Retirement Projects
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Today’s project. This will hold an old cast iron double sink for my daughter’s garden.3 -
I'm not retired yet, but this is my latest project. I yarn bombed a tree in Eureka Springs as part of the May Festival of the Arts.
My finished tree:
Close up for detail:
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Since I'm not yet retired, I suppose my efforts don't really count... I'm not as much of a wizard of the woodwork as Farback so I bought a kit chair, spent a few hours sanding away some of the imperfections, then stained/sealed it... assembled, light sanding and final coat...
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Long holiday weekend (still worked til 5 on Saturday and going in to mow some commercial clients this Monday morning) so got some work done on the smithy.
Lights are on. Still running off a long extension cord buried in the grass, but the smithy is wired properly.
Also note the old furnace blower in the back window with old grill hood bring in cool outside air and the hood (12" galvanized duct elbow) over the forge is installed through side window.
Still have some work to do on the outside.
Like figuring out how to mount the smoke box.
And then install 10' of flue pipe and a rain cap [crosses fingers] soon. (My son holding smoke box for pic.)3 -
Another small step towards blacksmithing in all weather.
Smoke box is mounted. First section of flue pipe added temporarily just for kicks. Threw some burning paper into the hood and it started to draw properly.
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A little Father's Day present for myself (OK, my son helped too).
Now we'll have to see if she survives the first big wind.3 -
Couple of summer storms have past and flue is still standing.
Managed to get out and start a fire in the forge this morning using feed corn, a renewable "green earth" fuel (rather than fossil fuel coal) and knocked out this blacksmith knife with my son. He then did the grinding on an old Craftman belt/disk sander.
Not bad as a first attempt at a knife shaped object.4 -
Farback, you are amazing. You haven't been working on the kayak in this retirement project feed, but I certainly thought of you when I saw this shirt:
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Question for the group.
Having seen a few of the items I've forged, would you be more likely to buy one if it was forged using a renewable 'green earth fuel' like corn as apposed to fossil fuels like coal and propane, or a deforresting fuel like charcoal?
Is 'Green Earth Fuel' a selling point or not?2 -
d_thomas02 wrote: »Question for the group.
Having seen a few of the items I've forged, would you be more likely to buy one if it was forged using a renewable 'green earth fuel' like corn as apposed to fossil fuels like coal and propane, or a deforresting fuel like charcoal?
Is 'Green Earth Fuel' a selling point or not?
Corn isn't any more green than charcoal. Corn is grown in fields created by cutting down forests... plowed, fertilized and harvested using fossil fuels...2 -
d_thomas02 wrote: »Question for the group.
Having seen a few of the items I've forged, would you be more likely to buy one if it was forged using a renewable 'green earth fuel' like corn as apposed to fossil fuels like coal and propane, or a deforresting fuel like charcoal?
Is 'Green Earth Fuel' a selling point or not?
In marketing terms, I think it could cut both ways, depending on how you convey the information.
For sure, the "green earth fuel" featured in big letters someplace would be a selling point for some people. But it would make others eye-roll (darn hippie freaks and their self-satified greeniehood!). Presumably, you'd like to sell to anyone and everyone. Not knowing how you plan to market (web vs. shows vs. placement in retail venues), or what kind of area you live/sell in (lots of environmentally oriented people or not), it's hard to evaluate the value of that as a selling point.
One thing I might suggest is somehow sharing your process with people (pretty easy on a web site, but maybe a poster if you're doing booth sales, hang tag mini-brochure if consignment or wholesale?), and embedding the fuel in it as a point of goodness. You could then emphasize it in in-person sales by talking with people if they seem receptive (or let people learn more by clicking through, or it's one of several bullet points in a mini-brochure, or whatever).
For in-person or web, what I'm thinking would be interesting to most people is an overview of the production cycle, maybe from finding your materials (I gather you're often upcycling), then the heating/working the metal, (where at the overview level you could mention using renewable fuels, or green fuels, or whatever you choose - link to more info about that if it's on a web page), then follow the process through to a finished product.
