[Sca-cooks] Portable forge- was Re: Teaching in the SCA

[Saint Phlip]

Well, with a bit of determination, any forge can be made portable ;-)
As it is, when I built my forge, I designed it to break down into
fairly small pieces, and have taken it to quite a number of events. My
current project is to build a wooden forge and box bellows and
equipment that will be approaching a period set up as closely as I
can, given the constraints we have on site usage- for example, I'll be
building a bench for my stake/stump anvil, since I rather doubt that
site owners would appreciate me cutting down a handy tree to provide a
stump ;-) And, I suspect digging holes for forges for one-day events
is likely not a good idea, either.Already have an A-frame
smithing/camping tent I built last summer.

My compromises tend to be a bit odd. Working on the premise that a
craftsman such as myself would not have built a tent, but would rather
have exchanged work for it with a professional in that area, I'm good
with the tarp I got for it being purchased commercially, even if the
grommets Would be a bit bewildering to my persona- Oh well, it works.
And, have found a flax canvas tarp that should be viable as a day
shelter, for one day events, making my set up even more portable- if
it ever gets bloody shipped, I may get a second one, remove the
grommets, stitch two together, and be even closer to my ideal- but for
the time being, the cotton canvas will do.

Looking at bellows, I am NOT going to kill a billy goat and turn his
hide inside out. I don't think bag bellows would be as efficient as I
need in the first place, and I don't happen to have a billy goat that
needs killing in the second place (never mind, they stink). And, the
Viking style of paired single lung bellows have never worked to my
satisfaction, and the double lung bellows are just barely in period.
OTOH, I discovered a Chinese style, the box bellows, which I have some
documentation for going back well into our period (although not
necessarily into mine). I think, therefore, I can build a quite
portable set up that's a lot closer to our peiod of study in concept
and design, and still not detract from my effort to provide a learning
environment. And after all, my chief student is...ME ;-)

But, back to your initial comment, I'm doing a fair amount of
research, looking for travelling smithy set ups. However, most I've
found tend to me military, and too late for my premise. I KNOW that
there were travelling smiths amongst the Ostrogoths in my area and
time period. How did they do this, and what did they need? And how can
I compromise for our one-day or weekend events, when I tend to believe
that the travelling smiths would set up for at least a couple of
weeks?

Every time I get bewildered, I just take things back to what I'd
actually NEED to shape iron- iron, something to heat it with,
something to hold it with, something to hit it with, and something to
hit it against. Amazing how many necessities become conveniences ;-)

On Wed, Apr 23, 2008 at 2:24 AM, Huette von Ahrens <ahrenshav at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Phlip,
>
> I don't know if you have yet, but you should talk to THL Njall Olaf Hagarson.  He has
> a wonderful portable forge on wheels that he uses for his demos.  He built it when he lived
> here in Caid.  It is now closer to you since he recently moved to Meridies.
>
> Huette
>
>


-- 
Saint Phlip

Heat it up
Hit it hard
Repent as necessary.

Priorities:

It's the smith who makes the tools, not the tools which make the smith.

.I never wanted to see anybody die, but there are a few obituary
notices I have read with pleasure. -Clarence Darrow