Some years ago the Appalachian Area Blacksmiths Association, an ABANA affiliate, developed a "job description" for a Journeyman Blacksmith. It was subsequently registered with the US dept of Labor Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training.
Here's a link to that set of 26 skills:
As I read through this list, I started asking myself how good I was at each process.
This next link is a method for evaluating yourself against each skill in that "standard". First, ask yourself: "How well can I DO it?" And then: "Could I do it fast enough and well enough to MAKE A LIVING at it?"
Since there hasn't been much traffic on this newsgroup lately, I just thought I'd offer these links to newbys and lurkers (I hate both those terms, how about FOTN 'Friends Of The Newsgroup') to give them some food for thought.
Pete Stanaitis
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