January 17, 20197 yr I'm finally getting some paid instruction from a local smith and it is so absolutely worth it. He has been teaching me his tong method, which is far more practical than it is traditional, but metalwork is my only source of income so I need to get it done quick. The greatest insight I had so far was comparing his tongs to the store bought (drop forged) equivalent. He had me put some material in the vise(1/2" round) and grab it with the tongs, and then he said "pull". So I did. Then he said "PULL!", and I used my best tug of war technique and those tongs were locked down tighter than a pit bull. I had no idea how well the tongs were supposed to perform, but I sure do now.
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