Overview - SMELTFEST 08

...a fast overview of the 10 days:

THREE smelts undertaken, using the 'blast plate' method.

ONE test of the DARC Dirt 1 bog ore analog (in one of the furnaces above)

THREE additional smelts observed. These were the 'monster bloom' sequence by Sauder and McCarthy - resulting in a 175 pound bloom mass.

ONE smelt observed using all Colonial Era methods, at Colonial Williamsburg by Browder and Mankowski.

a DOZEN uses of the 'Aristotle Furnace' developed by Williams.

DAY TRIP to the Jamestown Archaeological site to view artifacts related to the first American iron smelting.

DAY TRIP to gather several hundred pounds of the Jamestown/Williamsburg iron ore.

A special participant in SMELTFEST 08 was Jake Keen from England. This years session was especially packed with smelting, and everyone felt they had not only a wonderful time, but learned and achieved a great deal. Thanks again to Elizabeth and Lee Sauder for hosting the workshop.

I have roughly 300 images, plus the detailed smelt data and various related field notes to organize. Exp