Had a perfect week at the anvil with zero interruptions last month

Last month I had a stretch of three days where everything just clicked. I was working on a set of fireplace tools for a repeat customer up in Portland (she always wants something fancy with twisted handles). Every heat felt right, my hammer blows landed exactly where I wanted, and I even got the forge welding to hold on the first try which never happens. Has anyone else had a week like that where the metal just seems to cooperate? What did you make?

3 comments

3 Comments

karen41013d ago

While it's rolling like that, you almost don't want to stop for lunch because you're scared the magic will break. The secret for me is keeping my forge at a consistent temp and taking five minutes to really study the steel before lighting the fire. I learned the hard way that rushing into a heat when I'm tired or distracted just wastes material and time. Also try marking your hammer strikes with a piece of chalk on the anvil face if you're fighting a weird angle - it helps your muscle memory lock in. For your fireplace tools, maybe preheat the twisted sections with a torch before they hit the main forge to avoid thermal shock. That's what finally got my welds to stick on first try during those heavy gauge builds.

theawest9d agoTop Commenter

Take a video of your stance before you start, not just the work. I did that once on accident when I was trying to troubleshoot a shoulder issue and noticed my back foot was planted way too far back on heavier hammer strikes. Fixed my alignment in two heats and suddenly my twist patterns came out way cleaner. Sometimes its the little things we ignore that mess up our flow.

adam_robinson13d ago

Amen to that. I've burned more lunch breaks chasing a good rhythm than I care to admit.