Well, here goes the planning stage..

Hmmm, how old are you? I'm assuming about 38? I may have one or two candidates in mind.

Seriously, welcome to the forum. You'll find lots of useful information. Stay safe over there and Godspeed.

Military Decision Making Process or Develop and Communicate a Plan steps....too easy.

Set goals.

Execute.

Stay safe bro, if you get to Khowst, enjoy the purple mountains of Pakistan in the morning. Beautiful site with a cup of hot coffee. Same with Shkin or A-bad.

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My Adventure

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Hi Scott!
I also want to thank you for your service!

I think most people have already touched on the niche marketing you'll have to fall into as a blacksmith. Most people take it from making horseshoes to hoof care. That works best if you settle in an area that is economically stable enough that people still keep their horses and care for them well. If the economy is poor, fewer people have luxury animals like horses--- or they try to cut corners and ferrier work is one of the first things they try to cut.

Some people do decorative stuff, or making historical reproductions like armor or swords for living history use and decoration-- but that would be rough trying to compete on ebay against outsourced big manufacturers, I know it's like that in costumes but it might be worth looking into.
A few years ago, I used to do civil war reenactments and there was a guy who had a travel forge and went around to all kinds of events. He made his living selling small items like forks, or nails as souvenirs to the public, or for the reenactors. It was fun for him because he could stretch himself creatively and make pretty much any tool or "cool thing" he wanted as long as it fit the time period and someone would eventually buy it.

If you think something like that could be for you, you need to take into account where you will buy property to make sure it's central to a vibrant living history area rich with SCA and other living history clubs that host a lot of events to minimize travel costs.

If you go this direction, you'll also need to lean towards animals that are more "easy care" that can handle you traveling all summer... there are plenty of strategies to schedule things around, especially if you live somewhere with a very mild winter you can safely schedule things during the "off season" in winter months like birthing season.

Also, a side note with a conspiratorial wink-- I can't see a strapping young blacksmith lasting a single summer reenacting season without meeting LOTS of the "right type" of eligible ladies. That environment is like speed dating for "old fashioned" singles.


To get an idea of how far your purchasing power will go, check Landsofamerica.com and see what comes up with your parameters. You will probably see lots of Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee some Georgia and a little Texas.

Be sure to look into the politics and demographics of each area too to make sure you can live with it-- I recommend citydata.com, the forums there are set up by states and metro areas and the locals are happy to answer questions and give you a clear picture of what you can expect.

Congratulations! The planning is the absolute most fun and uplifting part of coming home!

Finally, here are some books I can recommend.
This is a book written by a UK author, but the information is priceless, I have a hard bound copy, but you can't beat a free e-book. http://www.rivendellvillage.org/The_...ufficiency.pdf

Already suggested, and I confirm it's an incredible book:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Backyard-H...yard+homestead
Designed for making the most of a small space, and covering all the basics at a beginner level, you can't go wrong with this book weather you get a little parcel, or a large one.

I liked it so much, I also ordered:
http://www.amazon.com/Backyard-Homes...xgy_cc_b_img_b
...When it came out. It's expanded on the information in the animal chapters in the first book.

Storeys Guide books are also generally extremely good (we even have some writers from the series on this board).

I recommend subscribing to Mother Earth News as well-- the subscription is cheap, and you get a virtual subscription at no additional cost that you won't have to wait for while you're on deployment.

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There is a time and a place for decaf coffee.
Never, and in the trash.
Are you an AZ farmer too? Arizona Backyard Farmers on facebook

@cerebral jungle - Regarding the "small cabin" idea, I think you'll find that this will be one of the easier things you do, if that's any relief. Small, of course, can be relative... ranging from an A-frame style one bedroom chalet with soaring ceilings and a grand front porch down to a glorified modernized yurt. If you're looking "on the cheap" however, I've seen a few really cool ideas over the years.

1) An old mobile home: These can be obtained for as little as a few thousand dollars. Once you've got it, you can gut it (interior walls and all in some cases) and re-do it in the fashion you see fit. I've seen people actually take three such homes, link them all together in a 'U' shape, and put a large deck right in the middle of the 'U'. They thereby wound up with a massive sized house with a private courtyard all for perhaps $20,000 or less by the time all renovations were done. I commented to the folks that created this that if they could ever figure out how to cover the deck, they'd have a great room second to none.

