THE REAL OXY POST : OXY- ACETYLENE

Previously i wrote one line describing my frustration with Oxy - Acetylene, if any body actually reads this crap they must have, in all probability, more than a passing interest in Smithing.
So the question remains why do i manage to frustrate myself with two cylinders and a bloody torch!

Well believe it or not the answer really is quite simple - I CAN NEVER REMEMBER HOW TO TURN THE DAMN THINGS ON.
Now before you start believing the author of this post to be completely stupid, which in part is true, i can do most things, i can cook bloody well, gut a house and re build it, make furniture and produce functional items out scrap material, but i can't for the want of trying ever remember how to light the damn torch.

Now like most folks at Plymouth college of Art, i have a sketch pad. In the front of my pad secured with multiple staples lies a set of instructions on operating Oxy equipment and lighting a forge with above mentioned. Now i will admit to being shown once or twice but most visits to the college workshop result in at least one forge blowing and normally two sometimes three. Seeing as most of our work at present is achieved using a forge, i have found Oxy amnesia wholly unsatisfying, until last week when i had to admit it wasn't just Oxy amnesia that i was suffering, it was fear as well. Not fear of an explosion , but fear of someone, anyone finding out they had an Oxy fraud in the workshop. So i swallowed my pride, i didn't have a choice to be honest, Mr Wood had kindly let me come in on a Thursday to catch up, as that damn inconvenience that goes by the name of JOB had managed to rear sharp claws and mess up a perfectly good Tuesday college session. After listening in on a first year Degree talk which was very interesting Mr Wood gave me the nod to light a forge. Now here was the problem, with  two options. Light the forge with sticks and paper or light with Oxy. If i was to try and light with sticks and paper i would probably fail to light a cigarette, let alone a forge, or should i fumble around with the Oxy and hope that someone i know comes to my rescue? Second option !!
In walks Second year Ryan, (who is actually holding the torch in the above photo, i decided to chop him out just in case he didn't want to be seen or associated with a blog post about Oxy incompetence)   A quick call for help, and a little memory jog and we are up and running. Later that day i re- lit the forge after lunch, confidence was that high i even lit a forge a passing lady, now that was confidence.

What is the point of this post, well after the half term break i needed the oxy again this time for some wrap work on a since binned door knocker, could i light it NO. This time the problem was not how to turn it on but the fact that the last user had probably not closed all the valves and i could not figure out for the want of trying where to start from!!

                                                                                                                       

OXY-ACETYLENE

Who would think that two bloody cylinders could cause one man such a headache!

BACKGROUND AND REFLECTION

Why? Why become so taken by the fire, i know it is not the frustration that is so evident, even amongst experienced Smiths and students alike, definitely experienced by myself at least every 20 minutes. Why?...............................................
Put simply - As frustrating as can be, it is equally satisfying and rewarding at the same time! The highs outweigh the lows easily, the feeling of triumph and reward when a finished piece is shown to others, the inner feeling of knowing how much work went into the shaping and sculpting of the metal.

I never opted for Metalwork at school, somehow never setting foot into the metals classroom during the 5 years of secondary school. I did however opt for Woodwork, probably a natural choice at the time having grown up around a Sawmill, plenty of Oak and a very handy Father with a love wood. A love we both, still share to this day. Do i regret not discovering Metalwork earlier?
Strange as it may seem, no i don't. If i had discovered Metals earlier, would i have the appreciation for the craft, would i be able to watch a skilled Smith at work, and marvel at there required skills and dedication, probably not!

If a person is of a practical nature i do believe they can embrace other disciplines, of course skills have to be learnt, from the bottom up, but in a lot of respects for me this is a whole new learning curve. The forge, how do you light the damn thing? Can i remember how to operate the oxy, not always(hardly ever).

My greatest passion is to cook, one of the reasons for my starting the courses in the first place was to require enough skills to be able to make practical cooking tools, explore methods of cooking. How does this relate to Blacksmithing. In every way really, the idea that i could eventually design or redesign bbq's, look into methods of open fire cooking, thus be able to design and make spits, trivets and assorted cooking appliances. My love of street food around the world was another reason, someone somewhere makes charcoal grills,special food carts with 50cc chicken chasers attached and griddles, not all of these are mass produced! Many years down the line i would like to be able to design cook knives. To be able to explore the ergonomics of the knife handle. Could i eventually make a beautifully hand crafted cooks knife, custom made for the user? I sure know that in the past i have spent a small fortune on cooks knifes, mainly blinded by looks and not whether or not they are comfortable to use.

10 months down the line, has my emphasis shifted. Maybe, maybe not. What i can say for sure is that a whole new universe has opened. All the time we are encouraged to design and make are own pieces, at home we sketch an idea, not all of the sketches are ever seen, but the point is, we start to take on the persona of a designer/ maker. To think differently.
While this craft is firmly rooted in the past, it has never been so modern. Could the main attraction be the diversity of the blacksmith. The routes that could be followed are many and varied, i have a sudden interest in engineering and of course the art aspect is always evident. To question why? What are we trying to say?