Forge and tool making workshop

I ran a course at the weekend, making a small 2 brick gas forge and tools. I like a brick forge as it is easily set up and is ready to use within a minute of lighting the gas torch. I am no blacksmith but have made my own tools on and off for over 15 years, often using coke or charcoal. The other advantage of using a gas forge is that it can be set up inside, and very little space is needed.

Before students are allowed to use tool steel they have to practise drawing out a square taper from a 6 inch nail and bending it into a spiral. After this exercise the first tool made was a spoon knife with a gentle curve, the edge was ground into the steel using a bench grinder and belt sander. Once ground it was heated and shaped with the necessary heat treatments to harden and temper it. At the end of day 1 everyone had made their own forge and a hook knife with a handle. Day two consisted of sharpening the knives and making a small carving knife.

I will be running this course again next year, but if you want to make a gas forge then I can send refractory bricks through the post. They are not that heavy and very easy to carve out. I use propane torches from a large gas cylinder, but it is possible to use a cheap all-in-one gas torch with throw away cylinders, they are a bit slower to use, but just make the inside of the forge smaller. MAP gas torches are a lot better but the cartridges are a lot more expensive.

APF and the log to leg race

APF Cannock Chase 2010

One of the best of the year, that is enjoyment wise, was the Association of Professional Foresters show in Cannock Chase, near Birmingham. This was because a whole group of us from the APT were sponsored by the APF and Buxtons to demonstrate green wood crafts and to compete in the International log-to-leg race.
I went to demonstrate fan birds and Dan also came along. This is the first show that I sold every bird I made during a demonstration as well as most of my stock. The ash supplied for the log races was very good for making the birds.

Why is it that when being watched by other expert green woodworkers my fan birds fail? There was one log or tree in the pile that was very slow grown - if using hardwoods for fan birds avoid the slow grown, it does not work.  Gudrun Leitz was watching as I tried and failed to rive this bit of very slow grown ash.
Dan did compete in one of the log to leg races, which I think is amazing considering he had less than half an hour experience on a pole lathe in his life. He was made up when Jim Steele gave him his membership to the APT, which we all 16 of us chipped into. We made him keep the better of his 2 legs and everyone signed it. It was a hard job convincing him to keep it, but us older chaps have often regretted not keeping these milestones in our lives.

We had a great time especially around the fire at night, making new friendships and consolidating old ones. The woodland crafts field was a small oasis in a huge show of big machinery dedicated to cutting and processing of trees often in huge quantities. There were also plenty of other competitions and demonstrations to see. Dan and I did not get much time to have a proper look around.

It was good to meet up with Barn again, still peddling and making lots of spoons .

 Des had a unique pulley system, as his spring on his pole lathe. I had a go and it was very smooth and just the right tension.

 Mark Allery, who writes the Woodland antics blog

Richard Law who writes the Flying Shavings blog.


APF log to leg race from Sean Hellman on Vimeo.

This video is of the log-to-leg race, with Jim Steele entertaining the crowd on the microphone. I filmed Richard Ely, who I had hoped was going to win this year, especially as he came 10 seconds behind Ben Orford at the Bodgers' Ball race in May. We are looking at under 4 minutes per leg from the log, which is very fast. I have never entered a log-to-leg race, but will do next year, I do not do much spindle turning these days. With Dan's enthusiasm and his determination to win a race one day, and being only slightly competitive myself, I am sure my times will improve. I did time myself on one leg and came in at 7 minutes and 30 seconds, but how many penalty points?

A new apprentice

Dan

This has been a long time in the making, but finally all the papers are signed and I would like to welcome Dan as my new and first apprentice.

Dan and I met at a show one and a half years ago, he wanted to come on workshops or just have some work experience. I was happy to have Dan do simple work for me in the workshop in exchange for me teaching him some green wood skills. Some time later Dan talked about an apprenticeship, that is, an official one where he also went to collage, and we got the ball rolling. I did have doubts, not about Dan, but about money, Health and Safety, commitment of being a full time employer, etc.  This has been sorted out, and I have a tidy workshop, where most things have their place with materials and tools easily found.


As an apprentice, Dan will be with me for between 17months and 3 years, and has been reminded often that things are too soft these days with modern apprenticeships. Why indeed should I pay to train and teach a young man a trade?  Surely only 3 years is just scraping the surface? Indeed, the young man - nay  - child should have been indentured to me at the age of 11 or 12 ! The best one I heard was from Jonty Williams, a man taught and practiced in the husbandry of the land, who showed us a contract for an agricultural  labourer apprenticed at the age of 12, for 14 whole years.
The great thing is that Dan knows he has fallen on his feet finding me, and I know that Dan is the dream apprentice, because 16 years old teenagers with his attitude and awareness and a thirst for knowledge do not come my way that often.

