Problem Solving

Hi All! I'm looking for suggestions for a blower that will hold up for use as an air curtain blower for the front of my gas forge. I've rigged up a couple of old forge blowers over the years with electric motors, but using them in an application with minimum restriction quickly burns up the motors. My most recent "burn out" was with an electric forge blower (like the ones on the Buffalo forges with a reostat controller), that had been fitted with a 1/4hp motor. I suppose I could go to a 1/2hp motor, but I suspect the same thing will happen. The way I have my air curtain set up is with the blower mounted near the floor, attahced to the table which supports…

Does anyone have any ideas on reducing scaling. My NC Tool Whisper Momma is bad to scale up the stock, & the thinner the stock-the worse the scale.

Sight unseen, I agreed to pick up what was nominally a 4' x 8' sheet of 1/2" steel for a layout table from my brother. It is in fact 4' x 9' and either a very rusted 1/2" thick, or mildly rusted 7/16"... I can't tell. I was disappointed to find that it just isn't flat. It has too much warpage and crowning. I really need a larger layout table. Has anyone had any luck getting something like this truly flat? I'm considering cutting it into sections and building it back up, one foot at a time, but that seems extreme. Thanks.

Can a torsion bar spring be made in a simple forge, assuming I have the correct type of steel? I know little about metalurgy. In a particular application I would like to use a torsion bar instead of a coil spring. I figured someone here would know how to make these. Some torsion bars are hollow, a solid bar is OK for my use. The spring would be used in the suspension of a light weight automobile, it would probably resemble springs used in motorcycles. I try to rely upon parts that I can find in salvage yards. Some of my design ideas don't have appropriate off the shelf parts, it can difficult to find a spring with the precise capacity that is needed. …

I am told this wear to a Little Giant power hammer was caused due to running the machine loose. A shot of grease and tightening that loose bolt is a small price to pay. This one cost the air hammer that was purchased to keep the shop running while the LG was being repaired, the cost shipping the LG both ways and the cost of the LG repairs. And throw in the time to tear it down and bolt the LG back together.

What is this Handy Tool Helper, I couldn't find my old one when I needed it, so I thru this one together from scraps and it works better than the one I can't find.

I am junking an old lawn mower & was curious as to what type of steel these are & if it would be any good for forging :?:

The blocks I'm welding are 3 1/2" square by 14" long. Good clean metal--edges to be welded beveled 3/16" making a V almost a 1/4" wide. For the root pass I used 3/32" 6011 rod--welder set on 90 amps with the blocks clamped together. To keep the heat down(D2--air hardening) I welded about an inch on each end in the middle and starting in the middle on each side alternating made 4 welds a couple inches apart. Each weld was peened immediately after lifting the rod. I had intended to use 7018 1/4" rod, more amps to finish the welding, the first welds tacking the blocks. When I took the clamp off,after cooling a while, the @#%$*%$ things make a cute little "ting" and most of t…

This is the finished product needed. What are different ways to get this accomplished. How would YOU go about making a dozen of the items?

Do you know what these plyers were used for? Garey Ford

Anybody know what this antique tool is?

This was sent in for identification. Any ideas?

I got an order for a custom fire screen but am having trouble getting the wire cloth flat. I bought a #8 mesh, which has about a .105 opening and uses 27 ga wire. It's a real pretty weave and should make a nice job but it came rolled pretty tightly and had a set when I cut the roll. I tried to bend it backwards with my hands and got it fairly flat but it has a lot of little waves. Now, I can't seem to pull it enough to get it taut and flat. Anyone have the trick to doing this? BTW, the screens I've built in the past were made with precut flat sections so they were pretty flat to start with but I can't get those pieces anymore. Maybe I got spoiled because I can't r…

Hello, I've got a job comming up that is going to be very repetitive. I'm forging mild steel and some brass pieces that are about 4"x1/4"x3/4" in size and I'm wanting to make a small freon tank gas forge to heat them in. I'm thinking a gas forge will be cheaper with the volume I'm looking to forge. I'm building a Ron Reid burner and I'm thinking one will be enough. But does anybody have a formula for figuring how many burners you'd need for a given area. If this works good I'm thinking about making a big forge for regular forgings maybe a working area of 24"x12"x24". Just depends on how I like the little one.

Hello, I have a smal motor powered grinder, with what I think is a sharpener, which grinds of material super fast, and a vicious rusty wire wheel which you can't touch without gloves on the other. I just unbolted it from a workbench right underneath the fusebox, and it is elsewhere. I have removed the wire wheel, but there is still a kind of swcrew-thing which I could put a big wheel on. Is there any way I could put a second wheel higher up supported by, say, some angle iron or something, and make it a belt sander? I am also wondering whether it would be possible to bolt the iron through the outer housing of the motor-thingy, or would this interfere with the motor? Thank…

OT but there is a bunch of knowledge on this board so here's one for you machine repair guys. I have a hay rake that had a bad bearing on one of the rake beams so I pulled it off and disassembled it. There is a grease seal, snap ring and the two bearings that support the shaft. The problem is that the retaining ring broke so the bearing got to wobbling and smeared over the snap ring groove for about 30% of its circumference. Therefore, I cannot get a new ring back into place without recutting part of the groove, which is about .050 wide and the same deep. I don't want to take the time to put it in the mill and do all the setup to cut it plus there is the possibility …

Helo, I am new in the blacksmithing business and just now building my gas forge and need some advice: I use a standard home gas tank & regulator and fan for forced air but do not get enough heat. The 1/2" bar I am trying to work with stays black. Some facts: - Color of flame is blue. - The forge chamber is not isolated (working on it...) - Gas orifice is 1/16" - I tried all variations of air and gas flow with no success. Can anybody help?

. If anyone has any idea what this tool is, or what it is used for, please let me know. Possum

Not sure where else to post it so I figured here would be good. I've been flattening 1/2"round for scroll ends (91 times). I like them to flare about an inch wide. My power hammer just has plough dies in it. It takes me 3 heats to get the end like I want. 2 under the PH and one on the anvil with the hand hammer. I can do it in one under the PH but I get a more consitant result taking my time and the extra heat. To get the shape I want I first flatten from one side, and the flipside on the second heat. Finaly we're getting to my quick tip. So I know instantly with out trying to remember I make a mark on the rod with a peice of soapstone And then every time, the…

When cutting mulitples of different lengths, cut the longest ones first, and then process them, so that if you hoop one you can salvage it for a shorter peice. If you hoop one of the shorter peices......... It's just to bad for you! :wink:

Do you guys have any ideas on forging under canvas? I'm setting up a portable SCA smithy for camping event's and trying to figure out a sun/wind shade. I have a couple 19 foot long by 42 inch wide swather canvas I was thinking of using as walls to shelter the forge from wind. And I have a 5'7" x 11'6" canvas tarp I was thinking of making a roof from. Space as in the foot print, and in packing is at a bit of a premium, but reasonable. It usualy is way too bright and hot during the day to safely forge outside during camping season. My forge is a rivet forge with short legs so it's just up off the ground and I work in a sitting position. I will probaly be burning coa…

I wonder if anyone else is suffering this frustration? All the pictures in the gallery have disappeared and have been replaced by little crosses. This is making me a little cross :cry: But the blue print pikkies still work OK. What have I been unknowingly mucking around with?