Blacksmiths in the Northeast might be interested to know that the Atalntic Coast Blacksmiths Association will be hosting a regional conference at Ashokan, NY on the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th of September, 2008.  This is slated to be the first in a series of planned annual regional conferences to fill the gap left when ABANA decided to cancel the 2008 National Conference.  It promises to be a truly great occasion with some truly top-tier demonstrators lined up.

For quite some time now I've been wanting a sinusoidal stake.  Every once in a while I actually have a need for one,  and the resto fo the time I just think they're really sexy and have been dying to have one.  A couple of days ago, I actually had a few hours free time so I got busy and made that sinusoidal stake.sinusoidal stake  The overall length is about 25" and the large diameter is around 1-3/8", tapering to 3/8" at one end and 3/4" at the other end.  The arms were forged from a piece of automobile axle stock and the remainder was made from A-36 structural steel.  To forge the sinusoidal arms, I first tapered both ends of the axle on the power hammer, and then made a series of alternating bends using adjustable bending pins in the post vise.  (After I finished the stake, I developed a better bending pin jig for the vise - I'll try to get that posted one day before long.)

Still just trying to get this uploading thing to work right.

This fireplace screen was custom made for a client in New Zeland. I used copper, brass, and hand forged steel to create the natural colors. Patinas were used on the cattails. The brass decorations were soldered to the steel parts.