Joshua F Posted March 15, 2023 Share Posted March 15, 2023 Hey all, 50 yr old guy, just starting to get into blacksmithing...go figure, I decide to start hobbies as my body starts falling apart..lol I'm loving all of the threads thus far. I look forward to learning a lot from you guys... Pre-apologies for any dumb questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted March 15, 2023 Share Posted March 15, 2023 Find a fuel in your area that is inexpensive, and get a forge that uses that fuel. Go slow, until your body adjusts, as in any new activity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted March 15, 2023 Share Posted March 15, 2023 Howdy from eastern Oklahoma and welcome to the forum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted March 15, 2023 Share Posted March 15, 2023 Welcome aboard from 7500' in SE Wyoming. Glad to have you. Your fuel choice may be dictated by both availibility and your proximity to neighbors. Coal will generate more smoke and odor (not that much if you manage your fire correctly) than charcoal or propane. Don't buy propane at one of the exchange tanks places it is much more expensive and they are famous for not filling tanks full. Find a real propane supplier and refill your own tanks. Don't use charcoal briquettes. They are powdered charcoal bound together with corn startch and will disintegrate in a forge fire. Look at the threads regarding JABOD (Just A Box Of Dirt) forges. Or buy a commercially built forge depending on your finances. Use an improvised anvil like a piece of rail set on end until you decide you want/can afford a better one. Smiths primarily used a block of iron for an anvil for thousands of years before the London pattern (standard roadrunner/coyote shape) was invented in the 18th century. You can use things like vice grips or channel locks as a "grabber" until you decide you need real tongs. Iforge iron is a great group. Ages run from teens to 80s. Education for drop outs to advanced degrees. Life experiences are pretty broad. Just keep you language appropriate for a little girl and stay away from politics, religion, and sex and you'll be fine. I hope you find the craft as rewarding as I have over the last 44 years. It has helped me through tough times and made the good times better. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted March 15, 2023 Share Posted March 15, 2023 Welcome! Nothing to add to the basic advice given above, other than the fact that the dumbest question of all is the one you don't ask. The imagined injuries to our reputation that we fear might come from *asking* something dumb are insignificant compared to the real injuries to our bodies that come from *doing* something dumb. Trust me: we've all made fools of ourselves along the way, and we will not think less of you for asking (although we do suggest doing a bit of research first). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted March 15, 2023 Share Posted March 15, 2023 PS I also strongly suggest that you look up and join the California Blacksmiths Association. Learning from live folk is orders of magnitude better than watching videos or reading books. Yes, you can learn by yourself. I know. I did it. It is not optimal. Back when I started in 1978 there was no internet. All I had were some books from the library and a lot of my own mistakes. It was many years before I even met another smith. GNM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted March 16, 2023 Share Posted March 16, 2023 Welcome from the Ozark mountains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shainarue Posted March 16, 2023 Share Posted March 16, 2023 Welcome from NW Missouri. Looking forward to following your journey into this addictive hobby! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua F Posted March 16, 2023 Author Share Posted March 16, 2023 Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swedefiddle Posted March 16, 2023 Share Posted March 16, 2023 Good Morning Joshua, Welcome from the Wet Coast, Vancouver Island. There is a reason we have big trees, they get watered almost daily. 'Borrow' some 'Play-Doh' from the kids or pay the unhealthy amount of about-a-buck from the Wally place. Steel works exactly like Play-Doh, except with steel, you need Tools to manipulate it. Let your fingers do the Learning!! Squeeze between your thumb and fore-finger is like striking Steel at the edge(corner radius) of the Anvil with a radius face Hammer. This is called 'Drawing it out', making it smaller and longer in one direction. Yes there a few good books to learn with, I use 'A Blacksmithing Primer' for my students. The journey starts with small steps, it has a beginning, but there is no end. It stops when you stop. There are almost no people with their nose in the air, it is refreshing. Enjoy the ride, Neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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