Metalworking started when I was a teenager.  I was very fortunate to grow up around lots of tools.    One day I picked up my dad’s stick welder and proceeded to repair an excavator bucket.  After many hours of melting and bonding steel together, I found it to be very rewarding to make something useable again.  This rough work on excavation equipment gave me time to learn some of the basic skills.  I couldn’t stop there.  I found that there were more needs in metalwork when I started making a authentic 1780 cape style house.  Blacksmithing and more refined metalworking were needed for this house.