What Guests Are Saying

I gave this experience as a birthday gift for my best friend. I went along to watch but did not participate. We both had a great time! Mike was very personable and informative. He made us both feel very comfortable and we enjoyed talking with him. He was a great teacher, and explained every step as he guided my friend through forging the railroad spike knife and making the sheath. My friend did 90% of the task himself with Mike only stepping in when asked/needed, which was appreciated. The shop was a little out of the way down a dirt road in farm country but it was very nice, shaded so it never got too hot and the lilacs were blooming so it smelled amazing. Everything was very clean, well organized, and comfortable. The process took around 4.5-5 hours which was slightly longer than expected but we didn't even realize how much time had passed until we were leaving. I was cozy in a chair playing with Mike's puppy but my friend was on his feet for much of the time, which was expected. He did get a work out between the forge and hammering with short breaks to sit while the metal was getting hot enough to work with. He said it wasn't bad or uncomfortable though, just a different kind of physical activity than he's used to. In the end, he learned quite a bit and had an awesome keepsake to take home, that he had a great time making. He's planning on trying other experiences Mike offers at a later date, and we've both said we'd like to give experiences to other friends /family as gifts!