Elden

Master Smith Mike Williams who is the ABS Liaison to the Moran School of Bladesmithing at Texarkana College started an excellent thread on preparing for classes on the ABS Forum at, click:

Preparing for Class.

You will be see many reply posts to this thread by our members that provide some very helpful and sound advice.

Elden;

You will have a blast. Two great instructors.

Have plenty of liquid; lots of it! If you have a forging hammer you are used to, bring it; but there are plenty of hammers there to use.

Speaking of hammers; if you don't use one a lot, bring some blister remedy with you. Tape, ointment, etc. Two weeks of forging will make some tender spots on anyone.

Keep an open mind. I just finished a class at NESM. I noticed the students were heavily focused on the forging aspects.

You don't want to overlook the end game; that is to make a good knife. The tips and instruction on grinding, heat treating, edge geometry, etc. are very, very helpful in the near future.

Have a notebook and keep notes.

Have fun. I will be at the hammer-in. Say hi.

Mike

|quoted:

Speaking of hammers; if you don't use one a lot, bring some blister remedy with you. Tape, ointment, etc. Two weeks of forging will make some tender spots on anyone.

I've not taken the basic course so I'm asking out of ignorance but do they teach you how to grip as well as how to swing a hammer? The old smith that taught me to forge didn't, so I had to learn the hard way and there's more to it than just grabbing the handle.

Gary

Gary, I don't know thst hammer handling is specifically listed, but it is covered. I know Mike goes into handle shape and grip, also hammer motion. Good point. Elden you will have a great pair of instructors. I will also be at the hammer in, so I will see you there. Also just living down the road in Norman, if you need anything let me know.

Brion

Elden,

I took a basic Blacksmithing course several months prior to the Intro Course. I learned hammer control and all the basic forging skills. I found it was a tremendous help. I had some time to continue building hammer control and muscle memory. Google ABANA and see if any events are being held in your area that you might attend. Exercise, standing on concrete forging and grinding all day is hard on the legs and back. I know one student that recently used a Gopro video camera to film a class he took. You'll learn so much, it kinda runs together for awhile after the class until you sort it out. But, the main thing is have fun it's a blast, and you'll make lots of new friends!

Bob

Well, the September Intro class at Old Washington is fast approaching. Joe Keeslar and I will be working for you in this class, and we should have a great time.

This is a good thread on preparation for the course, as is Mikey Williams' link. Basically, you need to protect yourself against heat, abrasion, noise, grinding dust, bruises, and dehydration. It's still going to be warm in Arkansas the second and third weeks in September, so prepare accordingly. Bring either a good metal water bottle or plan on buying lots of bottled water. There's no ice chest or refrigerator at the school, by the way. There is, however, a regular water fountain on the premises.

A few things are paramount in your clothing and equipment. No and I mean NO polyester clothing should be used around the forge. Polyester will catch fire and melt into your skin, so let's all show up wearing cotton shirts and pants. The best footwear would be boots of some sort with the pants legs pulled down over the tops, so that no hot flakes of slag drop down into a boot or shoe. I've seen some pretty lively dances around the anvils at times where an aspiring smith chose athletic shoes to forge in. Granted, you'll be standing on concrete all day for two weeks, but you'll eventually need some good boots to forge in at your own shop, so I advise at least ankle-high boots with good support and soft soles.

Gloves - leather, but cheap. I always see guys with expensive deerskin gloves, which last about 3 hours. Don't waste your money; you can use the White Mule brand or something similar for about 3 bucks a pair. Look at WalMart, Home Depot, etc.. You'll grind holes all in these the first week, so I suggest that you bring three or four pair. Buy cheap, but make sure they fit.

Leather apron - cheap is OK, or you can splurge and buy a really nice one from Kenny Rowe at the Hammer-In. I have one of his aprons that I bought about 20 years ago, and it's still fine. The cheap ones (welding shops, etc.) work well for awhile. Aside from keeping hot things like slag from burning the front of your body, an apron will keep you from setting your shirt on fire at the grinder, keep hot blades from branding your belly and legs, and just as importantly in hot weather, it will reflect a lot of heat away from your core (inner body) so that you're a lot less likely to come up with heat stroke. Sounds weird, but it's cooler to forge in a leather apron than it is without. In short, you really need one of these.

Safety glasses or good prescription glasses are a "must". Ear protection in the forge of foam plugs or earphones are a good idea. A respirator to filter out dust particles are pretty much a "must" for the grinding phase. At the very least, find some paper filter masks to wear at the grinder.

Antibiotic cream and band-aids are pretty much a staple for me when I travel or teach. Pain reliever/analgesics like Alieve, Tylenol, etc. are a pretty good idea.

Last, but not least, you should bring stuff with you to take a lot of notes. There will be a lot of material that you'll need to write down in the classroom about steel, suppliers, equipment, etc. and I can't stress enough that you should take the best notes you can. This is an extensive course and Joe and I will be trying to stuff a whole lot of information between your ears in two weeks. Don't worry, you won't be spending most of your time in a classroom, though you will spend some time there. This is a "hands-on" course. Expect to get dirty the first day.

Having said all this, I'm looking forward to the class. See you there!