Professo Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Greetings fellow humans, I am starting to get curious about blacksmiting and all the trades around that. Now i wonder, if i want to dig deeper into the belly of iron, were do i begin? Is it wise to read some first books about the perk? And i read on wiki pedia there is a school for blacksmiths in the UK. Did any one of this forum, followed a studie? I am from the Netherlands so i could travel to the place for that studie if it is possible. At the moment i follow the studie mechanical engineering in the about 1,5 years to go. Does this maybe give me a little edge if i am going to start the profession. I never would have tought there would be this kind of forum on the internet. Cheers, VCE R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobody Special Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 I believe TechnicusJoe is attending the school you're talking about. You might send him a PM. He's also from the Netherlands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 there are several places that teach here, hereford is well known and friends of mine went there and now run a business in the area. Warwick isanother Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njanvilman Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Pull up a chair and some refreshment and spent a few days reading past posts. There are literally thousands of topics on most aspects of blacksmithing, knife making, sculpture, and more on this site. As to "learning" the skill of blacksmithing, a few years or decades of hammering iron helps, and learning form a master is a great start. Nothing about this craft comes overnight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Pack a lunch and a cold drink and start reading IForgeIron. Find a subject of interest, click and read. That will lead to other threads and other links. Now that you are on the right path, follow the trail with more reading and research. Do not forget to take the knowledge to the forge and try it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professo Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 Thanks for the reactions! So no books are really recommened ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 there are many books, some can be downloaded free from the downloads tab at the top Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 So what kind of blacksmithing are you interested in? Fellow making knives profit from the books by Hrisoulas, more than the COSIRA books on gate making... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Hi Prof welcome to the site, When you say Blacksmith school, how long do you want to commit to, Short course, year long, two years ?Hereford, Warwick, Plumpton, Myerscough, Kingston Maurward, are all colleges that run blacksmith based courses.There are many other short term courses also available from different sourcesCheck out the Blacksmiths Guild UK in the groups forum on this site, and see what we get up to, our courses are on the Courses page at www.blacksmithsguild.comSome engineering knowledge will be useful, but can also be a disadvatage, you have to "Think Blacksmith" not engineerI too would recommend the Cosira Books which are free downlaods and can be found herehttp://www.hlcollege.ac.uk/Downloads/cp_blacksmith.htmlhttp://www.hlcollege.ac.uk/Downloads/cp_wrought.htmlGood luck and have fun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GNJC Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 I started smithing about six years ago and the best beginner's book for me - by a long way - was Peter Parkinson's 'The Artist Blacksmith', it is very clear, very thorough and despite its title not at all 'arty'. He did some DVDs to go with it too. But the posts above are all right, practice whenever you can and learn from someone skillful whenever you can; when you need a rest, study IFI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Welcome aboard Professo, glad to have you. I think what you really want to know is if learning blacksmithing will help you in your chosen line of study. There are two basic types of learning, book or pure knowledge, the other being acquired skills. One without the other is like a sandwich made of only bread or without bread. If you wish to become a mechanical engineer doing some hands on engineering work will make you a far better engineer. If on the other hand you actually want to become a blacksmith having a degree in engineering sure won't hurt, you'll be able to design architectural pieces that will be safe and do the job properly. Unfortunately your question is too broad to get the kind of answer I think you're looking for. To give any but the broadest most general advice we need to know you better, what you want to do and a little about you personally helps too. Stick around, read the sections for what you think you want to do and don't hesitate to make yourself known, we're a pretty friendly bunch even if we can get crabby now and again. <wink> Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinobi Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Id say the fastest and easiest to get written information (almost a book) is right here. and unlike the text books, this website covers pretty much EVERYTHING. if you have some inclination towards what part of blacksmithing you want to get into start in that subforum and prepare to lose the next several hours reading :) otherwise, just click on something that sounds interesting and start reading. if it bores you start again. no need to procure a book only to have to return it if you dislike it and spend all that time to get it. once you have found a subject or two that you find engaging THEN would be a good time to start your library of more specific literature. you might also read through the book reviews subforum, that will give you some opinions as to the quality of the texts as well, more than what you would get from the jacket or online purchase reviews. if you want a very basic general blacksmithing text I can recommend from my shelf: Mark Aspery's Mastering the Fundamentals series, The Backyard Blacksmith by Lorelei Sims, and The Complete Modern Blacksmith by Alexander Weygers (haven't finished reading this one yet) Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck in Ms Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 The above mentioned books are all good sources for general information but a hands on.class will bring you up to speed faster. Contact Alec Steele in the UK and get in one of his classes. You can PM him here in IFI, YouTube or under International Young Smiths on Facebook. Enjoy your journey. Chuck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Professo Posted January 18, 2014 Author Share Posted January 18, 2014 Cheers! So far i havent decide what kind of study i wish to do after this one, that why i thought i might follow blacksmithing. Thanks for the reactions, i for sure shall search the forurms. And i am not that old, so i could have a full course for a study of Bs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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