The guy who told me my anvil was 'too clean' at the county fair demo

Back in 2019 I was doing a demo in Des Moines and some old timer walks up, points at my 150 lb anvil, and says I don't actually work iron because there's no scale on the face. He was dead serious, but honestly the best tip I ever got was ignoring him and just focusing on hammer control instead. Anyone else had someone gatekeep their setup based on looks rather than results?

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1 Comment

hannahw3019d ago

Huh, that's wild. So this guy is judging your whole setup by a layer of rust... what did he think, that you should be leaving your anvil out in the rain to prove you're a real smith? Did he even watch you work before he spoke up, or was he just standing there with his arms crossed the whole time? I always wonder what these folks are actually trying to get out of it, like are they trying to make themselves feel better or are they just bored? Kinda feels like he was more about the gatekeeping than the craft, honestly.