Scott Massey

Oh yes. Puppies come up in the "Incoming" chapter of Kilts 101, along with insects and tipsy wedding guests. Other chapters include - "Sitting; you thought you knew how to..", (including the section "Leather car seats are NOT your friend. Summer and Winter versions", which I authored, by the by..) - "How to use the mens room... in a skirt." - "I dropped my lighter, and ...WHOA, I CAN'T PICK IT UP LIKE THAT..." - and lastly "How NOT to impersonate Marilyn on a windy day." So, yeah... there's a learning curve. The struggle is real......

Absolutely not. Only certain military units were required to forego clothing worn underneath a kilt, (subsequently referred to as going "regimental"). The misconception has sparked more than its' fair share of brazen behaviour from the "fairer sex" when a kilt appears. Ask me how I know It's your kilt, your choice, but you WILL be asked about your... choice, regardless. (And as some of the nicer dress tartans can run upwards of $600 or more, most owners tend to be overly protective of them, hence undergarments are worn.)

Last season the forge was in an unheated garage, and as long as I wore winter socks I was ok. This season, part of my forge is outside, but speaking with other kilties the only time they notice it's winter is when the breeze hits them. But none of them live in AK. (And I must admit to some mosquito / sand flea / no see-um bites, with the occasional salvo landing "danger close".)

I've recently, (as my profile pic shows), taken to wearing a kilt, (utility kilt), while working, as summer in the Mid-Atlantic can be both hot and insanely humid. It's made from material similar to duck cotton work pants, has a metric ton of pocket space, enough protection for most of the things I'm doing, and any breeze on a hot, muggy day feels like a gift from on high. (And floor vents are now must-haves in any other place I ever live.) Just a thought....

With all due respect to the Infinite Monkey Theorem * aside, we're still trying to figure out how you put this together THIS time. No forge welds, you say? Stunning work! (* Infinite Monkey Theorem, (paraphrased): given an infinite number of monkeys on an infinite number of typewriters for an infinite amount of time, and eventually one of those monkeys will almost surely type out "Hamlet" in its' entirety.)

+1 Absolutely staggering....

As the user of a similar DF forge, I can fully support this statement in all it's "forehead slapping" truth.

Too late. I am abso-xxxxxxxx-lutely staggered... just when I thought I had a moderately decent grasp of what's possible. (And admittedly too dang old to have fallen into that trap. Again.) "You know nothing, Jon Snow". Respect for attempting that.

My first forged leaf I felt was "rose shaped" enough to weld onto the piece. (I've made my share of "spears".) A few techniques need improvement, but I think it's heading in the right direction. Cheers.

Thought I'd take a moment and do the introductions. Former Marine. Been at this for 8 weeks, still not smarter than my block anvil. Doing mostly hooks, tapers, roses, crosses... craft fair stuff, working through the ABANA Journeyman skill-set, and having a ball all the way. I know my way around Google and a Search function, so if I ask a question it's no joke. I'd like to thank you all in advance for the information you've provided here, and I would, but I'm too busy writing this stuff down! Cheers!

Evening, gents.. I recently acquired a post vise for my sins, (before pic posted). In my efforts to gussie her up I ran into some items I couldn't answer, and I thought I'd put those items before your collective knowledge. 1) In my efforts to disassemble her for cleaning, the screw box wouldn't come free of the free arm. Question #1: Did some manufacturers produce screw boxes that could not be removed from the frixed arm? (Note: the box moves freely, and I cleaned out the area around the box. There seems to be a nub on the box which prevents removal, but that's the extent of any impediment.) 2) I'd obviously love to know a bit of the history behind this. The only markings on her are an "M", (or a poorly stamped "W"), and a "6" stamped underneath both arm jaws, and a pretty distinctive "3" under the mounting plate. I'm fully aware of the lack of identification surrounding post vices, but if anyone has an idea, I'd be interested. 3) Prior to disassembly for cleaning the jaw alignment was pretty reasonable. After my ham-handed attempts to put the pieces back in order, the jaw alignment has taken a turn for the worse. Perhaps 1/4" out of a complete meeting of the jaw faces. Question #3; can the jaw alignment be "adjusted", for want of a better word, for a more complete meeting of the jaw faces? (I'm questioning the necessity of this, but I'd prefer a closer tolerance.) I thank you in advance for any assistance you can offer.