Frosty

Frosty's giving you the look you know. The look that says, "darned two legs, if I knew he was taking another picture I'd hike my leg and lick my butt special." We have a gray tabby looks a lot like Frosty. I named her "Empress Damascus" she earned the title, "Bug's Bane." Cool spider, almost as cool as the cats. (I gotta say that or Damascus will get me, they know you know, they do!) Frosty The Lucky.

A pattern welded billet is sometimes called Damascus and generally used for blades though someone just posted a stunningly beautiful pattern welded hammer. They're actually IVORY keys? Those aught to be pretty valuable, it isn't legal to take ivory anymore but old ivory is grandfathered. Frosty The Lucky.

She's a beauty as she is, hammering hot steel on her will shine her up nicely. Wire brush and oil or wax is all she needs. Good score, at $2/lb in Alaska a Craigslist add would only flicker and she'd be gone. Frosty The Lucky.

If you lick the frosting off a cupcake it's a muffin. Muffins are good for you. Your welcome. Frosty The Lucky.

"Thermal plastic surgeons" Dodgy blacksmith groups would meet in "Anvillages." Hmmm, if you're scaling your volcano is it getting too much air? Frosty The Lucky.

$60.00? Ouch, was it an auction? People can really get carried away at auctions and just the Snap On name drives it up, the company shills see to that. I've stopped going to auctions up here. The auction companies makes no bones about setting prices and upping bids if they don't like what's going. People still get bid happy and end up paying new sometimes better for old used stuff. I see a lot of so-so to excellent Craftsman mechanics carry boxes for very reasonable at yard, garage, etc. sales. My best score was a couple three summers ago when I got a Craftsman Master Mechanics roll away and top box jammed with misc. tools for $20.00 at a garage sale but the poor guy's wife was leaning on him hard, she sold me his brand spanking new engine hoist for $50.00, he had new health issues. Less than two weeks later I picked up a Kennedy machinist's top box at a garage sale for $15.00. I don't even look at tool boxes anymore, a decent parts bin rack would be nice but those are all pretty badly beat up. Sorry for the ramble, I got off track I'm just so devastated you aren't going to use the desk idea. Frosty The Lucky.

I like graph paper it has a built in scaling device. You can transfer your drawings to the floor or a matchbook cover accurately with minimum hassle. Frosty The Lucky.

My recommendation is to learn to blacksmith before moving on to advanced stuff like blades. Once you're proficient at the anvil learning to forge blades is just learning a new material and a couple new processes. Trying to learn both at once is just multiplying the difficulty. Call a farrier's supply or a farrier. If they don't carry or use coal they will know someone who dies. Have you made contact with the local blacksmith organization? The opening page of Iforge has a list at the bottom, many pages down but there. Find one close and hook up. You will learn more in a few hours with an experienced smith than days or weeks figuring it out yourself. Frosty The Lucky.

"Anyone else have tools show up in unexpected places?!" That's such a SWEET straight line I'm not sure how to respond and not get. . . Oh Nevermind. Frosty The Lucky.

Nice key fob Spanky is the hook long enough it won't get knocked off in action? Say snagged by a bush or something similar. I really like the idea though, worth some consideration as a marketable fob. Frosty The Lucky.

You won't?! I'm deeply, DEEPLY wounded. Nice tool box, what'd you have to give for it? If you don't mind the question. Frosty The Lucky.

I didn't figure he'd have to import clay to Ohio. Just garden, ditch, field, etc. variety, nothing fancy you only need a shovel and bucket. Frosty The Lucky.

Uh HUH, that's just your pinion. Frosty The Lucky.

Yeah, angle grinders tend to be the most playful. A Head Poobah from the office came by the drill shop to straighten me out on how quickly I should answer the phone. He didn't like my response ON the phone. I don't sit next to a phone all day I'm doing dangerous things let it ring. I was using the 9" Milwaukee grinder and told him it takes time to spool down so I can put it down. He INSISTED the rubber pads on the back meant you could just put it down. I told him I'd write him up if he even pulled the trigger but he was a boss and did. He almost dropped it as it came up to speed, (rapid start) then he turned it disk UP and laid it on the table. As soon as he let go of the trigger it torqued itself vertical and started doing a dance on the disk. I'd placed the bench vise between me and the grinder but he was in the open. It chased him into the middle of the shop floor. Did about $40.00 damage to the grinder too. It was a VIOLENT dance especially when the disk started coming apart. I didn't have to write him up and he never said anything about how I ran MY shop afterwards and everybody let the phone ring if they actually wanted to talk to me. At least it didn't hurt him more than a little scaring. Frosty The Lucky.

Yeah, well I've never been accused of being a LITTLE squirrely you know. Frosty The Lucky.

A monastic blacksmith group would be a "Quench". A group of lazy smiths would be a "slack." A group of farriers might be a "Clinch." A group of worried farriers would be a "Crease." Old or retired farriers who used coal would be a "Rasp." What would you call a group of young "Nippers" trying to pass the "Bar?" A group of unfun bladesmiths would be called a Temperance League." Frosty The Lucky.

But did you thin it in the TRADITIONAL places? I have a couple pavement thinned spots an addition. . . Oh yeah a tree thinned spot on my head. Uh, I have more but can't remember. Poking you just makes you happy. Not that that's a bad thing but. . . Frosty The Lucky.

She's a beauty! The pic from the bottom makes me want to rub her belly. Frosty The Lucky.

Maybe. NatGeo has a good spread. There are some pretty amusing videos, some cute and sweet, some violent, some frighteningly stupid, some adult. A bull in the rut may mistake your yard sculpture or propane tank for a lady. You just do NOT want to get close when they're in the rut. Unless that is you wish to fill your freezer. Frosty The Lucky.

A "Ring" of blacksmiths. An "opinions". Small group = a "clink," a large group = a "clank," a lazy group = "clunk." Good one DSW! How about a "Pyro" or maybe a "conflagration" for a large group. Frosty The Lucky.

Okay, ease up guys. Taking cheap shots at anybody is borderline against IFI rules. Taking notice of cheap shots is just giving them weight. Do we all know the 3 poison subjects to NEVER discuss at work? Religion, politics and money. There's a reason we don't discuss them here. Won't help either side of a discussion about the OP. The smart smith makes what the customer WANTS with what's specified or acceptable. Doesn't have arguments, call names or discuss poison subjects in the shop let alone in public .Back to the topic okay? Frosty The Lucky.

How much piano wire do you have? Neat stuff piano wire. Were I into the dark side and making pattern welded billets I'd be awfully tempted to try wrapping a medium C bar with piano wire in a relatively open wrap and put it in a steel can or between mild flat stock and weld it up. It might make for a nice pattern. I don't play on the dark side though so I'll probably never know. Frosty The Lucky.

Hey gang! The January meeting is THIS Saturday the 23rd. at "Arctic Fires Bronze" in Palmer. A quick web search will provide directions better than my memory can. I'll be bringing my anvil and basic tools for another forge station. We can try making hinges the way Mark showed us last Saturday. Seeing as I don't have the tools Mark used we may get to make a mandrel and maybe a nice size hot cut like he uses. We can have an open forge as well, if you have a project you need some help with bring it along I'm sure someone there will know what to do or be able to figure it out. See you there. I'll be wearing the "Frosty The Lucky." Iforge Iron T shirt. Frosty The Lucky.

That's what the kids are for and if you're standing in the parlor I'm sure the missus will think of a way to get them working on it soonest. Wills can have interesting clauses. Frosty The Lucky.