Metal work is rarely thought about, but look around and try to find something not made of metal or using metal tools, you can't can you?  Even history has been categorized by the kind of metal we were using: Bronze Age, Iron Age and Industrial Age.  Metal work has always had a major role in advancing civilization. 

Although I have a good deal of experience with modern welding and fabrication techniques, the skills of the Iron Age blacksmith have always fascinated me.  I believe the mastery of forming metal with heat and a few simple tools into unique and complex shapes, is a skill to be admired in the hands of a true craftsman. 

Most modern metal workers, when asked about blacksmithing, say it takes too long or is too difficult, and they are right. It also takes more time and effort to become a master chef in a fine restaurant. The reason I use Iron Age blacksmithing techniques, like the master chef, is not just to preserve those methods for future generations, but because  it is the most elegant and respectful way to create fine metal work