Wiseman revisited and in conclusion

Hey
All three pours are done. Most of the participants have gone home either in Alaska or out of state. Last to leave was Donnie Keen and his Daughter Christy.

After the Kenai pour we took a couple of days off and just rested.Donnie started to get restless facing a long trip home. But we both felt we had one more thing to do. The monument for Wiseman was still in parts on the floor of my shop. Part of it was cast at Wiseman and the rest at the Wasilla pour. We got to work sandblasting and grinding until the monument was ready for the trip. We loaded it and all the tools we thought we would need and on Wednesday morning we headed back to Wiseman.

This time we drove straight through with only a quick stop at Fairbanks for food and fuel. About 15 hours later we were in Wiseman again. We checked in at the Arctic Getaway with Bernie and Uta. The next morning after a good breakfast of sourdough pancakes and eggs. We got busy with installing the monument.

The locals had approved the installation next to the flagpole at the community center. Using river water to mix concrete we made a base out of river rocks and set the first piece of the monument in place. Bernie and Uta along with their children Julia and Leo joined Kristen and Jack another local couple in participating in the assembly. We stacked the pieces filling them with concrete as we went until the last piece was installed.The completed monument is an obelisk about 6ft tall made up of sections stacked on each other. Butch Jack Professor at La Mar University in Beaumont Tx Designed the monument. The molds were made in Texas and hauled all the way to Wiseman in Donnie's truck.

In Wiseman the molds were opened and all the artists and local residents were invited to inscribe their own designs on the faces of the molds. When all the molds were inscribed the molds were closed for casting. The final result turned out wonderful. The monument is covered in designs both whimsical and classic.It truly reflects the personalties of the participants at the Pour. Photos will be added to the site asap.

Its hard to believe that its over. After a little more than a year of planning, a lot of work and some wondering what we had gotten ourselves into. We accomplished the goals we had set for ourselves. We poured Iron above the Arctic circle, Donnie and his group drove from Houston Texas to Wiseman Alaska a trip of approximately 4374 miles with stops at Clarenden Texas for a pour, and at Denver to participate in the Western cast Iron Conference.

While in Alaska we demonstrated that Iron could be poured successfully and Art could be created by an Ad Hoc group of artists, Professors and students. Not only above the arctic circle but across the state from north to south. All it takes is the desire and some ingenuity. It also takes a lot of work and effort. Iron seems to be a medium that attracts the kind of people who are passionate about their art and aren't afraid to get dirty making it.

There are so many people to thank for their help in making Iron Trail to the Arctic a successful and memorable event, from the residents of Wiseman who invited us to their beautiful village and showed so much hospitality. To the participants all who traveled long distances to join us in trying to accomplish something that had not been done in Alaska. To people who were unable to join us but were none the less crucial like Michael Cottrel who set up our website. Joe and Barbara Hettrick who were faithful and friendly supporters along the long road to Alaska and helped at every pour. Forrest Goodhue the photographer of all things Iron. Bruce Bush here in Alaska for use of forklifts and equipment. Carmen Summerfield and the Valley Arts Alliance for the organizing and promotion of the Art on Fire event. The sponsors who helped with materials and shipping.

Magic Metals Custom Fabricating Kenai AK

Keen Foundry Houston TX

Arctic Fires Bronze Sculptureworks Palmer AK

Bushes Bunches Palmer AK

A.B.C. coke Birmingham AL

City of Kenai Kenai AK

Spenard Builders Supply Kenai AK

Alaska Museum Transportation and Industry Wasilla AK

Ironpour.com


Again thanks to all who supported and participated in this adventure.
Whats next? Well Donnie and I were thinking....................

The final stop on the Trail, Kenai River of Iron pour

With the pour done in Wasilla we took a day off and went to the museum in Anchorage.
Forrest went to the airport and left the trail. D'j and Susan also left on Sunday night. Butch and Rhonda left on Monday. With our shortened crew we spent Tuesday loading the trailer and the trucks for the trip to Kenai. We decided we only needed two vehicles so we put the trailer on Joe Hettricks truck and loaded up the miscellaneous stuff in my pickup. We set out early Wednesday for the 200 mile trip south to Kenai.

