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I Forge Iron

Old English "stiddy"


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Too many years ago, pre internet, I read in an English book about a stake shank being inlet into the end grain of a timber. If memory serves, the worker sat on the edge of another (movable) timber with his feet on the ground. This latter apparently acted as a stool. From this position, he did his raising or whatever. The term "stiddy" was used to describe the stake and timber (I thought). I search-engined stiddy and found that it was used to describe a small stake-anvil used mainly by cutlers. In any event, it sounded like a good way to work for prolonged periods, although I haven't tried it.

http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools

I thought of this by reading another thread about stake plates.

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I used to have a relatively small anvil that was stump mounted that had two horns, and no I don't think it was a sheet metal stake as the "stake" part was more like a large spike. I saw a photo of an Arab using a similar one from a squatting position. Didn't look all that comfortable to me but I was used to standing to forge, still am not used to sitting to even forge silver and copper. When I was a kid in Santa Fe,NM there was a tinker that worked sitting on very short bench fixing pots and pans, even making an occasional copper pan that had a stump mounted anvil and stakes of differing shape, ancient old man, maybe some of these were stiddies? :blink:

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