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I Forge Iron

GRiley904

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Mill Run Pa

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    RileySimonds@yahoo.com

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  1. May have been the "history of the upper yough" Playlist. It's like 12 to 14 videos explaining how rapids got their names, the early days and first people to take guests down the upper, some cool stories along the way, and my favorite bit of history about how the first ones to navigate the section were being shot at by unruly locals but did it anyway. The history in this area goes just as deep as you want to dig.
  2. In the first Pic, it's rust. In all other pics the blade has gone through heat treat and had the handle attached and been ground enough to run colors all while glue was still wet and oozing. It got a little messy but all will be addressed after it cures.
  3. Made it around the bend and to the home stretch. Been working on this knife to occupy time for a while now. Old leaf spring for the blade, all other metal is from a ride spike. Walnut for the handle. Through tang peened together and gorilla glue reinforcement. Today's task was heat treat and attach handle. Next is the finish grind and finally sharpen. Triple normalized, quenched twice. The first quench may have been a bit too cool and didn't fully harden. Tempered with a torch. Slightly blue back and edge is on the soft side of straw colored. Hope I got it right but I feel the torch temper was tricky and possibly not the best way. Whatever, it's done now and we're pushing forward. This will be my first completed blade that isn't a knife shaped object.
  4. I love it up here, I'll take the snow and river over the heat and humidity any day. Not to mention the hunting is amazing up here. I guide the lower, it's a class 3+ runwith like 1 or 2 class 4 rapids or above 5 foot water levels the whole section becomes class 4. Those are some legit rapids. I also work a little on the upper yough, class 5. Second steepest commercially rafted section in the country, possibly the most difficult. That's where the fun lives, until you get inexperienced rafters in your boat. Middle is the mostly flat scenic float. Most think it's boring and typically takes 4 hours to complete at normal levels, class 1 and 2. It's super chill and personally I think it's beautiful. My mom's side of the family is from Ohiopyle, it's almost a right of passage in my family to at least work a few seasons on the river. Usually we do it around 18 to 21 years old but I waited until I was 30. I made the move permanent almost 2 years ago and have been tinkering and collecting ever since in order to start hitting metal again. Still have a bit to do in order to get the smithy to full potential but I'm operational again and already better than ever as far as what my tools will allow. Now I just have to work on me. Thanks for the welcome to PA Das. Feel free to hit me up if you're in town or if you hear of any events in the area. If you ever feel like seeing some more of the river, I'm your guy. Riley
  5. Hi friends, haven't posted in a while but I'm still here banging away. No longer live in FL, I've moved to mill run PA. Right next to Ohiopyle where I guide the white water. Super fun job. I had the privilege of working briefly at Red star iron works with an excellent Smith named Pete. I finally got my forge built up here and have taken to making things again. Here is a knife I've been working on to waste my idle time in the winter. Mostly a stock removal blade from a recycled leaf spring with hand tools. Honestly the whole point of this project was to be a time pit. Still I got impatient and cheated a bit using an angle grinder to establish a tang and a belt sander to quicken the profile process. A couple day ago, I went to work forging the guard and a pommel button for the peened through tang handle and picked a nice piece of walnut for the handle. There is a bit more progress made since this Pic on handle profiling but I may have cracked my walnut handle. No worries, I have more, but I could have done a better job mating it with the guard and pommel anyway. Up next is heat treat and then finish grind. I hope it comes out well as I have several hours of file time on this thing. Thanks for any input and feedback or tips and tricks on regard to fit and finish. As for heat treat, I've normalized it once but I fear it was too hot when I did so I will normalize twice more at just over non magnetic. Oil quench at similar temp and either differential temper with soft spine or differential hardening with an edge quench. I'm not sure yet but this will be a very thick blade, kinda a drop point skinner. It won't be the prettiest thing in the world yet I will refine it a bit more. I'm ready to see it finished. Thanks everyone, Riley
  6. Rockstar all i can say to that is bravo. I really like that idea and i think it would work well for him. I'm starting to wish i had something like that around me. I don't want to have to rename my forge so transportable is kind of important to me. That being said a couple names come to mind for my locality. Black creek forge being one but that stays with the "forge" issue. I suppose it could be transportable though, and i could solve the forge problem by changing it too either metalworks or ironworks. I still like the name i came up with because i believe it avoid the issue by being my name or a cute and fitting nickname. Perhaps I'm not digging deep enough. My ancestry is primarily Scottish and Irish, i could look up a name in Gaelic maybe but I'm not sure about naming in another language. I wouldn't want to torpedo myself before i even get started. Needless to say you've certainly got my gears turning. Riley
  7. I like it. I've been putting thought into this as well. I want to move in to selling my forgings to support the hobby and i feel a name is important when making that transition. In my thought process; my first name is George witch rhymes with forge and my middle name witch i prefer to go by is Riley. So the simple short and sweet name i came up with is Forge Riley's . i think it's somewhat clever and the friends that i have shared that with seem to like it so I'll give it a go and see if it works for me. I hope I'm not hijacking your topic, i was hoping to show my thought process in naming my forge if it's any help. You have a solid name for your forge, i can see myself buying hand and anvil products. Riley
  8. I always wanted too look into getting my family tartan for some reason i like the idea of standing at My forge in a kilt. But i would have to know for a fact that it was my family tartan. Welcome to the site, you've already done well to let us know your general location, that helps us help you. Not sure of your skill level, but people are going to tell you to pack a lunch and read till you can't anymore, then read some more. Then start hammering, you will know right away if the bug has bitten. Good luck and stay safe.
  9. If you build a charcoal retort to fuel your forge then realize that if you could use the retort as a forge you could do metal work while simultaneously providing income to support your metal addiction. If you pay extra money to buy scrap/ barrels ect. Untouched! I recently found a guy that sold 55 gallon burn barrels premade 2 for $25 when i went to pick up the barrels the he had not yet worked on he charged me $25 a piece for 2. I paid it but it aggravated me. The guy in my face gouged me then told me he basically gets paid to take them. If you just read all 7 pages of this thread and not 1 thing struck you add odd or over the top
  10. howdy Charlie welcome aboard i see you are right here in my area. Im up in orange park by the mall. Shot me a pm sometime if you want to get together and play with some metal.
  11. Hi Riley. I took a job a couple hours south of here, and will therefore be moving. I have a number of items that I want to offer to you before I just leave them on the curb. I had collected a couple of break drums/disks, old grills for forge carts, and assorted scrap steel and aluminum. I also have a heavy layout table. If you have need of any of these things, please let me know and I will arrange to give them to you. 

    Chris 

  12. Hi blue duck I also happen to be from op Florida hit me up in the private messages maybe we could hook up and learn a little from each other. I've been at it for a couple years now and have a fair understanding of the craft. If you message I'll give my contact info and we can shoot the bull.
  13. What's more important to you that it opens bottles artistic appearance or that it's a closed ring style. I make bulldog head bottle openers in witch the opener itself is a simple scroll to grab the cap. I also put a slight bend about an inch back from the scroll to act as the fulcrum and i like that better, i find it more pleasing to the eye and it kinda picks the head up like he's looking around. If you are using a rr spike you may consider a cool twist in the handle
  14. itchy beard problems wash with head and shoulders i used to use regular shampoo on it and couldnt get it longer than an inch to an inch and a half do to itchyness. now since i made the switch im at 3 inches and growing. i love my beard
  15. Mr. Charles this is some golden advise thank you very much
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