On arriving in Kenai we unloaded and set up the mold making equipment at Scott Hamann's "toy box" This is a building where Scott keeps his "Toys" Hot rods, forging equipment,casting equipment, motorcycles, etc. Laura and Eric West from Fresno California where Laura is a professor at Fresno city College and Eric is a jeweler also arrived. We soon got busy making molds.
On Thursday we continued our mold making. That morning Wendy Croskrey from Fairbanks showed up and a little later 3 more people from Fairbanks Hannah, Aeron, and Tamara arrived. We were glad to see the crew from Fairbanks as we were short of experienced people for this pour. They were a big help in Wiseman and in Wasilla so were glad they made all the Alaskan pours.

Friday arrived with rainy skies. We had arranged with the city of Kenai to pour at the city's multi purpose facility. They had set up a sand covered area inside the building and another outside the building so we could pour inside or outside depending on the weather. We finally decided to set up the molds inside and the furnace outside. We had to move the outside sand but after a little scrambling around we got the furnace set up.

After the experience we had Gained running the furnace in Wasilla we decided to drill another slag hole lower in the well to allow us to remove slag at a lower level and tap when less metal had collected in the well. We got the furnace fired up and in a couple of hours we were ready to melt metal. With Scott tapping and the Fairbanks women pouring we made our first tap. The new slag hole turned out to be at the right height to produce a full but not too full ladle of good hot iron. We began pouring molds and after a few more taps we had all the molds filled in a couple of hours.

There was a pretty good turnout of spectators to watch the pouring. We had been advertised in all the city's newspaper ads about the fourth of July activities.


After the pour we cleaned up the smaller stuff and went to dinner followed by a relaxing evening in Scott's beautiful yard with its ocean view. On Saturday we were invited to Scott's again for a party in the yard with lots of locals , live cannon fire,a bowling ball mortar that shot 16 lb. bowling balls into the air until they were out of sight, and automatic weapons fire. But no fireworks as they are illegal in most of Alaska.

Next stop on the trail Art on Fire

Hey
our group left Wiseman on Sunday and drove straight back to Palmer to get ready for the next pour.

We got to Palmer about 4 am needless to say we didn't get much done on Monday.
On Tuesday we felt better and got to work organizing the stuff we were going to need in Wasilla. Some people started making molds others broke iron. Tuesday night about midnight Donnie and his crew rolled in having spent an additional night in Wiseman and a night in Fairbanks on the way to Palmer.

Wednesday and Thursday we continued to get ready making molds, breaking iron,,constructing ladles, etc. We also burned in the new copulette.


Scott Hamann and I designed the furnace using ideas from different furnaces I had been around and info from people who had built furnaces before. Scott built the furnace down in Kenai at his Fabricating business and had delivered it to me in Palmer a week or 2 before. With a couple of minor additions it was ready for Saturday.

Friday was a flurry of activity with everyone busy with making molds or breaking iron and making equipment, charging stand, ladles,and making up charges of iron and coke.
Saturday we were up early loading the furnace on the trailer and loading the trucks with all the equipment and off to the Alaska Museum Of Transportation and Industry we went.

The Museum is located on the northern edge of Wasilla and houses a large collection of trains ,planes and automobiles from Alaska's past. The collection includes outboard motors ,chainsaws and construction equipment as well as snow machines. We had thought that the museums Historical displays of Alaska's industrial past as well as nice grounds would be an appropriate venue for an Iron pour, as casting art from iron is an example of co-opting an industrial process for cultural expression.

I had Talked about the Idea of holding an Iron pour at the Museum with Carmen Summerfield the director of a local arts group the Valley arts Alliance. Carmen set up a meeting with members of the museum board and in the course of discussion at later meetings it was decided that not only was an iron pour a good idea why not expand the concept and invite other artists who use fire in the process of creating their art and call the whole thing Art on Fire.
Carmen and the Arts Alliance recruited raku pottery artists, encaustic wax artists and several blacksmiths to demonstrate their talents.Food vendors were also invited to make the whole experience a good opportunity for Families to spend an afternoon at the museum and enjoying the live demos.

