LR- metalworking... soon, perhaps

Jane Sitton jane.sitton at radioshack.com
Wed Apr 18 13:27:01 PDT 2001


Bonjour mes amis!

We have good news of sorts:  Logan had four different appointments at the VA
hospital in Dallas yesterday, and after hours of poking, prodding, an EKG,
and blood work, he was FINALLY cleared for surgery on his hernia, which has
been threatening to become strangulated here lately.  His blood pressure,
which had formerly been on the low side, had become elevated of late due to
extensive usage of his albuterol inhaler.  Now the blood pressure has come
down to a normal level.  This seemed to be the deciding factor in getting
the surgery.  He doesn't have a date scheduled yet, but we are told it will
be sooner rather than later, as the hernia has gotten much worse in just the
last month.

So as soon as he's fixed and has recuperated, he will be back at the
forge... just in time for the searing summer heat!  Believe me, he is
anxious to get back to work.  He has several projects that are almost
finished, and it's depressing him to even look out in the back yard and see
his hammer lay idle.  And of course, has has two young apprentices to train.
:)

As far as learning metal working from Logan, Lord Dunstan, (or anyone else
interested) you need to understand that it is extremely hard, hot, dirty
work that requires you to pay absolute attention so that you don't get
injured.  Extensive hammering causes microfractures in the bones of your
arms, wrists, and hands, and breathing the fumes from the forge can cause
silicosis.  It is not in the least bit glamorous.  Keep in mind that even
after a couple of years, you may still not be much good at it unless you are
some sort of prodigy.  I don't say this to discourage you, rather to let you
know what you're getting into.  

Typically, in olden times, when a blacksmith took an apprentice, it was for
at least seven years, and often longer.  The first year or two, a young boy
would get to haul water, coal, iron, and chop wood.  Then he'd graduate to
the scut work (as if being a step-n-fetch-it wasn't bad enough).  The main
reason for this seemingly mean treatment is due to the fact that at first,
all an apprentice does at the forge is burn up too much coal, overheat the
iron, burn his fingers, and try the patience of the master.  If he's lucky,
the apprentice won't cause any lasting injuries to himself or others.

Of course, starting as an adult, you'd have a much abbreviated
apprenticeship.  You possibly already know something about metalworking --
it's usually welders and ferriers who develop a hankering to learn more.
You wouldn't have to haul water & chop wood, of course, and naturally, you
wouldn't pay a fee to learn (Many apprentices had to pay a fee to be taken
as a student.).  

Logan teaches for the love of the art, and to ensure that the craft
continues.  He is a bit of a perfectionist, and coupled with his tendency to
be a procrastinator, can cause frustration to many new students, but he is
also very skilled.  He was apprenticed at the age of 12 to an old railroad
blacksmith.  He learned a bit of farriering as well, but doesn't practice it
much, he says, because he doesn't like getting kicked in the head.  When he
was in Viet Nam, he studied with some of the Montyard blacksmiths up in the
mountains, pretty much hammering plowshares into swords.  When he did the
ren faire circuit in Colorado in the late 70's and early 80's, he also spent
time learning goldsmithing and quite a bit of silversmithing.

Since he's been smithing since 1964, I tell people he's been at it as long
as I've been alive.  His main criteria for apprentices are a sincere desire
to learn (since time is money, and we all know how the Scots are about
money), an ability to follow directions exactly, as people have been known
to get burned, maimed, even blinded by accidents at the forge, and a decent
amount of hand-eye coordination.  There's nothing more dangerous than a
klutz around heavy, hot materials made of iron.  The forge gets really
hot... I'm not sure how hot; Logan could tell you that, but I'm fairly
certain it gets over 2500 degrees F.  Too hot to take any chances.

Well, I'll shut up now before this turns into a novel.  Hope to see you at
the Bardic tonight, or if not, then at Padraig's wake this Saturday.

Amicalement,
Madelina de Lyndesaye
secretary to Laird Seamus Donnacadh Loganaich an gabhain, more commonly
known as Logan the Smith
mka Jane Sitton-Logan
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