Hey Folks,
We at Singing Steel Forge are still in the middle of the process of getting up and running and while that is happening there is still much learning and designing to do. I am focusing on intake of skills and knowledge that I can hopefully put into practice within the next few months. I want to focus initially on forge welding, drawing down, and upsetting skills. Laminating steels and irons is definitely a skill that only a blacksmith can do and as such is something I wish to perfect before beginning any artistic or production projects.
In other news, for any horse owners in the Homer, Marshall area I am currently receiving information on the Cytek Horseshoe System. This is a very good company interested in a more ergonomic and correct horse shoe for horses. These shoes are proven to correct many of the issues that bad shoes or bad shoeing can cause and also to correct some of the serious issues from unshod horses that have hoof problems. We do not intend at this moment to become a farrier here at Singing Steel, However horses and blacksmiths are forever intertwined and we wish to respect this historic bond. Also we respect horses and the farriers that care for them and wish to provide as much as possible in the form of tools and equipment we can to support those noble animals and their caregivers.
As such I want to outline a goal for Singing Steel Forge, I love tools and tool making and feel that for the immediate future that this should be the primary focus of the forge with artisan, ornamental work being a very close second.
Tomorrow is birthday and all I want for my birthday is to be melting steel and wielding a hammer before my next birthday. My sister who also has an artisan business (Trees From Deforest on Facebook! please visit, look and buy.) is in need of some tables and this is a perfect opportunity to practice laminated steel looks and such to make tables that are a elegant mix of form and function.
I have said before and I cannot say it enough Dreams are good but if you want them to be reality it takes hard work, sacrifice, and determination. DO IT MAKE IT HAPPEN and prove to the world that it CAN!
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Exciting things in the making!
Hello Friends!
It has been a while since the last update, Sadly there is not much to tell, I have some space issues in the workshop that have pretty much put a hold on my ambitions for now. But as anyone who has succeeded will tell you there will always be hurdles for you to jump over on your way. What news I do have is exciting, I have won an anvil from Matchless Antiques http://stores.ebay.com/Matchless-Antiques . Fellow Blacksmiths I must say that Steve the owner of the eBay store is ever the friend of the craftsman and if you have a chance to do business with him or purchase one of his items it is a good experience.
I have now a 130 lbs Anvil, I need a large log chunk to put it on but that will come. Also I have made arrangements with a local contractor to install some steps to the second story of my workshop so that my space problems will finally be alleviated. It has been an exciting few months and with the baby coming time will be at a premium but we will find time for more developments along the way.
Next on the to do list is to re-engineer the hearth. I had originally made it with an aluminum base and while this might have worked well I have been recently blessed with a very solid steel base with much larger wheels and a lock so that my hearth can be more mobile.
What is a Hearth you ask? Well for those not fluent in blacksmith reading this. A hearth is where the blacksmith makes his fire. It is basically a box fireproofed with a hole in the center with tubing attached to it. This hole is where all the ash and debris is dropped and where air is forced into the coal to make it burn hotter and cleaner.
My Hearth is a stainless steel electrical box that I will line with firebrick, in the middle I have put a cast iron brake rotor and to that is attached 2" black pipe. This is all put on a steel angle iron cart and the 2" pipe is in a T shape so that ash can go down and air can come in from the side. I designed this hearth to be easily fixable made from parts that are readily available. Also I designed it to withstand more then just a steel fire. Ultimately I would like to do some work with titanium alloys and to do other things like smelt brass, copper, silver etc.
What else is new, Hmm, I have a new email for Singing Steel Forge, singingsteelforge@gmail.com also I am in the process of registering a makers mark with Anvilfire. A very good friend is working on the design for the makers mark and for what will eventually become the Singing Steel Forge brand. I am very grateful for all those who are lending their support, materials, knowledge and assistance. Thank you ABANA for all your great articles and support for blacksmiths.
I have now a 130 lbs Anvil, I need a large log chunk to put it on but that will come. Also I have made arrangements with a local contractor to install some steps to the second story of my workshop so that my space problems will finally be alleviated. It has been an exciting few months and with the baby coming time will be at a premium but we will find time for more developments along the way.
Next on the to do list is to re-engineer the hearth. I had originally made it with an aluminum base and while this might have worked well I have been recently blessed with a very solid steel base with much larger wheels and a lock so that my hearth can be more mobile.
What is a Hearth you ask? Well for those not fluent in blacksmith reading this. A hearth is where the blacksmith makes his fire. It is basically a box fireproofed with a hole in the center with tubing attached to it. This hole is where all the ash and debris is dropped and where air is forced into the coal to make it burn hotter and cleaner.
