[TheForge] Blacksmiths in space!

[dantull at numail.org]

 Frosty, It's a common problem.smh

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jerry Frost" <akfrosty at mtaonline.net>
To: "Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Tuesday, January 17, 2023 12:41:42 PM
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Blacksmiths in space!

Seeing something from theforge list in my inbox makes me feel good too. Too
many folks have gone to Facebook and it's nonsense babble.

Since Forged in Fire our club meetings have started getting dangerously
crowded, I spend as much time keeping people from getting hurt or hurting
others than I do mentoring. The common condition I see at meetings is people
with zero shop skills. Seriously adults who have never swung a hammer or
used a power tool, let alone with people standing within a few feet. 

We have one member in his 50s who has zero sense in a shop, he's a great guy
but should stay on the sidelines watching his son. Last year I actually had
to shove him and yell. The owner of the studio where we meet has two belt
grinders placed the along a wall with a bench relatively close so people
grinding have the bench at their backs so others can't walk behind them. He
deals with  lot of college art students learning bronze casting. Anyway the
club member I was referring to literally shoved his way between a pair of
guys using the belt grinders, he actually pushed them into the belts! I'd
seen him making his way along that side of the bench to avoid the crowded
floor and I came around the other end yelled for the guys at the grinder to
stop and step away then I had to straight arm the clueless one to get him to
stop. His response was consistently, "It's okay, it doesn't matter."
Sometimes I think I need one of those marine corps DI hats so I could do a
full blown,  brim of the had on the bridge of his nose screaming in his face
dressing down. Like I said, he's a great guy but he's dangerously clueless
in a shop. I've mentored him 1on1 and he picked things up well enough but I
had to start with how to hold a hammer, NOT his you MUST be kidding 4.5lb
cross pein but MY 32oz drill hammer. At another meeting I spotted him
hitting a hardy with a forging hammer to get it into the hardy hole to  the
shoulder. Yeah, beat the too large shank into the hardy hole!

He's probably the most extreme case but most of these guys have never worked
in a shop, I've stopped more than one from putting their hands between the
power hammer dies and it's notorious for coasting. Having to tell them not
to stomp the treadle to the ground is expected and they get it immediately
but the lack of shop skills is depressing. I've started to understand the
high suicide rates among young people now days. They've gone through school
and can't figure the area of a circle let alone the volume of a cylinder,
necessary to determine what size burner or burners in a cylindrical propane
forge. These poor kids not only don't know how to work with their hands they
can't solve problems. It's no wonder they commonly think they can forge a
blade, often a sword the first time they step up to the anvil. 

The really cool thing is how many of our first timers are excited and walk
with a bit of swagger after being shown how to make the simplest thing at
the anvil. I've had to stop starting guys out with a leaf coat hook it's too
many different techniques for the demand for hammer time at a meeting so we
do tent stakes, S hooks and similar. Lots of plant hangers, toasting forks
an fire pokers. Probably the most effective WOW technique is a twist, just a
simple twist hooks em but good. (;

I need to stop, I've rambled on too long already. Keep lighting the forge
fire in newcomers. Oh yeah, remember to trim previous posts, only leave
parts you're responding to for continuity's sake but delete the rest.

Frosty, Meadow Lakes, Ak.

-----Original Message-----
From: Dave Mudge
Sent: Monday, January 16, 2023 8:19 PM
To 
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Blacksmiths in space!

I am happy to see some activity on TheForge
Dave Mudge
List mom for TheForge



______________________________________________________________
TheForge mailing list
Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
Post: mailto:TheForge at mailman.qth.net

TheForge mail list group photo site is
http://www.shutterfly.com
Login: blacksmithblacksmith at hotmail.com
Password: anvil

This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
Message delivered to dantull at numail.org