I remember sitting in my first shop back in ’78, staring at a rusted-out cast iron lathe that looked more like a heap of scrap than a precision machine. I’d spent half my paycheck on some fancy, overpriced chemical solvent Continue reading Cleaning Metal Surfaces Effectively
I can still smell the scorched ozone and hot grease from my first summer in the fabrication shop, standing there with a heavy hammer feeling like I’d never get the rhythm right. Back then, I thought I needed the most Continue reading Fundamental Skills for Metalwork Apprentices
I was cleaning out a crate of old workshop finds last Tuesday when I pulled out a heavy copper kettle that had been sitting in a damp corner for a decade. Most folks see that thick, crusty green layer and Continue reading Managing Copper Oxidation and Patina
I remember standing in a fabrication shop back in ’84, watching a young apprentice blow a fuse on a brand-new, high-end band saw because he thought the fancy digital readout would do the thinking for him. He’d spent more on Continue reading Choosing Saws for Cutting Metal
I remember standing over a piece of salvaged mild steel back in ’84, the smell of ozone and hot scale thick in the air, trying to figure out why my surface looked like a cheap, stamped-out piece of junk from Continue reading Adding Texture to Metal Surfaces