The Blacksmith - The last of its breed.

Found this great video. To bad it is not in English but a picture is worth a thousand words. Enjoy!
Der Letzte seines Standes Der Schmied aus Bohmen - YouTube

a friend of mine does exactly that and gets paied very well. although prices for coal are incredible, since its not used in larger quantities anymore. he gets it from poland, i believe, where they still heat their houses with it.

When I was in 9th grade I wanted to be in the machine shop co/op program at my High school, it was the best program in the state and I would be following in the footsteps of two uncles and a grandfather who taught at the school. I had to enter into a prep program at the school for my entire 9th grade term to see if I was a good fit for the program.

I was one of the Students of Mr. LaRooso and spent nearly the entire year with and anvil and hammer learning to heat, bend and cut red hot metal. Other students were making things on lathes and mills, learning to grind while we made candle sticks and ornamental iron fence work. I was upset and wondered how this would make me a machinist, other students made fun of us and called us art students.

I got into the Co/Op program and spent the next three years learning everything I could. I was told I had a natural talent for this work. Today I agree it's just something I love and feel I was born to do.

I tell people I can tell if a tool is cutting right from across the room. Of course that's and exaggeration but I can feel it, smell it, listen to it. I have a connection with the material and tool that tells me it's right or wrong and I believe that comes in big part from the year I spent with the hammer and anvil pounding, bending and cutting red hot metal.

Thanks Mr LaRooso

Make Chips Boys !

Ron

When you look back on those old methods, you realize that they were displaced by one of humankind's most driving forces - laziness; the ever-present push to produce or accomplish something with as little effort as possible. It's not always a positive thing because it usually comes at the cost of lost artistry and (sometimes) lower quality. But overall it's probably good.

The author of this video has also documented other crafts in his "last one standing" series.

Illinoyance said:

The author of this video has also documented other crafts in his "last one standing" series.

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I just watched the file maker film. The guy was making files by hand rapidly. I couldn't believe it!

I've watched videos on power hammers and power presses for hot ironwork and have been impressed with the money (Time) saved by bumping the end of a red hot rod instead of machining the whole length down except for that larger area. Production factories seem to adopt such techniques but they aren't in most machine shops. Those two things, plus the room to keep them, very valuable.

Back in the late 50s I got coal for free. The main line for the coal trains passed about a mile from my house after crossing the Mississippi and there was coal scattered all along the track. This was in the south and no one used coal for anything so I had as much as I could carry home.

With my mother's vacuum cleaner for a blower, I made aluminum castings with that coal and some scrap aluminum. I learned most of the basics the hard way.

dian said:

a friend of mine does exactly that and gets paied very well. although prices for coal are incredible, since its not used in larger quantities anymore. he gets it from poland, i believe, where they still heat their houses with it.

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i suspect the trains used black or brown coal and you need charcoal for blacksmithing, which complicates thing further.

GregSY said:

When you look back on those old methods, you realize that they were displaced by one of humankind's most driving forces - laziness; the ever-present push to produce or accomplish something with as little effort as possible.

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Are you sure it was not money making. The more that can be made for less labour input means more money.

In many things labour is one of the highest costs.

dian said:

i suspect the trains used black or brown coal and you need charcoal for blacksmithing, which complicates thing further.

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Coal ,brown or black anthracite burns hotter than charcoal. I had relatives that were blacksmiths and farriers and used anthracite coal they got off the railroad tracks. I suppose charcoal was used when coal wasn't available.

mike

There are several great American Blacksmiths too, I have had the privilege to have met 2 and also Roy Underhill.

First one is Peter Ross in NC

I have also met James Austin in Oakland CA who is a Real Journeyman Blacksmith trained in Germany.

Promo - Forging a Viking Age Broad Axe: Traditional Asymmetric Wrap - YouTube

Promo - Forging a Viking Age Broad Axe: Traditional Asymmetric Wrap - YouTube

There are many hundreds of excellent full time professional blacksmiths in the USA. The guy featured in this video is a master- but he is far from the "last", even at that time in Germany. There a bunch of pro's in Germany, I have met a few, and they do well. We actually know more about metallurgy, materials, and process than the old timers. And that knowledge means that the guys today, who practice enough, are every bit as good as the ones 200 years ago, except due to more knowledge and less guessing, the products are better, too. I was just at the Northwest Artist Blacksmith conference a month ago, and there were probably 150 blacksmiths there, with a good 20-30 of them full time pros.