So; welcome, Dan, and here is to a long and profitable relationship for us both.

Apart from getting the workshop sorted, we now have a dog. Milo was on  the waiting list to go into a rescue home, and is a Staffordshire bull terrier. So for the last couple of months we have had a big change of routine, walking the dog.  Milo loves my workshop, so many sticks, I am yet to convince him that I do not just make sticks for him. He could chew a couple of hundred pounds of stock very quickly. He likes Dan and does not mind loud machinery; I am not sure that Dan likes him as much since Milo barked right next to Dan's ear, deafening him.

Recently - shows have been attended and sold at, and much other work produced, so the reason for no posts has been I have been very busy with workshop tidying, work, shows and the dog.

Fan birds

Fan bird customs from Germany

I met a woman at a show last year, and who was born in North Germany. She remembers fan birds from her childhood. I received this email from her the other day explaining the fan bird customs in Germany.

Hi Sean, we've met at the crux fair, where I got exited about the fan birds, if you remember, as I knew them from where I originate (very north of Germany). I told you then I'll find out about the tradition as I'd forgotten parts of it, you said you'd be interested to know. I finally managed to catch up with my father about it, it differs a little from what you've said: Fan birds were common all along the coast of the Baltic Sea, from the border to Denmark in Germany down to the coast of Russia. People used to make them themselves whenever a baby was due in the family. They hung them over the cradle, not only in the house, but also outside, when the cradle stood under a tree. The bird usually moved gently in the wind, however if a person came near and it stopped moving, suddenly stood still, it meant the approaching person had the evil eye and people would take care not to let this person come close to the baby. This is how we know it, hope it's interesting for you. Best wishes Christine.

I love hearing this first-hand tradition and would like to hear more from anyone around the world with their tradition or custom relating to these beautiful wooden birds. As with all traditions and customs they vary so much.

I love making these birds, and I am now selling them wholesale, as I now mastered the crafting of them. This is not to say I have learnt everything there is to know about making them, and I am still developing new styles and designs. As far as I am concerned we do not stop learning until we stop breathing. The first shop to sell them is a National Trust property a few miles away from me in Widecombe on Dartmoor, and hopefully I will get other NT shops interested in Devon as now I am now on their suppliers list.

 Above; coloured fan birds

Above; Geese

I have saved my first birds I made and will post pictures of these crude attempts in the near future.This I hope will inspire you to have a go, and after all it is just practice and a enquiring mind; that, and persistence that makes you good at something.

Frame saw

Frame saw, and rotating metal blade holders

At last I have found a way of making a frame saw where the metal blade holders that hold the saw blade can be rotated. I thought about getting them manufactured, but that would be expensive. Problem solved when I bought very large split pins.

The saw can be used with any band-saw or other types of  blade. Cross cutting is easy and bow-saw blades for green wood can be used. With rip sawing just release the tension on the frame and turn the blade 90 degrees around.

Normally I would use 2 hands when ripping, but the camera was in my right hand.

The pins are 10mm diameter 8cm total length. If using very wide blades then a hacksaw will have to be run down the split to widen the gap. I have to do a bit of work on the pins before use, like cutting each side to equal length and drilling a hole through them. I can tell you that drilling the hole is not easy, just as locating the centre punch on round stock accurately is not easy.

I have bought a good quantity of these pins and will be selling them ready to use, with washer and pin to hold the blade in the split pin. The price is £9.50 including postage to UK and Europe only, let me know if you want them posted to the USA and I will get a price for postage. The pins will come with basic instructions, but not a plan or cutting list, the size of your saw will depend on the length of the blades you use. The beauty of frame saws is that you can make them any size or shape you like, depending on the job in hand.

Above is the detail of the joint, a simple mortice and tenon, which holds the cross bar in place.

What about blades? I hear you ask. Old band-saw blades are great, they do not need to be new, so ask any woodworker who uses one to save their old blades for you. They are easy to cut; I just fold them where I want the cut and hit the bend with a hammer on an anvil and unbend the blade, and that's it. Remember to hammer the cut flat, and give it a few strokes with a file. To make a hole use a centre punch and then drill, the metal will be soft enough.

Most band-saw blades are designed for dry wood, so if you are cutting green wood buy some bow saw blades designed for green wood.

Later in the year I will be selling these wholesale, in proper packaging, with full instructions.
Email me if you are interested.