Hello.  I'm Marius Titus from the Cape Winelands.
 

I am mainly a bladesmith, but I also have a passion for the art of blacksmithing thanks to my teachers, one of whom (sadly on the brink of retiring) still has the original toolkit his father gave him as a very young boy.

The bug bit me in the 90's and it's been an interesting journey all the way.

My favourite tool was a 10 pound sledge picked up at a scrapyard (back when people were still allowed to do so) with a handy large radius straight peen that makes short work of reducing stock.  (I'll give the story that each hammer has a name and background story a skip ;)) 

Advice to beginners would be to find qualified teachers and be prepared to listen patiently, even though a lot of it won't make sense at the beginning.

 

Keep well

Marius

Welcome to the forum, and old smiths never retire, we just rust in peace.

Did you read this section of IForgeIron?

 

South African Highveld Blacksmith Assicoation

Welcome aboard Marius, glad to have you. I have a similar hammer, weighs 17lbs. and has a straight pein. It's dynamite at drawing steel if a boy can swing it, I let the youngsters swing it when they strike for me. Mine is a stone dresser's hammer but makes a terrific smithing hammer.

 

One last word, we LOVE pictures.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome Marius, hartelik welkom.

 

Glen the Highveld is aprox 900miles away from his home , not much if you drive fast :)

As requested, here is a view of the shop, I use a japanese type box-bellows.

 

 

Some of my work-horses.  The small faced dog-head hammer is by Conrad Hicks, the blackened ones below it and to the right are homemade.

 

 

 

The handy sledge for drawing heavy stock.

 

My most recent blacksmithing project, this one for the home.

Nice screen, salt glaze on the fireplace bricks? I take it your home is pre 1950's ?

 

Btw. I like your hammer collection!