Your whole story of your scrounged/home-built shop is fascinating to me, and I suspect would be to a lot of people, so that could be another click through for more depth on a web site.
I'm thinking there's a way to present this so that it would appeal to the gritty get-it-done kind of people (via the whole DIY/old-fashioned ingenuity angle) and the more crunchy granola kind of people (via the salvaged/repurposed shop, recycled input materials, environmentally conscious fuel, handmade product angle).
If you're doing booth sales or the like, featuring the process along with the products is a way to talk to potential customers more - "happy to answer questions whether you buy or not" - with the understanding that making that connection with people will move a few more of them along from interest to purchase even without a hard sell.
Just my thoughts.
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Thanks for the responses.
@UncleMac Most of America's bread basket is located in the great plains area where only native grass sod was turned under the plow. Other than that, my only comment is... SHH! X-nay on the ossil-fay uel-fay. Next thing ya know, people will be finding out the nearly all feed corn is GMO.
@AnnPT77 All I can say is, Wow. Much more info than I was expecting.
I'm not really interested in starting a business selling my forged items. I was more hoping to sustain my hobby by selling off what I don't give away.
I won't be doing booths, might do demos if asked. Most interest has been word of mouth. Mainly from my wife posting images on her Facebook groups.
I was just curious if using corn as a fuel would add to the overall appeal of repurposing scrap steel.1 -
d_thomas02 wrote: »Thanks for the responses.
@UncleMac Most of America's bread basket is located in the great plains area where only native grass sod was turned under the plow. Other than that, my only comment is... SHH! X-nay on the ossil-fay uel-fay. Next thing ya know, people will be finding out the nearly all feed corn is GMO.1 -
d_thomas02 wrote: »Couple of summer storms have past and flue is still standing.
Managed to get out and start a fire in the forge this morning using feed corn, a renewable "green earth" fuel (rather than fossil fuel coal) and knocked out this blacksmith knife with my son. He then did the grinding on an old Craftman belt/disk sander.
Not bad as a first attempt at a knife shaped object.
I love seeing Alert Diver in the background.
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d_thomas02 wrote: »Couple of summer storms have past and flue is still standing.
Managed to get out and start a fire in the forge this morning using feed corn, a renewable "green earth" fuel (rather than fossil fuel coal) and knocked out this blacksmith knife with my son. He then did the grinding on an old Craftman belt/disk sander.
Not bad as a first attempt at a knife shaped object.
I love seeing Alert Diver in the background.
I read that cover to cover when I get it. I’m a DAN member for some years now, been diving since the 70s. Mostly resort diving in Jamaica now, but did fire service recovery work for a time.1 -
I'm a DAN member, too. I am a volunteer diver at the Oregon Coast Aquarium, and my next little vacation is a five-day trip to the California Channel Islands with Truth Aquatics.
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Actually did this last weekend. Using corn as forge fuel (note flames in background are being drawn sideways into forge hood).
(Wife took this while I wasn't looking.)2 -
@d_thomas02, you're doing some fun-looking and wonderful things! Just to offer a whacky alt-crafts view of retirement projects, here's a necklace I have in process.
The stylized skull is made from polymer clay (Sculpey, IIRC) with fluid acrylic color and a bit of mica powder, plus a protective finish. It's tab set on a 26ga copper backplate (tabs cut from the backplate). The backplate was textured with what amounts to a jewelry cross-peen hammer worked radially (on a teeny palm-sized anvil), then oxidized with liver of Sulphur gel.
I'm working on the strap/chain, and there will be dangles below (from 3 holes at the bottom of the backplate).
ETA: The chain/strap has pyrite, Czech glass, agate, Carnelian, and some copper crimp covers.2 -
I'm not retired, which is why I'm covertly pouring over this thread at work. I am in awe of all the talent here.3
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