Hello From South Dakota

[Gramps66]

I've got an opportunity to release my creative side and smithing seems like the appropriate outlet. Having retired from body/collision work last fall, I've been wondering how I could stay in metal work, as that was always my favorite part. I'll be reading and perusing the site and am looking forward to building a small gas forge to get started with.

[MC Hammer]

Welcome Gramps!  You'll find a new obsession with forging and I wish you the best.  Read a ton of stuff here on this forum and you'll be all the better for it.  If you are looking for the challenge, certainly building your own forge will supply it but I recommend just buying one.  It comes basically ready to hook up to propane and go.  If you follow the threads on forge builds, some guys spend a loooooong time trying to get their built forges working on their first build when they could be spending that time forging hot metal.  You can build one for a ton less money if you follow many of the plans laid out in the threads.  Welcome aboard, and don't mind us if some of us get grumpy with people once in a while.  As a whole we are all guilty of that but you'll never find a better group of people than here.  The wealth of knowledge is just something that you can't believe until you tap into it.  I've only been at this for a few years now, but most everything I've learned has been from reading and from here.