Category Archives: Guides

I spent forty years in fabrication shops where if you didn’t know how to approach a man or a machine with the right temperament, you ended up with a ruined workpiece or a broken hand. Nowadays, I see these “social Continue reading Stop Using Cheap Lines and Rushing the Heat: the Honest Way to Learn How to Start a Conversation With a Stranger.→

I remember sitting in my old shop back in the nineties, staring at a client’s commissioned piece that looked like it had been dipped in cheap, spray-on paint rather than aged by hand. People today seem to think you can Continue reading Applying Patina to Bronze Objects→

Most folks will tell you that once a piece of sheet metal is buckled or creased, it’s a lost cause unless you’re looking to replace the whole damn panel. They’ll point you toward a shop with a massive invoice and Continue reading Techniques for Repairing Metal Dents→

I remember standing over a workbench back in ’84, staring at a beautifully machined brass fitting that I’d just ruined because I thought I could skip the degreasing step and head straight for the tank. The smell of scorched chemicals Continue reading An Introduction to Metal Plating→

I was hunched over a rusted 1954 tractor engine last Tuesday, sweat stinging my eyes and a stripped bolt staring me right in the face, when I realized just how many folks are still trying to muscle their way through Continue reading Removing Damaged or Rusted Fasteners→

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→

I remember standing in the middle of a crowded supply yard back in ’84, surrounded by the heavy scent of diesel and the deafening ring of an anvil, feeling as stuck as a rusted bolt. I wanted to ask the Continue reading Stop Using Cheap Lines: the Heavy-duty Way to Master How to Start a Conversation With a Stranger→

I remember standing in a dusty salvage yard back in ’84, looking at a rusted-out enamel advertisement that most folks would’ve called scrap. A young kid from the local college told me I should just sand it down to the Continue reading Restoring Vintage Metal Signs→

I remember standing in a heavy fabrication shop back in ’84, watching a young apprentice spray a thick, glossy coat of cheap sealant over a pitted steel beam. He thought he’d solved the problem, but within six months, that moisture Continue reading Preventing Corrosion on Metal Surfaces→

I remember standing in my old shop back in the late eighties, staring at a piece of copper that looked like it had been through a war zone because I’d tried to force a finish using some cheap, store-bought chemical Continue reading Understanding Different Types of Metal Patinas→