[TheForge] 1045 uses

[Gladish Family]

My turning point was with a beautiful and well-loved ram's head fire poker
that I had made for my neighbor. He wanted the point tweaked just so, and
when I heated it and started hammering the head popped off. Came from a
batch of surplus stakes for cement forms, that had been hammered into who
knows what kind of ground, who knows how many times.
Lots of cracking and breaking in that lot.
Ever since, if it's for sale, it's new steel.
Kept the head and put it up in the shop as a reminder.

Andy G.

> To All,
> Hallelujah!
> Thank you, George.
> I can remember the afternoon of being held at the pillory at Gichner's
> Hammer-in in January 1990 after I had the temerity to suggest to
> a group of
> blademakers that a broken leaf spring found at the side of the
> road may not
> be the best piece of steel from which to make a knife.  I have
> always been of
> the opinion that the investment in a good known piece of steel
> suited to the
> task for which it is used is very economical.
>
> Hochewa