Arriving at the Museum we unloaded the trucks and trailers and began to set up the equipment after a few false starts we got everything oriented and started up the furnace. This was the first time the furnace had ever melted metal and we didn't know what to expect. When the coke was hot we cut in the main blower and began charging.
After the first charge we had iron at the tap hole in 4 minutes. We botted the hole and kept charging, it wasn't long until we had slag at the slagger and soon after we had iron.

We Tapped and filled the first ladle until the pour team said they had enough weight, then botted in mid flow. The pour team poured that ladle and switched out and we tapped again, this time we filled the ladle and again botted in mid flow. After pouring that ladle we tapped again and got about a half full ladle. we estimate from the weight of the charges we were getting between 200 and 220#s of iron in the well when it showed iron at the slagger.

We continued pouring until all the molds were filled. We only had one mold that leaked and were able to still save most of that piece. All the other pieces poured successfully and the onlookers were treated to a good show and expressed interest in the process and the medium.

After we finished pouring we dropped the bottom and cleaned out the furnace without too much trouble. After loading up the smaller equipment we went back to Palmer for showers and relaxation.

Iron above the Arctic Circle

Hey
Its been a while and many miles since the last update. the Wiseman pour was a success. It wasn't perfect but iron was poured and art was created above the Arctic Circle.
Our group left for the circle in 2 vehicles. Myself and Shane Morgan in the pickup and D'jean Jawrunner professor at Mesalands Community College and Susan Byrnes and the Wests Laura and Eric in the Tahoe. we left as early as any six people with different dispositions , multiple bags and various molds could manage.
After multiple stops we were actually on the road by 11 am Thursday. we proceeded at a good rate up the parks highway stopping at the Denali viewpoint to get a glimpse of the mountain. We made our way north to the entrance of Denali national park and drove in as far as they allow private vehicles. We saw beavers, caribou and eagles.

We arrived in Fairbanks about 7 pm and stopped for a nice meal at the Chena pump house. after that we gassed up and headed for the Dalton highway. The Highway was in pretty good shape with several sections improved over last year. We drove into the night. Though not dark, as at that latitude night is a concept more than a reality.

When we crossed the Yukon river we decided to stop and sleep a while in the cars, it was about 1;30 am and when we parked I noticed the flat on the Tahoe. Being tired we decided to leave it till morning another concept at this latitude. we slept until 4;oo am got out and changed the tire and continued on our way. We stopped at the arctic circle marker for photos and bathroom breaks. Then we continued on to Cold foot the only truck stop above the arctic circle. After much needed coffee and breakfast we had the tire repaired and pushed the last of the way to Wiseman.

When we arrived Donnie and Butch and Rhonda were already setting up the copula . We unloaded the stuff we brought and helped set up. we spread the molds into pour lines and assembled equipment . Butch burned in the copula for a couple of hours to be sure it was dry and ready for Saturday.

We checked in with our hosts Bernie and Uta of the arctic getaway lodge
and put our stuff in the charming 2 story cabin we had rented. Wiseman was beautiful ,the weather was nice though not warm enough for the non Alaskans.

The pour site was the yard of the Wiseman community center a large log building used for community purposes. We were about 50 yards from the Koyokuk river where we hauled buckets of water from to use in case of fire. Wiseman has about 13 full time residents and about double that in the summer. The residents are living the lifestyle of real alternative energy as the whole village is off the grid and all electricity is generated by each individual home owner by various means including water, solar ,wind, or gas and diesel generators or a combination of all depending on their needs.

After setting up, we relaxed and visited. The other group were staying at the Boreal lodge the other b&b in town . About midnight, still not dark. Wendy Croskrey and 3 of her students Hannah, Margaret and Tamara arrived from Fairbanks.
On Saturday we fired the furnace and began the preheat. set out the mold lines and prepared the ladles, after a couple of hours we began charging and in short order had iron at the slag hole. We tapped and poured the first pieces. We had a second successful tap and then the trouble began. On the third tap we couldn't get through to the liquid iron, after several attempts to tap

We tipped the furnace on its side and dumped the contents on the ground. We then knocked as much metal and slag out of the furnace as we could, cleared the tap hole set the furnace back upon its stand and refired it with fresh coke,after another preheat we were able to tap a couple more times before we had trouble again. We dumped it out beat on the inside and cleared it again, re heated it and got one tap before it froze up for the third time. We dumped it tried to clear it and finally admitted defeat.

