Crowd Control

[tribal forge]

Another name for them is a shiskabob (I know Spelling sucks!!) I make mine from either 3/16" or 1/4" square rod, taper em, put some fancy twists on em, then a handle(hook) $5.00 a piece

[RLD]

I work at a living history site and can see several hundred visitors a week. To solve the crowd control problem we built a fence section showing several different picket styles that are available the the customers. You can see this fence on the PBA site in the gallery section. www.pba.abana-chapter.com

[Mike Ameling]

When I demo in public, my "attitude" changes from when just working on projects in the shop. The "showmanship" part has to be kicked up a bit - with lots more talking/explanations along the way.

"My grandpa was ..." I usually point to my anvil and point out that it is from my great uncles "farm" shop - and then let the conversation flow where it will. Had a lot of tips and even a rivet forged delivered and given to me that way (since I would actually use it instead of just plant flowers in it).

Crowd control. Always tricky. I tend to put that rope around. It works for most people and kids - with the kids understanding it better. Although, the kids "hang" on it more. A friend who used to demonstrate 1760's French Colonial blacksmithing at historical events would put his tool boxes out around as a barrier. But one time he had a guy who had watched him for most of and hour - as he worked his side-draft forge with charcoal. That guy saw the flames, saw the hot iron, and heard all the talking he was doing. Then the guy stepped over his tool boxes, reached into the forge, picked up a burning/glowing chunk of charcoal and said "Is this hot? Ouch!" And he did it before my friend could even say anything to stop him. So much for crowd control and understanding what was going on.

Another time he had a father off to the side carefully explaining to his very young son what he was doing/showing. How my friend had a piece of red celophane inside the forge with a light beneath it, and had spray-painted the iron rods RED on the ends. After he stopped laughing and composed himself, he did do some one-on-one correcting of that mis-information - in a gentle school-teacher manner.

He always said that he used the forge/anvil to draw a crowd --- to then teach history. He taught a lot of history in his demo's.

At the steam engine/threshing/tractor/gas engines shows, I and several friends often offer and help talk interested kids through carefully making some simple items - to allow them to get a "feel" for the work/skill involved. After they finish a little project (like an S hook) the boys often then grab a chunk of steel and ask if they can then make a SWORD from it! Success at making an S hook somehow instantly translate into having the skill to forge a sword. More gentle explanation then follows.

One time I had a father ask if his daughter could try as well after seeing us talk several boys through their first taste of blacksmithing. She was kind of shy. Yes, of course ... step on in. She was a real darling. She had carefully listened to everything we had told and shown the boys. She knew what was needed next. Her only problem was skill and strength. She was a real trooper, and did well. The next day her dad stopped by. He said she bubbled on and on about blacksmithing and the project she made - all the way home and till bed time. She had just been reading through the Little House on the Prairie books, and the whole threshing show and blacksmith experience helped make the stories come alive for her. He was pretty certain he was going to have to investigate some blacksmithing equipment. We gave him lots of contact info for us and the Guild of Metalsmiths out of the Twin Cities.

I also had one young girl (around 5 or 6) watch me make up a leaf keyring. She carefully watched and listened. When I was done, I handed it to her to see, and told her she could have it. She thanked me and went bubbling off over to her parents a few yards away. A minute later she came back and handed the leaf keyring back to me saying "I don't have any keys." I handed in back and suggested to her that her mother might have some and appreciate it. Another thank you and off she went - bouncing and bubbling along. Little kids. Such a joy.

I finally made up a little ... story board ... of the steps to form a leaf keyring. Forged up each step and glued them to a board in the correct progression. It helps explain a lot to see each step laid out all in one place - from iron rod to finished leaf. And then to show people one being made really makes an impression on them. They are a good "demo" project, even though they do take more heats. You can still finish one up in the normal attention span of kids.

Yes, when you are doing a demo, you are there to talk and show. Forget about production work. You are the show - especially when you are paid to do that demo. You need to be talking/showing all the time - or have an assistant there to help as needed. Doing both yourself will often lead to problems with anything past really simple work.

Shoeing horses question? I usually reply "No, unless you want your horse to die." Then the explanation about how specialized it is to shoe a horse correctly. Although, that response does sometimes lead to a conversation about shoeing or not shoeing horses at all.

Shoeing an elephant? Elephants have "paws" instead of "hooves", and their toe nails are on the front of the foot, not bottom. But some working elephants do get ... tie on ... shoes made up. Something like the tie-on boots of dogs used as sled dogs, or your own shoes. But nailing an iron shoe onto an elephant just would not be done - since they do not have a "hoof".

The loud know-it-all's are always a pain. My usual response is to offer to let them do it themselves (if the insurance allows that). That usually quiets them down - unless you phrase it as a direct challenge. But only once did I have somebody then step in and show me he really did know what he was talking about. I somehow missed that fine line distinction in the tone of his voice - between a real blacksmith and a know-it-all. We both had a good laugh and chat about techniques/experiences.

Yes, I keep telling people that blacksmithing is ADDICTIVE! Very few heed the advice!

Just my humble thoughts to share. Take them as such.

Mikey - that grumpy ol' german blacksmith out in the Hinterlands

[j.w.s.]

