Mountainman's Mantra: Blacksmithing in The Rockies

The Rockies (photo by V.A. McMillan, 2022)

Recently, I had the distinct pleasure of attending a weekend blacksmithing course at Stone Wood & Steel Blacksmithing (https://www.stonewoodandsteel.ca/about) and instructed by blacksmith extraordinaire James Greisinger. This was a weekend getaway for the “Dad’s” – sponsored by each of their own families. Thank you to each and everyone that made this weekend possible!! Counting the Mountainman, there were five in our group (no names, no pack drill – anonymity protected).

Stone Wood & Steel - Info Card (Front)

On day one, our group was joined by a group of two and a solo student who finally found a non-conflicting time to attend his Intro to Blacksmithing Class. Enthusiasm was high and everyone was eager to learn. After a morning coffee and introductions, James introduced everyone to the safe conduct in the shop and expected behaviours to ensure projects got completed and no one would get injured. Next came the briefing and demonstration for the first project – a steak turner. Soon after, eight eager hammer wielding terrors were released to the heat of the forge and the resounding chiming of hammers bashing hot mild steel to a fine point on one of the four anvils arranged around the shop. In short order, step one was complete, and everyone was instructed on making the point into a curved point, and then an eye was forged at the other end, complete with a cap lifter for those pesky bottles without screw-off caps.

Stone Wood & Steel - Info Card (Back)

The afternoon was spent learning the finer details of bending square rod into “S” – curves, flattening the square rod and bending scrolls, and twisting. To aid in this learning each student worked on a fire poker. Unlike shop class back in high school, a million years ago, James affords his students the luxury of making a customized, one-of-a-kind, masterpiece…remember how shop class graded you on whether your fire poker looked like the twenty other fire pokers made in the shop class. Thus, learning is accelerated because you are not trapped in the conformity cycle and are free to learn, do, and produce a forged item that meets your needs.

Day two, was just our group. Instruction was focused on what the group wanted to learn. The warm-up project of the day was more leaf work to practice the controlled bashing of steel from round bar into a leaf of whatever leaf shape you needed. I decided I would smash two willow leaves at either end of a short branch. I wanted to make a mounting hook to hold the steak turner I made the day before. This quick project gave me practice of making a leaf or two, drawing out the bar stock, bending curves, and I learned how to punch a mounting hole through the upper leaf. Depending on the metal you are smithing, some finish the forging process harder and more difficult to drill once the project is cold. Learning how to push a hole through hot metal makes life easier later…and it is a cool skill to learn.

Here is my finished steak turner and the willow leaf hook to mount the set to the wall:

Mountainman's Steak Turner & Willow Leaf Mounting Hook

If you have even a tinkling of desire to get close to a forge, heat up some steel, and then bash it with purpose into a useful item, I highly recommend you contact James at Stone Wood & Steel and get yourself and your friends registered for a couple days of blacksmithing!!

Blacksmithing is a traditional skill that will be collectively lost if folks let the skills die out. Hard to say whether not having a blacksmith in every town across Canada is a blessing or a curse…everyone should have an appreciation for what blacksmithing did to help civilization for the last couple millennia. Of course, some folks prefer cheap crap from Costco instead…who am I to judge. If nothing else, kids today should be exposed to the ambience of the blacksmith shop and be amazed at how things use to be made, one item at a time. Getting time wielding a hammer and have it shape hot metal; now that is learning.

Local businesses are the heart and soul of your community, and if they are not supported, they, too, will die out. So, if you are interested in serving time at a forge and anvil; contact James and setup a course or two for you and your friends. As with my other blog posts that spotlight a private business, I do not get paid or receive kick backs for sharing my experience. I am not the government or some big corporation. If I have a good experience I share it, if I have a poor or bad experience, I usually don’t share, unless sharing will prevent harm to others.

Until next time…get off the couch and get your butt next to the forge and make something awesome with your own two hands, hot steel, and a hammer!!!

Mountainman.

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