Cathy wrote:I've been looking for the origin of the saying 'going at it hammer and tongs', I'm wondering if it came from a blacksmith?
Looking at I think one of the Time Team or similar notes or re-constructions on Dark Ages swords, the constant hammering and folding of iron implements was driving out the air(oxygen) and adding a bit of carbon from the fires , effectively creating stainless steel, I think the best swords could take over a week of working to create this.
Similar 'industrial scale' hammering was carried out in the Middle Ages and later in Sheffield and similar areas using a water wheel conected to a system of wooden cogs and bellows to increase fire draw and the cogs operated heavy drop hammers (wooden blocks on long levers ). This created flat plate etc for future finishing .All quite interesting.