Hello Ya'all

[Don Halter]

John,
I was hoping to have enough stock together this Summer to get a table at the Austin and Spirit of Steel shows. Unfortunately, with changing jobs and several other things the last few months, knifemaking has taken a back seat. I grew up down in Clear Lake. I hate the drive down to visit my parents....probably not as much as my wife hates riding with me when I make the drive, though!

I used to forge on the patio in back of a condo...with a coal forge. Of course, in a college town, the neighbors were always too drunk to care about noise, or two stoned to want to call the police! Although, the first time I used damp coal, the fire dept was driving around trying to find where the fire was. I did it at a house as well. As long as I kept it to reasonable hours, no one seemed to mind. Inviting them over and showing them first hand what I'm doing seemed to help a lot as well.


I put an email list together from the TKCA site and here. Pretty much a 1.5 hr circle around Bryan/College Station. I was thinking of one saturday each month hosted at a different knifemaker's shop (those of us with space for it anyways). Fire up the BBQ and swap knifemaking tips, lies and general BS. I have some neat upcoming projects for this Fall. I can melt steel now, so wootz damascus is the short term project. I'll have a early anglo-saxon smelting furnace sometime this Fall for producing iron ( I have 2300 lbs of commercially pure iron oxide in the rear of my shop. I also have a "red" possum who lives behind the bags of it!). I'm building a new grinder and a set of roller mills. Richard has power hammers and such and is planning on making a press. Lots of neat "how-to's" for a gathering or two.

Shhhhhh.....Rumor has it...I've even been cleaning and remodeling the shop!

[TexasJack]

Cleaning?! Your shop?!!

[TexasJack]

And be careful badmouthing Pasadena. I make the 50 mile drive to work there every day. You just have to understand that the folks who live here are scared to breathe air they can't see.

I make fun of Don's shop because I've actually been there once and tripped over the partially finished pieces of armor laying about. It's not that he's a slob or anything, he's just one of those guys that's so prolific at making things that he doesn't take time from that to make the place neat and pretty. How he does all those projects and works full time (in a demanding profession) is beyond me.

I ran into those same guys from B/C.S. at the Austin show, and all they could do was brag on what a great guy Don is. ('Course, if I had a neighbor who makes cannons, I might be inclined to only say nice things myself!)

[Don Halter]

I'm adding on a 12' "patio" to the front of the shop. The smelter will be here as well as all the armour forming stumps and whatnot. That frees up a considerable amount of space! Now that it's rained for a month straight...I can dig up the rest of the gravel from the backyard and level the front of the shop. I can dig the clay for the smelter as well.

My shop will never be clean. I'm just shooting for semi-organized and rat-free. I want to move the shear to the rear to keep the shrapnel out of the walk areas as well. Of course, I now can melt down all the scrap and make anvil stakes! September starts the armouring season, so I'm hoping to have the basics redone by then. I have all new tables and counters and shelves now instead of "s**tpiles numbers 1-10" The chickens still come by twice a day. My son still hasn't given up on catching one.

Richard,
The house next to us on the 1 acre lot was forclosed and can be had for $80K. You could be my neighbor! Just think..we could go chicken hunting with medieval cannons!


See what fun all of ya'll can look forward to!

[TexasJack]

You don't know how tempting that is! The commute from Bryan to Pasadena might be a bit much though.

[John Mac Sr]

Oh crap! I don't have a cannon yet. When does chicken season start?

[Don Halter]

Every weekend and holiday. Usually about 5:35 am when the roosters(3 of them) sit out on my fence crowing!


cock-a-doooooodle- BOOM.....POOF.....shower of feathers, splinters and shards of chainlink.

[John Mac Sr]

Yea, you can dream about doing that but there would be too much colateral damage. Here's a pic of the almost finished knife from our grinding demonstration last Friday.

[Don Halter]

All of your pics come up as a little red X for me. :confused:

[SBuzek]

ae
i live in Waller just a few mils up the road from you. if you would like to come by my shop i would be glad to show you what little know. and how my shop was setup on a shoe sting budget.
send me a private message and will get back to you with directions.
Stan

[Don Halter]

Well, I spoke to several guys while up at the SOS show and have got an email list together. For those that posted here who want to be included on the list. shoot me an email so I have you email addy. Richard and John, I have ya'lls. So far it looks like about 14-17 people from Spring up to Waco. Even if only a handfull can get together each month os so, that would still be great. It's nice timing also since the TKCA is really pushing to get people together. I'd like to get something going starting in October.