Shop Saw Update

Several months ago I stumbled on a Craigslist ad for a small metal cutting band saw. I had been kinda looking for one but they were always well out of my price range. This one caught my eye because it was listed for $50. I brief look at the pictures revealed that not only was it the kind of saw I was looking for, but it was also a Grizzly brand which is a brand I quite respect. I called to see if someone scooped it up and found it was still there so away I went. 

I showed up to a small fabrication shop and they walked me back to where it was. I was a little rougher in person than the pictures showed and it was missing a blade, some guards and a manual. Still, they plugged it in and it turned on so we I loaded it up. 

I did some searching on Google and came up with a PDF of the manual and discovered Grizzly still sold blades for it. Woohoo! 

I ordered the blades and set them aside with the manual for when I would have a chance to tinker with it. 

That was last year...

Well, tonight I dragged it out and started fiddling with it. I figured out how to install the blade, rigged up a larger table face so I could use it as an upright saw, hunted around for some srock i wanted to cut for split crosses amd started cutting. I experimented with different blade speeds. I discovered a loose lock bolt for the blade tension wheel after the blade came zinging off during a cut. 

All in all, it worked really good.  I'm super happy with that $50 chance. I look forward to being more productive in the future.

My New Hammer

I have always been interested in working with metal and had even made a couple metal sculptures but nothing ever really serious or focused. A little over 6 years ago I received a book about blacksmithing as a birthday present from my parents. As I was reading through it I began to think that this was something I would like to try. As I do with most things I am interested in, I began to research it. Looking online for blacksmithing websites and checking out the library and of course I ended up on YouTube.
As a research tool, YouTube is almost priceless. It allows me to access practical information regarding almost any subject I’m looking for. I began surfing through the pages and pages of videos from all over the world covering all kinds of things related to the topic I was interested in. I began to notice that two names kept popping up. One of the names was GaryHuston and the other was TechnicusJoe. I began watching and re-watching various videos these guys posted and I learned quite a bit. I sort of considered myself as their unofficial intercontinental apprentice.
Time went on and I joined a blacksmithing page on Facebook. One day I see that TechnicusJoe has joined this same page! I was jazzed so I sent him a friend request which he accepted. He then sent me a message saying hello! I will fully admit to being a little star struck. Here is a person, who lives in The Netherlands, whose channel I’ve been studying for years and has thousands of views sending me a message! I had to fight to contain myself. We chatted briefly and time moved on.
Recently, Joe’s YouTube channel hit 1 million views and he posted a video on the subject of raising money in order to continue to make videos and support himself. I sent him a message asking if he would consider commissioned work. I saw he had made a couple hammers and I was interested in maybe having him make me a 2.5 lbs. cross-peen. He replied saying that he could make me a hammer but that it would be very expensive and the cost of shipping would be high considering it was coming from The Netherlands.
I had previously priced out hand-forged hammers so I knew what to expect. We talked back and forth and negotiated a deal that worked out for both of us. He even offered to make a video of him making my hammer! I said I would do an honest video review of his hammer in turn. Here are those videos.


Joe Making My Hammer


Some pictures Joe sent me of my hammer being made

Footage of me using my hammer for the first time




My Review of the hammer Joe made me




As I said in my review video, Working with Joe on this was a wonderful experience. He was very accommodating and asked a variety of questions so that he could make me the best hammer possible. If you’re in the market for a custom made hammer that will last a lifetime and out-perform ANYTHING found in the stores, contact Joe HERE.

Ferrous Frolics

Back in July, Andy and I took the opportunity to go to a festival held at a mining museum in Iron River Michigan. Located at the Caspian Iron Mine Site, the museum holds the yearly “Ferrous Frolics”


“Tuesday, July 26, 2011 10:07 AM
CASPIAN—The Ferrous Frolics festival at Iron County Museum on Saturday, July 30, is offering reduced admission of only $3 per person from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on that day only, courtesy of the Caspian DDA.
A pancake breakfast, sponsored by the Golden K Club, will be held in the museum Cultural Center from 8:30 a.m. to noon.
Tickets are $5 per adult and $3 per children and are being sold in advance through Golden K members, at the Chamber of Commerce and at the museum.
Tickets will also be sold at the door on Saturday morning. Everyone in the community is invited.