We did manage to get about half the pieces poured including several scratch blocks made by the locals some of which were very nice pieces. The weather for the pour was typical Alaska summer, bright warm sunshine for awhile, cloudy for a while, rain for about 20 minutes and then clearing to partly cloudy . All in the same day. We had about 16 participants about a dozen from outside and the rest from Alaska. The locals came out and watched and participated in making scratch blocks . Bernie and Uta even brought the participants coffee and cookies after the rain storm. We estimated about 50 people at times between participants and spectators. If we include the mosquitoes we had over a million . Yes the mosquitoes were thick.

Like I said , the pour wasn't perfect but we did melt and pour iron in the village of Wiseman.
We had a good time and the locals including some from cold foot and Nenana enjoyed watching and participating. All in All we put it down in our book as a success.

Update to now

Last entry was from Fairbanks on the way to the arctic, and we have the pictures to prove it, we stopped at the highway point that says that you have gotten to the arctic circle, but the arctic circle latitude is actually a few miles further south. The highway is such that its an inconvenient turnoff at the actual latitude. We persevered on to Wiseman another 60 miles, actually 58, you have to come back south two miles from the “haul road” to get to the town. And it’s the 100^th anniversary of the Village of Wiseman as well as then 50^th of Keen Foundry, I have no particular date to add to the festivities.

Wiseman is a long established northern most outpost for the gold rush, the place where the first air travel in Alaska traveled.. Bi-planes landed on the gravel bars in the Koyukuk river just upstream of the intersection of Wiseman Creek. The pilots had to protect the planes from the residents, who were understandably fascinated with the new invention.

We arrived on Thursday evening, the eight of us: Donnie, Kristi, Forrest, Barbra, Joe, Mandy, Rhonda Mc Nally (who met us in Fairbanks), & myself. We checked into the Boreal Lodge and as we could, slept. Its tough to sleep when the sun NEVER goes down; I can nap with the best of them, but its still difficult.

Friday morning we unloaded the trucks and began setting up the furnace, etc. Just at the opportune moment Pat Garley, Shane Morgan (from Montana), D’Jean Jawrunner (from New Mexico), Sarah Byrnes (from Ohio), and Laura & Eric West(from California) arrived with the propane and extra coke.. We were in fat city. We spent the day burning in the lining on the trashcan cupolette, finally leaving it burning, but covered so as to not start a fire. Margaritas all around. Later that “evening” (remember the sun NEVER sets) Wendy Crosskey and Hannah Stevenson and Tamara Wilson, her students from The University of Alaska, Fairbanks, arrived to complete the complement.

Saturday morning we started by unloading molds and charges. We had made the molds in Houston, prior to leaving, now the community members had their opportunity to decorate a facet of the obelisk that we had envisioned. They were hesitant at first, then they became enthusiastic as the molds were readied. We charged the furnace and when we saw that we had melted the charges, we tapped and poured the first mold. The metal was hot, but not as hot as we wished, and not as much as we were supposed to have. We went to two and a half charges and tapped. We had hot metal, but not as hot as we knew it would make. Those molds poured fine, but the metal was not as hot as we wished. We “back burned” from the top and “power slagged” to get the trash out of the well.

Next time we went to three full charges of 25 pounds each. And we got lots of very hot metal. Several molds got poured. That seemed to be the answer. BUT, when we tried the same regime the next time we got NOTHING, no metal and the tap hole was frozen.

At that point we had the choice of shutting down or trying to clear the cupolette. We dumped the entire thing, all coke, whatever metal, etc. And started again from new bed coke & back burning to ensure that we had a hot well. Again we got hot metal, more molds got poured; BUT the next time we had a well full of slag and no metal. We decided to call it off and dumped every thing once more. We never did get metal again.

We did cast a plaque, the “cap piece”, the base & one section to the obelisk, plus several of the molds that had come up from Pat’s molding workshop. In retrospect, its obvious that I had made the well too deep and the metal was cooling before the third charge was melted. So much for calculations versus experience. I SHOULD have taken the measurements from the furnace that worked in NYC and raised the slagger and tuyere an inch or so to give us the 50 pounds we needed. But I had recalculated and went with those measurements.

