elmoleaf

Finally followed thru on redeeming a gift certificate to an online store...Aspery’s Skills of a Blacksmith, beeswax, a slitter, and a brass brush were dropped at my door. Also recently found some more road kill steel, and I bought a couple bags of coal from a local supplier. While riding the train home, glanced down when we stopped unexpectedly and saw this steel on the adjacent track. Looks like some large two person tongs for lifting track? And some thick plate. This is an active track and property cannot be taken. It is strange though how they just seem to abandon bits and pieces along the way and never seem to clean up when they’re done working on the track.

Have you looked at used wood pallets? Some of them are made from pretty tough wood.

Twisted rebar is generally the earliest type....invented by Ernest Ransome. In use late 19th thru early 20th Century.

This early 20th C rebar followed me home a few years ago...finally cut off a manageable size piece from the larger mangled length. It’s about 7/8” across on the least dimension, but not really square. Do not have a specific project in mind for it yet. I don’t have a power tool for cutting, so this was sawn thru by hand with a hack saw.

More Boston roadkill....galvanized nut, and a piece of stainless. I think the stainless was ripped off of hardscape bench or planter wall...they install stuff like this at the wall joints to deter skateboarders from doing tricks/sliding along the top outside edge of the wall.

More stuff from the road over the last few days..heard a big clang as a passing car ran over these broken leaf spring pieces. Also some sort of broken bracket, a new nut, and a couple broken bolts. Also saw what looked like substantial chunk of broken plow blade, but was too big to lug back to the office/home.

found a small bit of coil spring by the side of the road in Boston. I keep my eyes peeled when walking to work and sometimes find useful bits like this.

Looks like it’s a Hay Budden.

Saw this for sale on xxxxxxxxxxxxx. Listed at $1200, 330 lb PW anvil, he was “taking to get welded” but decided to sell instead. Another photo shows the missing chunk placed adjacent to the hole. Judging by the rusty area, seems like there was a partial delam, so they decided to cut it off?

Looks pretty good from here. Lots of overpriced junk for sale here in MA, so that one seems worth the price.

This is mine, but not made by me. Marked B. DAVIES ALL WROUGHT IRON WARRANTED. Found with a metal detector about 35 years ago. It’s currently kludged into a hollow core door. It’s interesting how the latch is pinned to those separate thin side cheek pieces, which seem to be wedged/notched into the sides of the latch hole. Aside from the actual pull handle, it’s all pretty thin and light material.

Agree...very beautiful and clean. Well done!

True only of San Francisco minted pieces intended for collectors. The regular 71-78 dated issues are the typical copper nickel clad composition.

Love your videos. Nice drift. Did you drift the test head upside down though? Widest part of the eyehole seemed like it would be facing the handle the way you did it, instead of furthest from hand/at top of the axe.

My first pair of tongs is far left..5/8th rebar, with drilled bolt hole and peened over bolt. Got ambitious on the second pair (2nd from left)...Pelgrom tongs with wacky proportions and weak area in one of the jaws. These were drawn out from some heavier rebar. They haven’t broken yet, but do have some unwanted flex. 3rd from left pair....kind of a cold mess (they’d be a hot mess if I actually used them). Jaws went awry and one is very weak. Ended up with odd boss/handle junction angle. But like the previous pair, I punched the rivet hole and peened a rod for the rivet. Made the pair on far right today. These are much stronger than the previous 2 efforts. I’ve filed a groove across the jaws so I can hold stock in either direction. Cold and snow ahead in the forecast, so my forging is likely over until spring.