Ferrous Beuler

Welcome Ken and MaryLou, I am very impressed with your history. Hello from a former "carknocker" in New York. I too have straightened a few grab irons in my welding days. I worked in the old P.R.R. roundhouse at West Seneca N.Y. for two years until union troubles made the whole place inhospitable. Too bad, I loved the job and I especially miss driving the old G.E. diesel on switching duties (TOOT TOOT!). Ever sandblasted a boxcar outdoors at 3:00 a.m. in January in 30 mph winds howling off Lake Erie just 4 miles away? (now that's some real fun!) I am a newcomer to this craft who stumbled upon this site and I'm glad I did. What you will find here is a bunch of great folks who have an awful lot to share in pursuit of this great craft. Your level of experience makes us all drool in anticipation of what you may have to share. Welcome and keep on hammerin'. Dan.:)

It is good to see a permanent heading devoted to safety here on the discussions board. Blacksmithing was fading into history but has been enjoying quite a revival over the past several years. More and more people are coming into the craft and so it is growing at a fast pace. Many people getting into blacksmithing are from an industrial background i.e. welders, machinists, etc. etc. and so of course have had lots of exposure to safety training. Newcomers to blacksmithing are coming from all walks of life and so that means many of them have had no experience with safety training at all. The things that most of us are familiar with may be a complete mystery to someone else such as why there are right and left hand threads on gas fittings, etc. etc. etc. There are lots of hazards just waiting to jump up and bite the unaware. SHARE THOSE MORSELS OF WISDOM HERE, you just might save someone a trip to the E.R. or worse. Let's hear YOUR two cents. Keep on hammerin'. Dan.

Nice going Clark! If I were you I would be buying lots of lottery tickets today.Rub on it and see if a djini comes out. Keep on hammerin'. Dan:o

Hello and welcome to the forum. Being in Erie probably puts you in the middle of several groups which you could attend in Pa. OH. and N.Y. I don't believe any of the A.B.A.N.A. affiliates have any sort of residency restrictions. I live in N.Y. south of Rochester on the eastern end of the finger lakes.I too am new to smithing after decades of interest. I am joining the Genesee chapter of the New York State Designer Blacksmiths which meets near me but I will also likely attend the Niagara region meetings as I am in the Buffalo area just about every week anyway and have family there. The Niagara region meets at the Amherst museum (google Amherst museum and you can see a picture of their blacksmith shop) and this would be real easy for you to get to on the I-90 from Erie; Maybe two hour drive but worth it. Check out the affiliate links on the A.B.A.N.A. website for contact information, you can join an affiliate without joining A.B.A.N.A. Good luck and keep on hammerin'. Dan O'Hare

It is too bad one sorry individual took it upon himself to take so much away from so many but in his profound ignorance he could not possibly have known the reverse would prove true as all involved have shown. DMS is right about snow being hauled into these bridges. The roof not only protected the bridge, it preserved the snow base from the sun for sled runners. Floorboards were simply roughcut lumber put down green and replaced as needed. You just can't keep a good town down. Semper Fi and keep on hammerin'

Score!!!!!

I want to thank everyone for their input here. Things are shaping up nicely around here. Now have a firepot with tuyere/ashdump and will soon have a champ. 400 to provide air. Am still going with the on wheels approach for convenience of use around here and ability to travel (roll it up on the truck and go anywhere). Will be using lighter hearthtop as I now have a piece of 3/16 sheet which should work nicely and allow me to use smaller angle for the frame instead of the 3" that I have on hand. Can't wait to get the whole thing smoldering so I can start on my first project- some tongs I was checking out in Machinery's Handbook, twentieth edition pg. 2186. Also am getting another post vise; This one is on a stand with an 18" dia baseplate of 1/2" steel which I plan to add a pair of casters to so they are up, off the floor and will contact the floor when I grab the head of the vise and tilt it towards me so I can just wheel it around like a dolly, like the forge also go anywhere portable. Keep on hammerin'

Anyone using composite wheels of any type needs to be familiar with the manufacturer's safety warnings and also A.N.S.I. warnings/guidelines. Take heed of FrankW's advice- if something does'nt "feel right" STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING! Read my post in non-blacksmithing (yippee). Bad things happen but a lot can be avoided by common sense. I have been hurt on the job by carelessness/stupidity of others and carelessness/stupidity of my own. I have had my hardhat knocked off my head by a plasma jet by someone using an air arc inside a boxcar and not knowing who/what was on the outside where his jet was going. I have been mashed into walls by cowboy forklift jockeys and lots of other stuff that should not have happened, but it did. Always be aware of what others are doing around you but never forget this golden rule- safety is YOUR responsibility.

Smoothe ride T-Gold, congrats. This truck seems to be begging for some sort of unique hood ornament.

I like to take the smaller bambi deer because they have done nothing but grow on the best food of the year and have'nt been through a winter. Don't much care about antlers- you have to boil them forever and they don't taste like much anyway. I shoot the small ones on purpose because it is the best venison. I will of course let a button buck go if I can tell so it can become a wallhanger for somone else. My buddies in camp give me a lot of ribbing for this, I get a lot of comments like "gee, your slug must have knocked the spots off"-ha ha. One year we took a bunch of opening day deer to the butcher, some nice bucks and a few big does. Each deer took two guys to carry in. Then I walked in with a pepsi in one hand and my deer under one arm. The butcher tossed it on the platform scale- 74 lbs dressed and he asked me "you want me to wrap that or are you going to eat it here?". Funny guy.

One rod- Sweet! The type of thing which sets an artist apart.

