1.13.7

First of the New Year

Yeah, we’re entering our third week, but no one reads this anyway so it’s more of a personal smithing journal The weather has been crappy. Very cold for our neck of the woods, snowy, frozen. But I’m not going to use that as an excuse anymore and I honestly plan to get into the shop far more often than I have been. I’ve come to realize that my smithing is a kind of gift. And that gift needs to be used and my skills need honing, especially if I intend to sell anything Yes, it IS enough that I know how to heat, bend and form metal with a hammer and tongs. That I can do the very basics and that I intend to share that with as many people as will listen ensures that this craft will survive. But I’ve been thinking that I want to do more than just share it with people, I kind of want to inspire them. I know, it sounds like ego, and it is. But let’s be honest, I spent my entire adolescence being told by one preson or another that whatever it was I was doing wasn’t good enough. Couple that with being inherently lazy and you have a combination that results in someone who just doesn’t give a damn very often. Well, now I feel like giving a damn.

In that regard, here’s what I intend to do for 2007:

1) Pattenwelding steel/forge welding. I’m already on my way with a sizable billet that started as 3 layers: 1 of 1095 and 2 of basic mild. Might not make the prettiest patterns but I’ve got it started and that’s a start! If this works out then I’m going to try to make a “wraparound” axe with a patternwelded bit and mild steel body forge welded together. That will be an exciting piece.
2) better furniture. I started using a new method late in 2006 (well, it’s new to me). I’ll be adding the description to my tutorials in “the smithy”. I like the end result, there’s not a lot of waste and it’s not super labor intensive. But for my “through tangs”, etc I need better lines, more refinement: handles need to line up better, nicer furniture front and back (smaller gaps, more intricate designs). No one can do that for my knives but me. The bloodwood seax is moving me in the right direction. But the sycamore handle’s grooves don’t look as good as they did in my head, the blade has a couple of blemishes from where the belt sander bit in and I need a nice leather sheath. I’m hoping to attend some jewelrymaking classes this year, they should help with design and execution in non-ferrous metals.
3) Better sheaths. This shouldn’t be too hard to improve. I’ll have to put my hands on some of the leatherworking DVDs or books. I’m not sure if the leather is the issue or what but I’m just not getting the results I’m looking for.
4) Overall refinements: fewer divots on blades. Better planning. Less saying “meh. good enough” and more “can this be better?”

I’m hoping for a good 2007 with a marked improvement in overall quality and maybe a couple of sales