As Pat said, it wasn’t a runaway success, nor was it an unqualified failure. Somewhere in between. The plaque, which poured slightly “short”, but OK, is now installed next to the flag pole at the Wiseman Community center, the base, cap, and section, and other section molds are on their way to Palmer to be finished out and/or poured at the Wasilla pour next Saturday, or, God forbid, at Kenai the Friday after. The entire project will be complete sometime between now and next August.

We cleaned the site on Sunday, after the Saturday pour. Its pretty much the same as when we arrived, except there is a lightly used cupolette sitting next to the 55 gallon, burn barrel and a few chunks of mold waste that will be carved into molds before next year’s Wasilla pour.

But, as far as the residents of Wiseman were concerned, it was a smashing success. When we stopped at the Visitor’s Center and cafe in Cold Foot this Monday morning to get our “certificates” that verify that we have crossed the arctic circle, everyone was happy and still excited. It had been exhilarating for them to have us come and even attempt to pour iron, and the plaque was just gravy after the fact.

And, Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that mid-pour we got about twenty minutes of rain and that the mosquitoes were vicious. Kristin, one of the ladies who invited us to Wiseman, always had a lit mosquito coil in her hand as she walked around. We had to make do with the Off that we brought.

Further Update to Now, Now Having Changed

The current NOW is in Palmer, Alaska, at Pat Garley’s studio. We had traveled back down the Dalton Highway to Fairbanks and Wendy Crossky’s studio where we over-nighted and went to the University of Alaska Museum of the North. Then we continued southward on the Parks Highway to Denali National Park. Denali is crowded this time of year, there were two reserved spaces for the bus tour for the 27^th, otherwise you were traveling on a space available status. We drove in as far as we were allowed to the Savage River. It is pretty savage; I estimated that there was a 100 foot gradient drop in less than a quarter mile.

The big draw is, of course, Mount McKinley; but you have to get beyond our vantage point to see it in the park itself. However, there are a couple of great views at turn-offs further south. We were fortunate that there weren’t clouds obscuring the summit when we got there. Late that “evening” (it still hasn’t gotten dark yet) we got to Pat’s. The next day we got to work.

Preparations for the Wasilla Pour are underway. Scott Hamann had delivered the furnace that Pat designed and we burned it in, twice. With a couple of minor modifications it looks ready to run and should tap out between 120-200 pounds, depending.

We have fabricated two ladles, one standard refractory lined and one that D’Jean made with fiber lining, plus we still have two of our smaller fiber ladles as backup, just in case. We still have to make some cupola tools and finish up molds.

Further down the new Now.

The Wasilla pour is history, we haven’t cleaned up the site yet, but its done. Most importantly, it went very well. Lots of good hot iron. The new cupolette tapped 220 pounds, or would have if we’d had a ladle big enough; we had to bott mid-stream and the crew didn’t like a heavy ladle, so we took three taps per set of charges. All the molds poured, only one had any mis-casting, & I suspect that the core was too thick at that point, or it shifted in transit.

The piece for Wiseman is all cast and ready to be finished at leisure. The Wasilla plaque is ready to clean and install. And the Museum of Transportation and Industry is happy with us.

The public information has been spotty and somewhat inaccurate, but great fun. In the local Palmer newspaper D’Jean Jawrunner is the “featured” artist because she is a known quantity here. Pat, Donnie, & I have given her a hard time about it, mostly Pat who is local and can’t get much of a mention in his home town. They have known each other for so long now its difficult to know who did what first, but D'Jean is the "teacher of record". My father always used to say that “a prophet’s mouth is always ‘stopped’ in his own land”, it seems to still be true. We shall see what the Anchorage paper has to say in its Wednesday section.

Pictures and extensive info to follow. Internet access is mostly not easily available, sorry.

Butch

Finally to the Interior

I’m not sure exactly what to say about the ferry ride to Haines, it was a boat trip. It was a big boat, but even the biggest isn’t the same as our normal perceptions of space. We normally operate over a much wider area than we think about and its not until you’re in a confined space that you realize just how much area we’re used to occupying.

