Hillbillysmith

I as asked to give an estimate on fixing the broken out face of a Peter Wright anvil and I would like to confirm if the body is wrought iron or cast iron because this will have a huge significance on determining my estimate for the filler materials.... I have always been under the knowledge that Peter Wright anvils were "pure grade" quality wrought iron and that was why they would sway back easier than the "scrap" wrought iron which contained more steel and cast iron impurities so PW's weren't as hard because of this. I do not have a Postman's book so I'm leaning on you guys here to help me confirm whether I am correct or not. Thank y'all very much in advanced!! -Hillbilly

Are you sure it's S-9 material and not S-7?? I personally have never heard of S-9 before but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist... Regardless, S-series tool steels are shock-resistant, air-quenched tool steels (although they can be quenched in oil) used in punch-press type operations. What type of welding do you have access to? I, personally, am very fond of tig welding in which case I would use either ER312, ER-309, or ER80S-D2 filler with a 400F preheat and let it air cool. I would say you could easily get away with only a 1/8" weld because of inserting the pin down inside the dovetail block and that it being a punch, there won't be much stress transversely loaded onto it. If you don't have the accessibility to tig weld it, same preheat with E-7018 or E-309-16 stick rods should suffice. Preheat is definitely needed. Hope this helps you, post pix when finished! -Hillbilly

Build yourself a welding cart for your welder, filler metals, wire brushes, clamps, etc... They're excellent fab & welding projects. You could also build a bench grinder stand, a full weld table to put bench vises on and just to work on in general, you could build a hitch extension for the back of your truck so it an support longer pieces of material when you haul.... Have fun and post pix! -Hillbilly

What kind of budget are you looking to spend?? Are you 230 volt capable?? For a garage/hobby type situation, I'm a huge fan of the dual voltage machines. Lincoln 210 MP, Millermatic 211, Hobart 210MPV, Thermal Arc (Tweco) Fabricator 181i... They are all limited by a lower duty cycle but duty cycle in itself is an illusive creature because it's practically never correct. Besides, all these machines come with built-in thermal overload protection so if the chance arises that you would in fact hit the duty cycle, they will shut themselves down before and danger or damage occurs. I am a professional welder by trade and I also own my own equipment for side work so I look into this kind of stuff constantly and thoroughly. All of the above mentioned machines are in the $1,000 ballpark and all of these options have additional accessories and replacement parts readily available. If purchased new, the basic package of all machines listed come with everything you need to get started besides filler metal and a gas bottle. Hope this sheds some light on the subject for you! Best of luck. -Hillbilly

So sorry to hear about the better half. I wish you the best brother, stay strong... -Hillbilly

I say go for it!!! If your blade is rated for the rpm that your saw will output, the blade is designed for cutting steel, and the blade has roughly 32 tpi then use say do it. I would.... Just be sure you understand the dangers involved and be as careful as possible, use all guards, gloves, glasses, face shield, and ear plugs. I have a metal cutting circular saw and I've personally cut 1"thick steel plate with absolutely no problems or dangers. The main issue here is the rpm rating. Other than that, I don't see a problem. Just keep in mind that, unless your circular saw is a worm gear drive saw, you could burn up the saw. And with that thick of material, that's a lot of surface area the blade will be in contact with so you may burn the blade as well. Fire up that saw and post pictures of results!! -Hillbilly

It SHOULD be... Just keep in mind that the answer you may get from the welding supplier (because they will contact the manufacturer) is absolutely not and that you need to buy the correct, "manufacturer recommended part".... The best way to find out is to simply try it. No harm in trying, meaning you wont fry the machine in any way. If you're the kind of person who likes to have verification before you try it, to be on the safe side, Look through the manual and it should give sort of a "schematic" on what each individual control the pins go to along with wire color designation should you cut the cord and splice in a finger switch or something to that effect. -Hillbilly

https://m.youtube.com/?#/watch?v=fiNFydwVfg8 I've never seen so many in one place! -Hillbilly

Wow everybody!! I certainly did not start this post so everybody could bash and ridicule this man.... For the most part, we are all grown adults here and shouldn't be like this. So what if he's more of a fabricator than a blacksmith, he likes the metal trade as do all of us on this forum! You should be ashamed of yourselves. I've seen PLENTY of work that has been done by members on this forum (some of whom have replied to this thread) that leaves little to be desired!! -Hillbilly

I made this third hand the other day to help me hold things on the bench. It's a 6"x6"x2" thick mild steel block with 3/8" round unknown stainless rod and 1.5" diameter ball bearings. I tig welded the unknown stainless to the ball bearings with 625 Inconel filler and the unknown stainless to the mild steel block with 317L filler. -Hillbilly

Preheat both pieces high enough to drive off the moisture (minimum) since the "mild" steel piece is unknown and the RR track is a high manganese steel. Weld with 7018/8018/9018 etc. Put in dry sand or wrap in a fiberglass weld blanket overnight. -Hillbilly

Use E-6011, weld all around, ensure corners are thoroughly wrapped ad they are the stress points, preheat the 1.5" plate to drive off the moisture, make 1/4"-3/8" weld (roughly 3-passes), call 'er a jim dandy!! -Hillbilly

I'm a welder by profession, that's all I do. Stick, Mig, Tig, Flux core, Oxy fuel, Brazing, you name it. I've held dozens of certs. AWS D1.1/ D1.3/ D17.1, ASME section 9, several processes on several types of material.... With that said, I am a die hard Lincoln/Miller fan but yet I have an AHP AlphaTig 200X and I love it! I only got this machine because it came my way brand new at a dirt cheap price so I got it to test it out and I'm thoroughly impressed with its performance! I'm actual ashamed to admit that I own such an abomination. lol. I have used and abused this machine like it was a rented dynasty! haha. All joking aside, this would seriously be a fantastic machine for the garage/hobbyist user especially for the price. There are two things that I would (and I already have) definitely replace is the flowmeter (Smith 300 for a replacement) and the torch. An adaptor is required to attach any typical air-cooled torch 9/17/26.I personally like CK brand torch accessories made by CK Worldwide and they are the manufacturer of the adaptors needed for this machine. A CK-9 style torch is rated for 125 amps, CK-17 style torch is rated for 150 amps, and the CK-26 torch is 200 amp rated all with a 100% duty cycle. I picked up a 26 style torch with 25' lead off amazon.com for $40. You can pick up 17 type torches for $40-$50 off amazon all day which is cheaper than the $175-$190 you'll pay at the welding supplier. Now, to get the adaptors: the adaptor to connect a 9 or a 17 type torch is the same (CK part # SL-2 M16) and you can get it from Weld.com for $64.50. The website takes PayPal only as a form of payment. I had to go through my welding supplier to get the adaptor for the 26 type torch (CK part # SL-8 M16). I have personally welded a fair amount of 1/2" thick aluminum with it and it performed quite well. The new 2015 model comes with AC frequency adjustment which is what I wished my 2014 model had. -Hillbilly

I came across this channel on YouTube the other day called "ModernBlacksmith" and this video of a forge he builds and sells. Slick little unit I would say. What do you guys think? Is this guy on here? -Hillbilly Advertizing link removed

...And why can it not be casted? It can be melted. If one would melt it in a crucible and pour the liquified metal in a form, it would be a casting operation. -Hillbilly