pragtich Posted May 12, 2023 Share Posted May 12, 2023 Hi all, Nice to meet you. I'm a forty-something guy from a rural (relatively) area of the Netherlands. I came to blacksmithing due to a fantastic workshop with Kees Klaassen at The Green Circle, an astoundingly cool crafts initiative not far from here. I'm feeling the learning pains, especially in the area of design and proportions. But it turns out that my body takes the hard work quite reasonably (despite being a full time office dweller during the work week), and I'm having a blast doing beginner stuff and trying to get regular practice in in my improvised home forge. I attached a pic of a beast of a rake that I forged some months ago. Lesson learned: 12mm (~1/2") square is really too heavy for this handle and drawing down (started at 17mm) will show you your inefficiencies quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 12, 2023 Share Posted May 12, 2023 Welcome aboard, glad to have you. We have a pretty good size group of Nederlander members, you're in good company. Yeah, making things heavier than necessary is a really common beginner's mistake. When folks think of a forged item a picture comes to mind of heavy duty but in practice we don't make things heavier than necessary if we can help it. That's a decent looking fire rake, well done. I start folks out with 3/8," 9mm or so square hot rolled. Even then things like pokers and fire tools tend to be kind of heavy. A couple years ago I started using salvaged coil spring with smaller wire size and like it much more. Either normalized or as forged coil spring is plenty rigid so thin shanks and working ends can be thin and light and still pry a log or hammer a clot of slag to dust without damage. You'll find a smaller blade on rakes is handier and moves more than enough coal, charcoal, etc. a good pointy is a must for digging clinker out of the air grate. I like to twist the handle to make them easier to grip. The ladies generally don't like the sharp edges of square stock from the mill so I break (chamfer) the corners lightly on the anvil before twisting, they still make a nice grip but aren't sharp. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pragtich Posted May 14, 2023 Author Share Posted May 14, 2023 Thank you, Frosty, for the insight and encouragement. I happen to have scrounged some smaller wire size spring recently, so I'll definitely give it a go. Best, Pragtich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 14, 2023 Share Posted May 14, 2023 You're welcome, it's my pleasure. A bit of warning I forgot above. The higher the carbon content the physically harder steel is to forge and the more sensitive to good fire management. Be patient with it and do not leave it at read heat for any length of time without hammering it. The carbon and iron molecules begin to form crystal patterns that make it brittle if you leave it hot. Hammering breaks the crystals, commonly called grain, reducing brittleness. Spring steel is usually more forgiving of poor heat management as it derives much of it's hardening qualities from a high chrome content. It's good stuff but it makes you work for results. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted May 14, 2023 Share Posted May 14, 2023 Welcome aboard from 7500' (2286 meters) in SE Wyoming, USA. Glad to have you. Also, welcome to the craft. I started in my 30s in 1978 and it has been a definite addition to my life. It has helped be through tough times and made the good times better. Hitting hot iron after a frustrating day at the office is a great stress reliever. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shainarue Posted May 17, 2023 Share Posted May 17, 2023 Welcome from Northwest Missouri in USA, pragtich! (also, is there a story behind the letter flip in your username or just because it was fun?) Like you, I'm also forty-something (but a gal, not a guy) and just started out about a year ago. This has been by far my most dedicated and most loved hobby in my life. I hope it becomes the same for you. I looked into The Green Circle and it looks like a wonderful group of tradespeople. There is a similar organization near me that specializes in demonstrating & teaching the historic arts. I'm glad to see you've already invested in a workshop, as that's the fastest and most painless method to learn this craft! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swedefiddle Posted May 17, 2023 Share Posted May 17, 2023 Good Morning from the west coast of North America. The beginning is always the best place to start. LOL There are many different Blacksmith groups around the world, find the group near you and connect with them. It is always reassuring when you have a Mentor watching your progress and offering little bits of helpful guidance. I give all my students a small container of 'Play-Doh' (plasticene, modeling clay, river bank clay, cookie dough, whatever is handy). This moves like hot metal, except you can hold it in your hands and use your fingers. Enjoy the Journey, there is a beginning, but there is no end...... Neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pragtich Posted May 17, 2023 Author Share Posted May 17, 2023 Hi all, and thanks for the warm welcome and top tips. Really mucht appreciated! Shainarue, it's cool that you caught the joke in my username! For the others: "prachtig" means beautiful or splendid in Dutch. My family name contains the same letter flip (we descend from the province of Drenthe with possibly some connections in Groningen. The 'g' seems to be more common than the 'ch' around there maybe? At least in the pronounciation that difference is quite significant. I got to college in 1997 and those were the days that you could still hope to find unique-ish usernames and this one turns out to be quite universally unused. The workshop is, as of yet, a 100+ year old anvil and a German style coal forge ('feldesse') which has had an electric motor fitted in a past life, outside in the garden. Since the rainy months we have had recently, I have started work on an inside space. Converting a corner of our disused barn. Yet another distraction from the actual forging, but it will get me out of the rain, that will be welcome... Swedefiddle, I appreciate the comment around finding a group to join. I'll do that. Just the workshops, and chatting to the sellers that sold me the tools, has taught me to greatly respect the history and depth in this craft! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shainarue Posted May 17, 2023 Share Posted May 17, 2023 I have noticed that different regions in the Netherlands have fairly strong pronunciation variations. Like soft or hard g or w or whether the end "en" on verbs are pronounced. We have dialect differences here as well, but the Netherlands is so tiny compared to the US (like, the size of just one of our states) that it kinda blows my mind how many dialects y'all have. It's not surprising at all that pragtich as a username is always available. My sister has always used a mashup of her first name and last name from her first marriage to create meolgiga - which is also always available because it is otherwise just a nonsense word, lol Sounds like you have a pretty good start to a useful workshop! I work out of a 10x12 shed with the forge directly outside the door and the anvil directly inside the door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gewoon ik Posted May 18, 2023 Share Posted May 18, 2023 Welkom from belgium. Have fun. There are a couple of us BeNe people around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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