welderbill

Howdy from Tucson. This is my first posting so I thought I would introduce myself. I have always enjoyed manipulating metal, but never even considered blacksmithing. Until....... When I was younger, I started out learning auto body and paint work. My favorite ended up being heavy collision work and restorations. Learning to work the metal instead of just slapping body filler in the dents. After 13 years I wanted to get in to more fabrication, so I got a job in an ornamental wrought iron shop. While there I started to take courses at the local community college to learn other welding processes, Learned TIG, got better at MIG took arc and pipe welding,got some CERTS. Then took some higher math classes over the years. And moved up and got better jobs. I currently work at an industrial electrical shop and was hired in the fab shop where we build huge outdoor structures such as portable sub stations for the mining industry and also work at generating plants. ( I am close to retiring and now mange the parts department) There is good money in field work so I took a few electrical courses and after a while went to see what kind of credits i had accumulated over all of that time. Found out I was real close to a degree. Some sociology credits,etc. And I also needed lntro to welding and a metallurgy class. ( I know, a little backwards, but that's just me). In the metallurgy class we had to make a knife blade from a piece of leaf spring. I was hooked! Took the blacksmith class (for fun) and had so much fun I took it again and my wife took it with me. So, I don't have a big interest in knife making I sure like smithing. I set up a little smithy.Got a crappy anvil (for free) and built a charcoal forge. Am getting ready to build a gas forge. Then look out! I joined this site some time ago and have absorbed a lot of great advice. Thanks to everyone and look forward to learning more.