New Member---nickname "Mike"

[Edge-Master]

   Edge-Master sounds pretty arrogant. In the "Diamond Wheel" post I spoke a bit about my experience in sharpening. I have been fortunate in my life, and I appreciate my education and opportunities to learn many skills. I was a hunter and fisherman, and was taught to shoot at age 10 (I was shortly shooting a 1911 .45 ACP with my father in our basement range, and my maternal grandfather taught me rifle and shotgun)  My 1st personal firearm was a S & W K-22; a birthday gift for my 10th. Until I proved I was mature and trustworthy, I was supervised. Dad got me the classic gunsmithing books and I began gunsmithing at around 12, doing custom gunstock work and moving on to metal work in a couple of years. At the same time I learned to work on cars and that skill served me well in under-graduate and law school. Many years later I learned to weld and build engines and chassis (4130 CrMo) for open wheel race cars. I was an owner-driver for 16 years first in midgets and then winged sprint cars. After graduating from law school, while I was figuring out where and what I wanted to do (jury trials) for a year I worked as a full-time professional gunsmith. There I was first taught to weld and run a mill and a lathe. In 69-70, I learned to build acoustic guitars and now in retirement that is what I do; also now, the occasional electric guitar. While glue is drying I do some sharpening as a small business. ( I tried to attach a picture of me in my sprint, a "jpg" but it will not attach.) It was a beautiful car and the photo is the lap before I flipped it, as we say "out of the park." I got lucky on that one; only a dislocated shoulder and a concussion. Eight years before, I crushed all 5 lumbar vertebrae in a similar crash- not paralyzed, but even with surgery and every big needle catheter "procedure," nothing really worked very well. But, like most racers, I have no regrets; 3 1/2 months after surgery, I was in my sprint car, racing.