[TheForge] How much is it worth?

Tue Jan 14 13:39:08 EST 2025

We, my wife and I, were ABANA members for many years and attended many 
conferences East of the Mississippi starting in Birmingham - I think in 
1987. My wife conducted the spouses program at several conferences. Many 
local clubs in the Great Lakes area are still very active, but are 
showing a lot of gray hair and also have lost a lot of gray haired 
members. Our Northwest Ohio Blacksmiths (NOB) have picked up several new 
members through "Forged in Fire" and they join wanting to make a knives. 
I am also a member of several other clubs that have interests in old 
technology. Power of Yesteryear - antique farm machinery. Historical 
Construction Equipment Association - self explanatory. Our amateur radio 
clubs also display a lot of gray hair. Most are having difficulty 
attracting younger folks to keep the older skills alive.
At 84, I also am facing how to dispose of the blacksmith shop's 
contents. I combined 2 hobbies, blacksmithing and antique machinery when 
I built the blacksmith shop in 1988. Most of the contents were purchased 
at local auctions, when prices were reasonable. The power tools are 
powered by line shafts, pulleys, flat belts with a 25hp oilfield engine 
on natural gas providing the power. Besides several anvils, anvil tools, 
many tongs, hammers, post vises and drills, there are pulleys, shafts, 
bearings, clutches and stuff I don't know I have to be passed on to 
others, but how and when. My wife is a serious quilter and we have had 
several discussions about my stuff and hers. I hope we are both able to 
continue those conversations for a long time.

I'm not sure there are any easy answers.

Bob
The Eagle's Anvil

On 1/14/2025 12:29 PM, JERRY FROST wrote:
> I wish Theforge.list carried more traffic but seems everybody has moved to social media. I gave up trying to use ABANA's forum when it turned into an ad sheet for ABANA. The org. was losing members at an alarming rate, couldn't even get magazine subscriptions because it had stopped being blacksmith oriented. Lastly ABANA's refusal to allow pictures has always been a serious down check for theforge.list. Heck, ABANA has always treated theforge.list like a nuisance. I used to be an ABANA member but couldn't maintain it even though they "offered" online renewal. Never got a response, not once in a couple years. Couldn't even resubscribe to the magazines.
>
> ABANA made my decision for me, if it doesn't give a shit, to the point of it being too much trouble to run my credit card and enter my name and address to the membership files. I believe ABANA membership rolls reflect the club's apathy.
>
> Sorry for the rant, I wish I had an answer but there doesn't seem to be a way to drag ABANA's head out of it's 3rd. point of contact and nobody seems to want to run for office. Can't blame anybody for that though.
>
> I've been thinking seriously about selling my shop and tools and pricing is a problem for me too. Shipping is a killer here and getting word out is a problem, none of the old newspapers exist, they've all moved to social media. I spent some time looking online and so little smithing gear is for sale in Alaska I learned zip about local, even remotely local prices.
>
> I'm going to have to skyball pricing and bargain with prospective buyers. Announcing it at the next club meeting will be the start and I certainly won't be shipping to the lower 48. <sigh>
>
> For an alternate site to sell your gear subscribe to "Iforgeiron.com" it has a tailgating section and slow as it's been is thousands of times more active than Theforge.list has ever been. The only restrictions on pictures is they be, metal working related, be fit for your 5 year old and be within the file size restriction. Oh, if you want to advertise a commercial site you need to contact admin and pay for the privilege.
>
> Frosty
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Dave Mudge" <davemudge1 at gmail.com>
> To: "Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Monday, January 13, 2025 10:28:38 PM
> Subject: Re: [TheForge] How much is it worth?
>
> Thanks Bruce. Where on line?
> Can you suggest a site?
> thanks,
> dave
>
> On Tue, Jan 14, 2025 at 12:32 AM Bruce <freemab222 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Yeah, few of use use this forum anymore.  Too bad.
>>
>> If I were selling equipment, I think I'd try to check prices online, but
>> distinguish asking price from price paid.
>>
>> Bruce
>> NJ
>>
>>
>> On Tue, Jan 14, 2025 at 1:12 AM Dave Mudge <davemudge1 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Good Morning, hope that you are all well and warm.
>>> Looks like no one is using TheForge email list any more.
>>> Where is all the action nowadays?
>>> I am ready to sell some good blacksmithing stuff that I haven't used in a
>>> long time. Unfortunately, I don't know how to price this stuff. Any
>> advice
>>> or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
>>> dave mudge
>>> Magic Hammer Forge
>>>
>>> --
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>

-- 

Bob Willman
The Eagle's Anvil
Bowling Green, Ohio
WB8NQW

We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions
unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry would break
the strongest cords of our constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our constitution was
made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.

John Adams