I have the luxury of having a permanent demo setup. I have wooden railings around my demo area and it is backed by black metal square netting. Very useful for keeping out reaching hands. Sometimes when asked if blacksmithing is dangerous I place a piece I'm working on, usually as though I'm not paying attention, just over the edge of the anvil - then I tap it with the hammer and it goes flying into the mesh. Very good for getting the crowd to have a seat. Another question I get rather often is "do you make mistakes" - my reply is that blacksmiths never make mistakes, however we make frequent product redesigns! When asked if I can make them a sword, I just normally point to the counter which typically has several dozen and tell them that I already did.

On a side note, we often get people who think they know it all. While attending the counter one day a few years back I had a lady insist that none of our knives were sharp because they were all "fake" knives. We insisted that, despite her attitude and general ignorance, all of our knives were indeed sharp and should be handled with care. At that point she was sure she knew better then us, picked up a blade and with a loud triumphant "See!" she produced a dark crimson pool in her hand as she sliced deeply into her own meat. She dropped the knife, our shop manager never missed a beat and took her over to first aid. Her boyfriend was left standing there with a look of horror on his face, I asked him for his credit card. Still in shock he looked at me funny, so I pointed to one of our many signs with the inscription "You Blood It, You Bought It" The constable that came up to the booth was kind enough to wait for him to finish the transaction and even carried the knife for him as he escorted the shocked man to his waiting girlfriend who was ushered off the property after being bandaged up. Something tells me that was the last $200 he ever spent on her.

-J

[Caius]

after laughing for five minutes straight until the point that i just sat here clapping like a seal with a mental deficiency with no more sound coming out of my mouth, i decided that before i do a demonstration at the request of me dad at a tractor show, i will have to make a few warning signs to protect the inevitable idiots in the world from themselves.

[Frank Turley]

My friend, Tom, demoed frequently and got tired of adults asking, "What's that black stuff?," referring to coal. It was toward the close of a demo day, and a man asked the question. Tom was tired, and told him, "it's cottage cheese spray painted black." The man hung out at the back of the audience until the last demo was finished. He approached the forge to feel the black stuff to check, I suppose, if it was really cottage cheese.

For the 'my grandpa' thing, I work it around to ask them what they do for a living. It's usually claims adjustor, tax assessor, or suchlike.

If you think the grandpa thing is a little overdone, you should be a Native American. An Indian is frequently told by a white person that his or her grandmother was a Cherokee. Furthermore, "a Cherokee Indian Princess!" Oh, brother, spare me!

Glen, another demonstrator, was asked every so often, "Is that hot?" His response was, "Give me a quarter and I'll lick it!" When the quarter was proffered, Glen would lick the quarter and put it in his pocket.

http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools

[jimw]

The inevitable question "do you shoe horses"? always rears its ugly head. If I like the person, I usually respond with a simple "no, farriers do that sort of work". If the person is a heckler or a wiseacre, I simply look at their feet and say "no, but I do shoe jackasses and mules"!

[Old N Rusty]

When I do demo I do the rope barriers with that woven yellow and black safety tape - can't be broken like crime scene tape, tho' that stuff might be appropriate for the crime of "impersonating a blacksmith" . Plan ahead what you will be making there and come with: a handful of LAG bolts you have cleaned the galv off with a muriatic acid bath( swimming pool supplies aisle Wally world) then with great showmanship cut the bolt head off with hardy and proceed to make swag hooks -always a big seller of course. Nails , and leaf like objects, and such, unless you got someone to watch the sales table or you have eyes in the back of your head you won't have to worry about having an overstock of finished items that mysteriously disappear. I can be very polite as to the ancestor smith stuff - it's a bit of a bore to be speaking about rail road spikes and soon I will have a damascus r.r. spike to show and tell. Be especially nice to the kids and always be patient and polit. Go Grrrr at home.

[Smokin' Coke Forge]

When someone tells me about a relative who was a blacksmith, I usually ask them right off what type of stuff they worked on. When they answer, regardless of what it was, I tell them that that Im probably not a skilled as that yet, and that I try to stick to simpler stuff like nails, hooks, candle sticks and the like. Then I let my nearby display work speak for itself.

When the horseshoing question comes up, I always state that even though blacksmiths can make horseshoes, nowadays its much cheaper to buy a steel blank and fit it to the horse. Thats usually done by a farrier now, a specialist who knows some blacksmithing, but is is actually closer to a veterinarian than a blacksmith. If their relative did horseshoing, I make sure to express my respect for that person, since shoing a horse involves so much more than just making a steel shoe.

I the end, it doesnt matter to me if they are blowing smoke at me or not. I demo for fun, and to entertain whoever cares to watch. As long as they walk away happy, and take away a little more than they came with, it was worth it. I probably had more fun than they did anyway. :)

[Macsen]

I work at a historic site, where we use a rope barrier to keep people back. At Colonial Williamsburg they have a counter across the smithy to keep people back.

Last weekend I was having a good conversation with a couple while demonstrating. The woman asked if I minded a "really stupid question" I said "not at all, I'll always answer politely, and anyway, when the smiths get together later on, we like to tell reallystupid question jokes."

[Steve Sells]

I had thought I already posted here. This 3 year old photo is my demo set up for the RenFaires, my son helps out a bit, and there is my Kohlswa 45 on the stump

[Spurrit]

Put an angled mirror up overhead like they do in demonstration kitchens. They can get a first person view from a safe distance.