My name is Sam Perakis.
I started blacksmithing in 2014.

I had a few shops in Massachusetts and moved to Portland with my wife Laura in 2024 where I took over the former location of The Ball and Chain Forge. I am a member in good standing of both the Artist Blacksmith Association of North America (ABANA) and New England Blacksmiths (NEB) and an ABANA-certified Journeyman smith and National Curriculum Instructor - the highest officially recognized skill level in North America.

In my work, I focus on architectural ironwork, reproduction and restoration of colonial New England hardware, and toolmaking. The shop is outfitted for blacksmithing, welding and fabrication, machining, and custom metalwork; No job is too big or small, too complex or simple.

Laura and I also serve as the co-editors for the NEB newsletter and I also work as a volunteer teacher at The Gilbert Center in Brentwood, NH. Volunteering is important to us and we seek to both strengthen the existing blacksmith community and help draw more and different kinds of people to the craft.