Vendors will be on site, selling a variety of craft items.
The blacksmith shop will be open and antique farm machinery will be on display both days.
On Saturday, Northwoods Animal Shelter “residents” will be on the grounds, looking to be adopted, or at least be petted.
Smoky Bear will make an appearance about 2 p.m.
On Sunday, July 31, the regular admission price of $8 per adult will prevail.
Vendors, food and refreshments will be available from noon to 4 p.m.
After browsing the grounds and shopping, attendees can relax or dance to the country music of Paul and Roy in the Cultural Center from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
The blacksmith will post hours each day.
Antique farm machinery will be on display both days, in addition to access to all the numerous buildings throughout the museum grounds.
Ferrous Frolics provides a unique opportunity for both tourists and locals to have a “peek into the past” at a bargain price.
For more information, call the museum at 265-2617.”

Andy told me about this event he used to go to as a kid and it sounded great; add to this the fact that Andy’s parents have a cabin on Camp Lake and we had the ingredients for an outstanding weekend!

We drove up on Friday the 29th. Once we got to the cabin, which turned out to be a beautiful 2 story house right on the lake, we unloaded out gear and headed over to meet up with his grandmother who works at the museum. We had a nice dinner at a local restaurant then headed back to the lake. We checked out the lake, the pier and discovered I’m a giant sissy when it comes to being in a canoe. For more on that click HERE.

After the failed canoe attempt, we headed over to a local bar where I repaired my damaged pride by winning a game of pool, drinking beer and watching extreme sports on a big TV:) We eventually decided that morning was soon to come so we headed back and crashed for the night.

In the morning we headed over to the museum for the pancake breakfast. We paid our admission, got out plates and went into the main hall to sit down with Andy’s Grandmother and some of her friends. While eating our pancakes and sausage, I enjoyed listening to several people at our table chat and tell stories of older times. Events like this are rich with history and knowledge if you know how to listen respectfully and encourage the conversation. After a while people started to move around so Andy and I set out to explore the grounds. We checked out several of the buildings and saw some really neat old machinery.














Best of all, they had a working Blacksmith. His name was George Potvin and he runs “Ten Mile Creek Forge” in Bark River Michigan. We sidled up to the open doors of the smithy and stood grinning as George was explaining to someone else what he was doing. After a while they left and George turned his attention to us, welcoming us further into his shop even offering us the opportunity to crank the blower which delivers air to the forge and helps make the fire burn hotter. Being first to crank, George guided me to an appropriate speed to gain heat but not waste fuel which turns out to be a pretty delicate balance. We asked questions when they occurred to us and listened as George and his friend chatted with people who wandered in and out of the shop. After a couple of hours or so, George turns to us and says “Well, it’s about lunch time so I’m going to grab a bit to eat. Did you guys want to hammer on some metal?” Wide eyed and barely able to contain ourselves we nodded in unison so he dug around and came up with some bar stock. “Here you go, have fun” He said, and headed for the museum.


“Whattaya wanna make?” Andy asked me. I said I didn’t know, let’s just see what happens. We put the bar in the fire and got it hot. Andy pulled it out and started pounding on one end to start a taper giving Andy the status of being the first one at Fox River Forge for strike metal as a blacksmith apprentice!



He did a couple more heats and got a decent taper going and turned it over to me. I heated the other end and made a loop. As I was working on the loop some other festival goers walked in. We hastened to explain that we were NOT actual Blacksmiths and were in fact just learning. The people asked questions anyway and there were some we were able to answer. We have both been reading and researching this craft for almost a year prior to this event. I was surprised at what I was able to explain. I’ve said for many years “Sometimes the best way to learn is to teach.” I then heated the middle and attempted a twist. This took a couple of tries before I got the tongs on it properly to get the twist. I turned it back over to Andy who was working on the taper when the actual Blacksmith walked back in and asked us what we were making. We admitted we didn’t really know, we were just working on some basic techniques. He suggested a couple of bends at the tapered end to create a fire tender. Andy followed his guidance and before long, our aimless experiment became a functioning tool we have utilized with actual campfires!




It was an exhilarating and encouraging experience.

George did a great deal to help us gain knowledge and confidence and we can’t thank him enough. Please check out this link to his website and if you get a chance visit the store. I know we plan to.

After such a great afternoon, we stopped in town for a pizza and beer at a local pub, picked up some supplies and headed back to the lake to watch a couple of movies and then hit the sack. In the morning we handled a couple of chores at the cabin and at Andy’s Grandmothers house then headed home. It was a great weekend and we look forward to checking out next year when we can encourage some friends to come up and take part in a great event.