2) Earth bag home: Simply by using feed bags (which can be obtained for about twenty five cents apiece), a person can build a virtually bulletproof house. Apart from sweat labor (of which there will be alot), the cost of such a house can run less than a used car (potentially $3000-$7000), and what I've seen some people do is build one of these as their temporary home, for which they can later add on other rooms. Or, later, if or when money improves, they can build a different style structure.

3) Pre-fab garden sheds / Old barns - I'm not talking the type that's 8' wide with minimal headspace. Home Depot's oftentimes have gorgeous (and fairly large, often two story) Garden sheds the size of a small apartment that go for only a few thousand. If one were to add some insulation, basic wiring and plumbing, you'd have a short term house. A barn might be a bigger project, but the internet is filled with gorgeous examples of barns that were turned into very large homes. Since a barn is basically a self-supporting open shell, adding walls and floors isn't too difficult (tho finding a barn that's structurally sound enough can be more difficult, tho they do exist).

These are just a few options... there are tons of others out there. In a way, it's good that you are single, as you could get the whole thing set up on ~your~ time, as once you start dating you'll probably wind up wanting to spend time with the lucky girl!

Stay safe and welcome to the forms. I would say thanks for your service but it always made me feel uneasy. Once you finish school you might want to come to northern Arkansas and learn from a legend. Jim Lyle has a knife shop and makes knifes for a lot of people. He made one for all the field grade officers in the 39 infantry division. Since you don't have a place to set up a shop in you may want to learn something before you try to set up a shop for your self. Let us know what you decide and keep you head down.

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God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

Thanks again for all the wonderful advice - I've been checking the net (google is your friend) for land that falls into what I am looking for. There are a few possibilities but I've got plenty of time to make up my mind (here's hoping land prices dont shoot up!) My main concern of course is planning. Assembling all that I need so on the fateful day when I am ready to execute, I dont end up being short on anything. Halfway - like you said, its a military planning process thats been pounded into my head for the last 17 years that is driving my thought process. Pertinant steps from our standard mission planning -
1.Make a tentative plan - what im doing now, gathering information getting a rough idea of time energy and cost involved.
2. Start necessary movement - purchasing and gathering any and all supplies that would be necessary to facilitate a smooth transition.
3. Recon the objective - LOL this one is good, since its what I do for a living. Basically looking "eyes on" at potential locations. Water ananlysis, soil analysis, C&R, etc etc
4.Complete the plan - self explanatory but once a full bore plan is in place...
5.Complete the mission - follow through of the plan with contingencies in place for the enevitable SNAFU
cheers,
Scott

The steep drop in residential prices has not affected farm land much. It is a different market. While it is a good time to buy a house, you will not find a steal on ag land. So, while residential property cost is rising, Acreage should not increase in price for some time.

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Nothing is as strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength - St. Francis de Sales

thats good to know Maura, its definiatly a whole new world im looking into - there are tons of details that keep creeping up on me but I'm doing my best to put them all into perspective and catoagorize them by whats important first. Dont know how people did this before the internet.

They just bow up and do it. Make a few mistakes or asked the elders as to what to do.

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God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

You might consider looking for a farm apprenticeship that includes room and board after your finish the blacksmithing degree. The blacksmithing may make you more desirable than the average starting farmer as an apprentice, you should be able to find a good situation. Then you can save that retirement income for tools and land. If you can get the apprenticeship in the area you want to eventually settle in, you can start building some clientele for your blacksmithing...

Of course, there's a lot of time passing here, if you have more mouths to feed by the time you graduate, it may be a plan B situation. If you're really lucky you can find an older farmer who is slowing down and would welcome a young family's help, but that is a more difficult situation to find than a single apprenticeship for a young man in his prime.

You might also consider joining a CSA in your college years or home base time that has work days. This is not as comprehensive as an apprenticeship, but does get your hands in the soil and the sun on your face...

If you can hit a nail with a hammer you can build anything with wood.

I recommend getting a cut off saw if you saw like I do. Table saw is also a must.

Probably the most single important factor to consider is rain fall. Beauty is wonderful but I do not do cold well. I think a great combination of factors would point one to the Ozarks in southern Missouri or Arkansas. Still a tad cold for me. I have sacrificed some rain for other factors including warmth.