Welcome Randy, feel free let any of us know how we can help you on your path to Journeyman.

Welcome to the ABS and the forum Randy.

Brion

Who would know when classes are being  held and where with me being in central Iowa it will be a bit of a journey to get to some of the classes on either the west or east coast, so that being said it seems the best options would be SOFA or Colorado. I really want to achieve my abs MasterSmith certification but must first get my Journeyman rating and I could really use some more in depth training than the knowledge I currently possess 

Hi Randy and welcome! The folks on here are a tremendous resource and you can take Kevin at his word as well as Brion. ABS is a guild dedicated to learning, sharing and teaching. That’s what attracted me I. The first place. There is so much knowledge here on virtually every aspect of bladesmithing and finishing.

Re classes there is one MasterSmith in Iowa not too far from you. Howard Clark offers some intro classes and has just posted this year’s schedule. His forge is called Morgan Valley. They are not official ABS classes so they won’t shorten your apprenticeship period. Howard’s a good teacher and a friend.

That said I took my ABS intro from Brion at the New England School of Metal Work. Excellent school.