[TheForge] Real men dont use tongs

[Doug Ayen]

Quoth Andy Vida (osan@netlabs.net):
> 
> 
> Howell Steve wrote:
> > 
> > My preference:
> > Glove on tong hand, not on hammer hand
> > Speaking of gloves:
> > Are there any lefties out there?  I have about 20 unused righties that could
> > be yours. They are a size M, leather, from Boeing surplus.
> 
> Funny you should ask... I'm a natural lefty, but old enough to have
> been a victim of the old "left handedness is the sign of Satan"
> belief and was "broken" of the "habit".
> 
> Years ago I decided to try smithing left handed and was very surprised
> to find how natural it felt.  Strangely it was NOT the hammer hand that
> had problems, but the right hand holding the tongs.  It was quite the
> discovery to find that apparently the left hand's chore is more taxing
> to the flesh than that of the right.  Holding tongs isn't as easy as it
> appears, apparently. 
> 
> Has anyone else ever tried this?
> 
> 	-Andy
> 
When I damaged my right elbow, I switched for a while. Yeah, the hammer
hand just goes up and down, angling the face of the hammer to match the
work. It's the tong hand that does the positioning, moves the work around,
holds it steady, and keeps it off the floor. Usually.

At a hammer-in a couple of years ago, a demonstrating smith commented 
that after he'd had to switch hands due to an injury, he got proficient
enough with both hands that for some work he'll use two hammers, using
a vise or jig to hold the work. In particular, he demonstrated heading
a nail that way -- heat and point the rod, score and put it in the nail
header, drop the tongs and grab another hammer and whead the nail over in
a single heat.

--doug