weight training. The more you do it, the more the muscles grow, the more control you have.

In the sort term, lighten the hammer, or spend your time away from the forge with the heavy hammer and an old tyre... just beat the xxxx out of it as a workout

Could you be working it too cold? Need to keep the temp up when working around a weld. 

Make a small dragon forge? Coffee can with castable refractory, and put your scrap sculpture skills to the challenge for the head, feet and so on.

Should be relatively cheap and just use a small torch for the burner.

8 minutes ago, Daswulf said:

Now you got me wanting to make a gas forge in the shape of a dragons head.

Now there's an idea! Hinged jaw as an adjustable door 

Not the clearest in the picture, but it has three futhork runes above the door. 

Dagaz, Uruz, Cen. 

Very loosely representing: transformation, strength, fire. 

If I can get some decent welds without burning off the horns, I may add some dragons next 

Couple of bits done today.... the first is long long overdue.

A simple bracket thing to hold a beer bottle quench cup to keep punches etc cool.

I decided to make it in such a way I can remove it when required, and will likely make several more of the mounting pieces so I can position the holder from each corner of the anvil stand... and make other similar removable brackets for holding various other tools/stands/helpers.

Secondly, I got a bit more progress done on the new forge facade.

Doors mounted, and a few additional decorative touches... just because.

The new forge is working brilliantly... takes a bit longer than the old one to come up to temperature (much bigger... so go figure), yet it can still idle at a very low pressure once it's running.

No doubt i'll have to add more decorative touches in the future as more ideas pop into my head

Thanks for the comments all. Great fun to try something different 

Foundryman - that pattern is stunning! Looking forward to the completed piece.

Had quite a productive day today. 

Decided that my new forge needed some decorative touches, so a set of wooden doors was on the menu. 

Started with some flat bar, globbed on a load of welds, into the fire, cross peened, then edges touched up with the grinder. 

Next I decided these doors needed some handles/knockers, so two signature skulls later, a bit of round bar, and that part was done. 

Finally today I threw together four quick hinges, a bit of drilling.... And I ran out of time. 

Have stuck a few bolts through for effect... The plan is to cut them down, and peen over to make the front look riveted. 

To be continued... 

10 hours ago, Dabbsterinn said:

• Lady knife, not entirely sure if there's another word for them but that's just a translation of what we call them in Iceland, I'm pretty sure the other nordic countries have a similar name for it, the handle is just a long taper that's bent back usually with a small scroll on the end

That was my first ever item (in mild steel)... a great beginner project as it gives you exposure to a good few techniques, doesn't take too long, and you can walk away with a positive feeling of accomplishment... it certainly fuelled my desire to continue... not sure I would have said the same if I started with a higher carbon steel and spent the first day making a punch.

I like your teaching ideas, and it certainly makes sense in terms of logical progression and learning, but perhaps start with a more 'decorative' project just to get a taster (as suggested above)

If this is your friends first try and blacksmithing, they will become tired quickly; which in itself can become dangerous.
I'd say if you managed to do one small project, that will be a successful day as they learn hammer control, judging temperature, and take everything on board.

The ladies knife is one of the most popular beginner projects at the group I go to. Tapering, rounding, twisting, curling... plenty of techniques... and out of everyone I have seen attempt it, very few get it done in under 3 hours. Just my opinion, but a bit more exciting than a rake 

Yeah I assumed the historic element was what you meant rather than the climate and fauna.

My last trip over there involved just shy of 900 miles on the bike, and I think we had about 2 hours without rain . 

Thought we had it bad in Ireland, but the Highlands rain is in a whole other category! Properly wet rain. 

Drowned by rain or eaten alive by the midges... definitely 'awesome' 

Motorcycle disc lock alarm on the chain would be a relatively cheap deterrent, coupled with being locked to ground anchor bolts; should it be impractical to move indoors.

Weld wheels to the stand so it can be tipped on end as a trolley to move it out of sight

Since many people use heavy chain to help deaden the ring, why not take it a step further.. Install a couple of ground anchors, and chain/lock the anvil to the ground? If it gets in the way, remove it and re-fasten when walking away. 

On the other side of things, I'm sure there's some form of insurance cover against theft... Doesn't stop potential theft, but means you at least aren't completely out of pocket should it happen... Just make sure the cover gets you close to the cost of a new one. 

Holesaw and a few more supplies arrived, so I got a bit more fabrication done on the new forge and the refractory cement added. 

Supposedly rated to 1700C/3092F, so fingers crossed it'll last well. 

Now to stand back, let it air dry then fire it up... And pickup a few more soft fire bricks for the front/back doors and some VHT paint to tidy up the appearance. 

I started on a new gas forge on Saturday.
So far i've got the main body welded up, with channels on the front and back to hold soft fire bricks for adjustable doors.

Also got the ceramic fibre stuffed in and fairly well saturated in ridigidiser. Still waiting for delivery of the refractory cement (and a new holesaw to cut an opening for the burner).

Unfortunately i've ran out of mig wire, cutting discs, and suitable plate to finish up a few more bits on it (handle on the top, few bits of thicker plate on the front/back to close in the wool edges, and i'll probably add some decorative touches to make it more artistic than a badly rolled sheet of steel)

8 minutes ago, Daswulf said:

Do you preheat the blood to 98.6 deg F for proper viscosity? 

Obviously the correct method is to plunge it through the still beating heart of your enemy, so it's at the correct temperature, and still pumping to ensure it circulates over your blade correctly to prevent warping.... not forgetting to take their temperature first to make sure they don't have a fever.

Don't over think it... load of screws at an angle.
Half from the top piece down, half from the bottom piece up.

You can use some adhesive, but personally I wouldn't bother given the current moisture contents of those stumps... screw it together and see how it goes before you put any more effort into it.

Seriously clean for a first go at casting!!! 

Haven't had much time to forge this week, but got a few small bits done the past two days. 

Nothing fancy, just more of the usual.