My Hearth is a stainless steel electrical box that I will line with firebrick, in the middle I have put a cast iron brake rotor and to that is attached 2" black pipe. This is all put on a steel angle iron cart and the 2" pipe is in a T shape so that ash can go down and air can come in from the side. I designed this hearth to be easily fixable made from parts that are readily available. Also I designed it to withstand more then just a steel fire. Ultimately I would like to do some work with titanium alloys and to do other things like smelt brass, copper, silver etc.
What else is new, Hmm, I have a new email for Singing Steel Forge, singingsteelforge@gmail.com also I am in the process of registering a makers mark with Anvilfire. A very good friend is working on the design for the makers mark and for what will eventually become the Singing Steel Forge brand. I am very grateful for all those who are lending their support, materials, knowledge and assistance. Thank you ABANA for all your great articles and support for blacksmiths.
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Roads go ever on and on.
Hello Friends!
Welcome to a new blog I am starting to document the journey of a dream. A dream I have had since I was a pre-teen boy with a hammer and a heavy block of steel making pretend swords for the neighbor kids. I love blacksmithing, but up until a couple years ago I thought it was just a dream. That blacksmithing was a dead art and that there was no way to make it an actuality. Then I found ABANA, The Artisan Blacksmith Association of North America. The men and women I read about were doing the art and were actually making a good living doing it. Since then I have been dreaming, reading, planning, saving, and hoping to actually start making metal glow and shaping it. This Blog will be where I share my steps from getting the workshop ready to buying tools and making tools and making items. I remember a song from Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. The road goes ever on and on. . Bilbo sang it just before going for walks because he knew that you never knew where your feet might take you once you step on the road. I am hoping that wherever this road takes me I can share it with my family and hopefully with my son who is still in his momma's belly as I write this. I hope that I can help him find his dream if its working metal with dad or finding his own road on which to walk.
My entire life I have had to listen to people convince me to walk a road of their opinions. I wish I had been stronger and stood up for my dreams when I was younger. Constantly I have heard "That is just a dream you can't make a living doing that kind of thing." or "There's no money in that go to college and become a professional." Let me tell you I hated college it was incredibly boring. and being a professional is white wash every "Professional" I have ever encountered is miserable and caught up in the rat race of appearance and status. Everyone said I was a gifted with computers and with electronics. Truth be told I am gifted with a lot of things but being gifted doesn't stir your soul, doesn't put that spring in your step and a smile on your face.
I have found that two things do that, first and foremost is family and second is doing what you love. I love my family, My wife is the greatest gift I have ever been blessed with and her love and support are what is helping me start this dream and for that I am eternally grateful. And now I get to begin to do what I enjoy and begin a new cycle working to live instead of living to work. And in the process possibly become a better man, a better father and a better husband.
So I hope you all take from this blog one thing. "Never let anyone say you can't or shouldn't" DO IT and prove to them that you CAN!
Welcome to a new blog I am starting to document the journey of a dream. A dream I have had since I was a pre-teen boy with a hammer and a heavy block of steel making pretend swords for the neighbor kids. I love blacksmithing, but up until a couple years ago I thought it was just a dream. That blacksmithing was a dead art and that there was no way to make it an actuality. Then I found ABANA, The Artisan Blacksmith Association of North America. The men and women I read about were doing the art and were actually making a good living doing it. Since then I have been dreaming, reading, planning, saving, and hoping to actually start making metal glow and shaping it. This Blog will be where I share my steps from getting the workshop ready to buying tools and making tools and making items. I remember a song from Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. The road goes ever on and on. . Bilbo sang it just before going for walks because he knew that you never knew where your feet might take you once you step on the road. I am hoping that wherever this road takes me I can share it with my family and hopefully with my son who is still in his momma's belly as I write this. I hope that I can help him find his dream if its working metal with dad or finding his own road on which to walk.
My entire life I have had to listen to people convince me to walk a road of their opinions. I wish I had been stronger and stood up for my dreams when I was younger. Constantly I have heard "That is just a dream you can't make a living doing that kind of thing." or "There's no money in that go to college and become a professional." Let me tell you I hated college it was incredibly boring. and being a professional is white wash every "Professional" I have ever encountered is miserable and caught up in the rat race of appearance and status. Everyone said I was a gifted with computers and with electronics. Truth be told I am gifted with a lot of things but being gifted doesn't stir your soul, doesn't put that spring in your step and a smile on your face.
I have found that two things do that, first and foremost is family and second is doing what you love. I love my family, My wife is the greatest gift I have ever been blessed with and her love and support are what is helping me start this dream and for that I am eternally grateful. And now I get to begin to do what I enjoy and begin a new cycle working to live instead of living to work. And in the process possibly become a better man, a better father and a better husband.
So I hope you all take from this blog one thing. "Never let anyone say you can't or shouldn't" DO IT and prove to them that you CAN!
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