OHMYGOLLYGEEWHIZWOW!!! Finally got my hands on that firepot/tuyere I've been hunting and ain't she a beauty, (need to get some digital pix to post) an antique, mighty stout and large. Has tuyere with ash dump and no clinker tickler. The blacksmith I got this from is a true Gentleman, his smithy a living museum beyond compare and I am awestruck at the ease with which he oozes experience and wisdom with every sylable. I will not take the liberty of mentioning his name in cyberspace but if you ever met him you would not be lost on the magnitude of making his aquaintance, a nicer guy you will not meet. When I asked his price I was floored at his reply- $25. That was four hours ago and still my jaw hangs open. This is what continuously leaves me so immpressed with all of these folks I am meeting in my quest to persue blacksmithing- just how awesome all of these folks are, from the New York State Designer Blacksmiths to individuals I have met to folks on this sight- it seems to be the overall hallmark of the contemporary blacksmithing community. Everyone is so willing to see a newcomer succeed for the sake of the craft itself- awesome! Also "Mr. Smith" threw in an electric blower for free with a warning all of us should heed because we are probably all guilty of this; He told me this blower was last used in 1962, it has been shelved since that time because the previous owner broke this safety rule- DO NOT STAND IN FRONT OF A GRINDING WHEEL WHEN STARTING OR STOPPING IT. This is when the wheel cycles through the full range of r.p.m.'s and this is when it will likely fail, which it did. A portion of the wheel struck this man in the head and he bled to death on the floor of his shop. SAFETY FIRST. Keep on hammerin'

I would like to hear from anyone who has seen any instructional DVD's on blacksmithing. Any reviews or recomendations would be most appreciated. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!! Keep on hammerin'

Brian I know what it's like to be a long way from home on active duty (Christmas was always especially empty) and it sure is nice knowing that the folks back home have you always in their prayers. Please know that your son is included in those prayers. Semper Fi

If you are going for an overall aged look in your finished piece then perhaps you could incorporate some wood along with the iron into the design. I would poke around in an old barn for this provided you can secure permission to do so. Look in an old chicken coop and you won't find a straight edge anywhere in the place, especially the boards accross the front of the hen boxes- always very worn down. The best thing about artistic design is there are no rules. Good luck and keep on hammerin':)

Wow! As an ex helo mehanic/doorgunner I have seen some immpressive aerial feets. Thought I knew all about restricted landing zones- the pilot of this Chinook is rewriting the book on it! If this was pulled off under fire the man deserves a DFC. :o

Good to see such eagerness in youth. If you like I have a small anvil you may have which I think will help you out alot because the face is flat and the top of the rail you are using is not. The face is about 6" and the horn 3" and it has a pritchel hole. There is a ding in the face probably from someone striking in with an axe, don't worry, just file it cold- DON'T WELD IT! The anvil is yours for the asking because it is of little use to me and I am very impressed with your eagerness, enthousiasm and accomplishments at your age, and for the sake of the craft itself because that is what it's all about. Send me a private message with your address aand I'll ship it to you. Good luck and keep on hammerin'

Always remember that your freedom was and is not free, it comes at one xxxx of a price. All over the world at places like Lexington, Chateau Thierry, Corregidor, Malmedy, Inchon, Quang Tri, Phu Bai, Grenada, Beirut, Kafji, Falluja, Baghdad and too many unnamed forgotten xxxxholes of the world the grass is always a little greener, the flowers a little taller and a little brighter because the soil there in those places is rich in blood and that is the price paid for freedom. Know that those who made the ultimate sacrifice are the magnificent few among us all who had the guts and the nuts to be the ones to go out and man the fence, to face the ugliness of it all and shed the sweat and the blood and stop the bullets so the rest of us would not have to. Even those among us such as Hanoi Jane and Rosie O'Donnel have the right to say what they say because they are free to do so only for the fact that so many paid dearly for that right. Know that those who paid this price would not complain as they exist in a state of grace and in their magnificence are proud for having accomplished their mission of providing that freedom, even for those of the likes of Jane and Rosie. Always remember them. Semper Fidelis, former Lance Corporal.

Would much appreciate any advice on supplying air to my forge. Plan to use firepot 14" sq by 8" deep if my source still has it. If not then I know I can get one similar from centaur, either way I will soon have that. For a hearth table I have a 1/2" sheet 40" x 60" that will be supported by angle legs mig welded to form a frame for the hearth top. Completed forge will be on wheels and kept in the barn so it can easily be rolled outside on the concrete for use. Right now all I have for a blower is a Buffalo forge model which I feel may be too small to serve the size pot I want to use for general forging. The fan housing is only about 6" and air outlet is 1 1/2". So the question is will this little blower huff enough or should I be looking for something bigger. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.:D

aloha frank, i too am irish ain't it grand?

i am in geneseo new york

:D Cool! just found this forum and registered so I can hopefully find a smithing buddy in my neck of the woods. Green as the grass. Have most eguipment to start with. Need a firepot/ tuyere the other essentials I have, 130lb and 263lb anvils, 6" post vise, buffalo forge blower and a few various tongs. On a mission to find that firepot so I can get going.Last saturday attended meeting of local chapter new york state designer blacksmiths where I forged my first piece of scrap- a real beauty! Actually it began well as my first experience was to perform a forge weld which turned out fine and then commenced to proceed with what was to be a poker but on one of the heats I got distracted just long enough to burn it up. A hard lesson and sure to be a lasting one. Would love to find another smithing enthousiast locally so we can make beautiful scrap together.