It was pleasant, the crew seemed efficient, & the cabin was small for the four of us: myself, Forrest, Donnie & his daughter Kristi. I spent much time in the lounge areas or on deck, either reading or watching the mountains go by. I’ve never been to Scandinavia, but I imagine the fiords are much like the inner passage, deep water surrounded by forested vertical peaks. Not that the peaks immediately around the water are all that tall, but they are backed up by taller snow topped mountains, sometimes with glaciers inching down them and waterfalls from the melt run-off. Everyone saw a least one whale, I think I saw a sea-otter and a seal too, and eagles. The further north we traveled, the longer the daylight & time has become distorted, it never did get dark last “night”.

The ship had selective WIFI connectivity, at its discretion, not ours; and when we were at or around a city some had cell phone connectivity, but not me.

What the isolation did for me was to make me wonder just why I prefer to pour iron. Why was I spending this much time, effort, and money to go to an end of the earth to pour iron? I’ve been on “why iron” panels at conferences, but I’ve never felt that I succinctly stated its allure. Physically its heavy, at pouring temperatures its dangerously hot, it has more intrinsic energy, when spilled it “bounces”, and at the proper temperature it runs into thin sections better than any other metal. It’s a common metal, most of the earth’s surface contains at least some iron, so its fitting for the proletariat in me that works hard at difficult tasks for not much reward. It’s a very “moral” metal, almost Puritanical in its difficultly and demand, but more positive in its feedback in the form of an object than any religion can promise. And at its most basic, its beautiful; regardless of what stage of the object making process you look at it. Fresh from the mold its black and gritty, cleaned and blasted its pristine yet soft appearing, and once it begins the patina process of corrosion it reveals nuances of color. There’s a reason why iron is the most versatile glaze colorant for potters, it runs the gamut from reds, oranges, and yellows to the celadon blues or greens to browns, a “temoku purple” and deep and mysterious black. Truly phenomenal and it lasts. We stopped at a museum with objects from the “gold rush” days and there were objects that, while not in their original usable condition, gave mute testimony to some long forgotten person’s efforts.

So I gazed at my navel when I wasn’t looking at scenery.

Now we’re in Fairbanks, Alaska having survived the potential wrath of Canadian customs officials. We didn’t have any problem, but there was this one young lady who had everything pulled out of her station wagon, had it trampled by a slobbery dog, and if there was anything illegal or embarrassing in her possessions, it surely was exposed. We never did see her after we left customs and we drove slowly because the road is good, but not that good.

The scenery through Canada was alternately spectacular and boring. You may never see anything as wondrous as a tree, but after the first couple of million your vision does get more selective. Usually it was the space between things that was most interesting. Some of the mountains were impressive, but the valleys were more comprehendible as beauty.

The major impediment to enjoyment was the weather. It was cold and rainy most of the trip, it still is as I type this. Hopefully we will get at least dryer conditions when we get to Wiseman.

And this is probably a good time to introduce our “shadow group” from Texas. All along the trail we have been in caravan with Joe & Barbra Hetricks and their grand-daughter Mandy. They have relatives in the Palmer, AK area and have known Donnie for some years now. They had the time and inclination, and have been faithful and uncomplaining companions to our lunacy.

Another welcome addition will be D’Jean Jawrunner. I was so pleased when I read Pat’s post saying that she had arrived. It was at her place in Tucumcari, NM that the conversation started that set us off in this endeavor. She certainly deserves a place at the madness.

And the link is current at IRONPOUR.COM, thank you Michael.

If dryer lint is a “feminist material”, what is belly-button lint?

Butch

they're here

Hey
Well we have some new arrivals in Alaska. Donnie keen and Butch Jack and company have arrived in Haines and are making thier way to Wiseman.
Tonight I picked up 4 participants at the Anchorage airport. Laura and Eric West are here and D'jean Jawrunner and Susan Byrnes also arrived . They managed to arrive within the same hour on 3 different flights by 3 different carriers.
We will be spending the next couple of days making sand molds and preparing stuff for the trip to Wiseman trip. We plan to leave early Thursday and head for Wiseman.
Speaking of new arrivals Scott Hamann of Kenai came up to Palmer this last saturday and dropped off the new cupolette. The Metal Magic Melter Is a beauty and hopefully will live up to her name. we will be doing a trial run next week to make sure we are ready for the Wasilla and Kenai pours.
Thats all for now.
Pat