Saturday morning, while Stephanie was out running, Chris gave me a tour
of his workshop. This is not where his company is, it's the workshop in
his back yard where his business started, then once it grew big enough
he moved the business to a different, larger location. Originally the
building was a bus garage.
Chris' company, Topp and Co. creates new metalwork for buildings wanting
a certain look, as well as doing historical restoration. He's done work
all over England and beyond, for St. Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey,
York Minster, and more. He's built replica cannons, done custom railings,
gates, railings, and much more.
Blacksmiths from all over the world come and stay for a week or two to
work and learn. Eric (?), a blacksmith from Poland, was there working
on restoring the ornamentation on a wrought iron gate.
Part 9: Backyard
Blacksmith Workshop Part 10: Bagby Airfield Part 11: Byland Abbey Part 12: National Railway
Museum Part 13: Cambridge (Part
2) Part 14: Cambridge
Botanical Gardens Part 15: The Departure
000-DSC_1116: Pieces the blacksmith was working on. The white paper they
sit on have sketches of the missing parts. A restored piece (top of a gate
pole) is on the bottom, with one that is in the process of being restored
above it).
001-DSC_1117: The spikes on the gate had all sorts of ornimentation that
have rusted over the years (like 100-200).
002-DSC_1118: Close-up of an original pieces with sketches on the paper
of the pieces that are missing. The spiral on the right, while present,
is largely rusted away and in pieces.
003-DSC_1119: A restored piece.
004-DSC_1120: Heating up a piece of wrought iron in the forge.
005-DSC_1121: The "holder" for rods is actually the barrel of a
fucking cannon that Chris made, reproducing the gun from a military
ship. The History Channel filmed it and they fired it at a military test
range (he showed me photos from it). While it's not the barrel that was
test-fired for the documentary, it's still an impressive rod-holder!
OK...it was acutally made for a British Channel 4 program called
Time Team Special
41 - War of the Roses (Bosworth, Leicestershire) and starting
around 17 minutes in, you can see the cannon's construction
including an interview with Chris. Neato!
006-DSC_1123: Eric heats the metal in the forge.
007-DSC_1125: A piece of the wrought iron gate needing restoration, where
pieces of the ornimentation has rusted and broken off.
008-DSC_1127: It's hammer time! Working and shaping the wrought iron.
009-DSC_1128: The metal red hot as the blacksmith hammers it.
010-DSC_1129: The outside of the workshop.
011-DSC_1130: Artfully forged wrought iron gifts by blacksmiths who
have studied with Chris.
012-DSC_1131: A gift from a previous student/apprentice.
013-DSC_1132: One of the forges on the right and a pneumatic press in
green on the left.
014-DSC_1133: Another, bigger, pneumatic press.
015-DSC_1134: Blacksmith tools: hammer, anvil, and brush.
016-DSC_1135: The fire in the forge.
017-DSC_1136: Eric and Chris talking.
018-DSC_1137: Top view of the hammer, anvil, and brish.
019-DSC_1139: Another view of the anvil with forge in the background.
Note all the tools by the forge—they were made as needed.
020-DSC_1140: More wrought iron art on the top of the workshop.
021-DSC_1193: The van for Chris' company
Topp & Co..
Bottom:
Part 9: Backyard
Blacksmith Workshop Part 10: Bagby Airfield Part 11: Byland Abbey Part 12: National Railway
Museum Part 13: Cambridge (Part
2) Part 14: Cambridge
Botanical Gardens Part 15: The Departure