irnsrgn Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 FolkStreams Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Jr - Thanks for the link. - I thought that was a very interesting video on making the sled - just don't see them like that anymore. Soom big timber woodworking and some blacksmithing - Cool video to watch. - Jeremy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Hartley Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 That was fascinating to watch. Those water driven machines sure are quiet without the horrible screech of brushed motors. It didn't really look like the shoe bolts had enough mass to them to fill the countersink, you cant really tell from the video though. It also bothered me that he never mentioned the huge crack in the front of one of the runners. What's the point of using wood with a curved grain if it's already cracked? You can still see the crack after he uses the chainsaw and it doesn't look like the cracked part ever gets removed. He must have built a lot of sleds to be able to discuss the customer's specifications in so few words and build the thing with no drawings or anything. Maybe they just didn't film that bit. Thanks for posting this, nice find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 I thought the same thing about the crack in the runner, but after seeing it wrapped with the steel strap top and bottom - I don't think it'll be an issue. - Jeremy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Hartley Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 A Google search for his name turns up a bit. Seems he died in the 90's but his mill is being restored as a museum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Einhorn Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Very interesting, thank you for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironstein Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 That man was an amazing craftsman. Everything seemed to just fall together. Just goes to show you, you dont need a brand new crisp anvil to make nice stuff! His looked pretty beat up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Browne Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 (edited) That was a brilliant film, especially for someone who has never seen a sled like that before. In the end the crack didn't matter at all but it caught my eye as well. Edited December 10, 2009 by rmcpb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keykeeper Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Thanks Junior, that is a nice little clip. What I wouldn't give to go back in time and spend a few weeks, months or even years just watching him work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fe-Wood Posted December 10, 2009 Share Posted December 10, 2009 Now THAT was great!!! Thanks for sharing!!! I loved the slow cutting speeds and the unstoppable power of his tools. That planer sounded like it was going to stall out but it just hunkered down and kept on cutting. Great tip on the saw kurf as a guide. Beautiful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKFrosty57 Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 Thanks for the link Jr. At first I thought it was an episode of the Woodwright's Shop I saw from around the same time, early mid 80's that is. It isn't and it's a gem worth keeping for sure. I noted the check (crack) as well but that's why you pick a curved log so the grain is aligned with the direction you need strong. The steel makes for a nearly permanent fix. The Woodwright's shop episode was a little more educational because Roy is a pro at explaining the how and WHY of doing things a certain way. Heck, he even explained the check in the sweep of the runner, one of his had one too. My favorite part was when he went to a local blacksmith to do the ironwork. (go figure eh?) The blacksmith just took a couple measurements and started making the iron for the sledge. Well, Roy wanted to get involved so the smith said suit yourself Roy. The next thing you know Roy is asking the smith if doing something a different way wasn't really better. Holy moly the smith gave him a semi amused look like you'd give the village idiot when s/he started making suggestions. Well, the smith says to Roy, Suit yourself Roy, give it a try. It was fun to watch Roy try a couple alternatives, he isn't a bad smith but he was WAY out of his league. The Smith produced accurate, well made pieces in about 1/3 the time. NUTS! I gotta go, dinner's ready. . . Hey! What AM I saying NUTS for? Later guys. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
divermike Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 Thanks for the link, I have a lot of good wood out back, hmmmm.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judson Yaggy Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 Ben's Mill is not too far from here, our local group had a hammer in there once. Very cool place. I believe it's now owned by the local historical society or land trust, and is being slowly restored. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentwire Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 During the winter of 1965 I worked for a logger. We used a sled very much like Ben's. We did not call it a sled. We called it a dray. We pulled it with an Allis-Chalmers ''cat''. On our logging jobs we were always on the look out for replacement runners. Dray crooks to us. The runners would last about a season. The drays would be rebuilt every spring. All the iron was reused. We loaded the timber on the sled with hooks as well. A super film Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neal L Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 Really enjoyed watching the video. I guess he got by with it all his life but it made me wince to see him work with the hardy still in place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinton Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 ya that was great i love to see a true craftsman at work like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nthe10ring Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 Great clip. I could only get about half of it to play. There were several others there that are nice also. I have a book that I believe Taunto Press put out 15 or 20 years ago, that has a nice spread on this shop. The Workshop Book, workshops of all types across the country. Jerry Fisher Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blacksmith Jim Posted December 11, 2009 Share Posted December 11, 2009 Thanks for the link Jr, such a fun film to enjoy. The shop was really amazing. I liked how quite all the machines were.. Also, that guy was surprisingly strong! Didn't really flinch swinging those 6x6 beams around. Holy cow! Hope I'm still that strong at his age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Salvati Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 A video with more info on the water power:YouTube - Ben's Mill: An Excerpt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irnsrgn Posted December 13, 2009 Author Share Posted December 13, 2009 I once took my mostly wood demo smith shop to a hammerin, one of the snooty old boys who retired as an English prof. made a comment about whether I was a smith or a carpenter. I flat out told him that back in my grandfathers day in his shop most everything was wood reinforced with iron and if a smith couldn't work wood also he wasn't much of a smith as in small towns the smith was the blacksmith, wainwright, wheelwright, coachmaker and everything in between, he even shod horses. The old prof who thought he was one of the professions greatest smiths never did like me after that, my first wife always said he was just jealous. He lived not to far from me in another town and one morning he was setting around the coffee table in a resturant with a group of retired farmers who unfortunately for him where once my customers and started to berate me. His friends told him what they thought of me and of him and walked off. And one of them came down to my town and told me they found out what a jerk he was after all their years of friendship. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
element Posted December 13, 2009 Share Posted December 13, 2009 Wow thanks for that video!! This guy knows how to get around in a shop. Whos going to build one? Im thinking of going hunting for some runners. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oak Hill Forge Posted December 19, 2009 Share Posted December 19, 2009 Guess some places things are a bit slow to change, or I'm getting old. I can remember my father in law and his dad skidding logs from the mountains with a huge mule and a sled like that one. They used some model of old Chevrolet front bumpers for the runners. They had just the right bevel and were symmetrical. Their sleds were held together with wooden pegs. This was in the early 70's time period. The grandpa never had a drivers license and never left the state of Virginia except on time he went to N.C. to get some mower blades sharpened when he worked at the golf course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy k Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 This morning I spent having coffee with an old friend that worked in the boat restoration business and woodworker extraordenair, got to talking about this video and when I got home I found it again and watched it for the second time (missed alot during the first viewing I seen) also sent him a link to it. He should enjoy it as well or more than I, cause he remembers those days, (he's a bit more older than I you see). It all started when I saw him the other day at a local coffee stop - he told me about a sleigh he was re-building and that some of the metal work was forge welded. He has been to my shop a couple years ago and new that I do that type of work. I stopped by his place to see the sleigh and after he's done I may make one like it or similar due to the fact I can do the metal work/woodwork. Down the road, it may be another project in the works. I just had a great time visiting with someone who remebers the time of past and relate to the work involved back then. Just thought I'd share a good chat that made my day! - JK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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