Alchemy and Formulas

I will beg forgiveness now. I have looked on here but have been unable to find, although I am sure it is here, what to use to seal my work. I have seen boiled linseed oil, as well as Japanese drier listed. I have not found out what the latter is though. Also, are these safe to use on work that will be involved with food, such as utensils? Thank you and please don't smack me too much for asking......

hello everyone im realitvly new at blacksmithing i have been fasinated by it for years but i dont know much about it.therein lies the problem.i would appreiate any tips on mixing a brine quench. info would be appereiated greatly thanx matt

I read in "The Blacksmith's Craft" by Charles McRaven that you can use old motor oil to quench steel and it will turn it black. It said in the book that it would probably catch fire. I have not read anything on this site about using motor oil. I have used it once to do some bolt heads for a mantle I was building. They turned out great and the wife was very happy. Just wanted to what you guys thought about this method and is there a better, safer way to turn the steel black? Thanks, Rush

I wanted to know what was the best lube for drilling? and if i should use different ones for different speeds

Hi, I am looking for a resin or glue which I can use with cast/wrought iron or mild steel. Something along th elines of epoxy resin which we use for fastening steel in concrete - except I now want to fasten steel within steel. In case you are wondering.... I am restoring an old church railing which is set in Limestone using lead. The bottom rail is three inches above the limestone capping with a three inch cast ball every two feet or so providing the spacer. The ball has footing set in the lead. We may have to cut the railing above the ball to avoid damage to the limestone capping. If this is the way forward then we are considering welding threaded bar to the bot…

I want to try quenching in a 10% salt solution. I've found a website where someone likes to use a 10% salt solution and i'd like to give it a try. But what exactly does a 10% solution mean? 10% by weight or 10% by volume? One pound of salt for every 10 pounds of water? Or one gallon of salt for every 10 gallons of water? I dont know which, i'm not a chemist or a baker... ;-)

I am starting this thread to see where it goes and maybe we all can learn something. The way I got it figured, so far, is that you need a way to bring you sample of steel to incandescence. Methinks that fullering a small sample so that you end up with an 1/8th inch center section and hooking it to your buzz box would do that. Next you will need a narrow slit to let the light through to a prism or diffraction grating. Then you will need a way to (and here is where I get lost) photograph the spectrum as it comes from the diffraction grating. Then (I guess) you will need to make sample spectrographs of known steels for comparison. And what else and how does it all fi…

I don't know how many of you have run into this little problem before, but if you have then this is formula is tops! i have run into the problem in the past of needing something, such as an acid solution, that needed a certain percentage or concentration of the chemical. Say for example you want to etch a pattern in a knife but the etching solution (we will say an acid solution for example purposes) is a 25% solution, but you want it a little more dilute to have better control over the etching rate. How do you calculate how much water do you mix with the acid you have to make it a 15% solution? This little formula works like a charm and gives you very accurate results.It …

i have heard that when sharpening a knife in a stone or grinder it best to use a lube, does anyone know any lube recipies? also some lube recipies for punches? Thanks, sabre

Rob Gunter's Super Quench Solution 4 1/2 gallons water 5 lb. salt 32 oz. Dawn dish soap (blue) 8 oz. Shaklee Basic I Stir before each use. Use for mild steel only * Additional reference

I Use A Squirt Bottle Of Water To Control My Fire. I've Been Mixing Bake'n Soda In It. -to Control The Acid- Does Anyone See A Problem With This?

so...as to the different sand compositions...any expertise in this? silica, feldspar, "silver sand".... i bought what they called silica and that's what it says on the reciept...but the 60grit says "silver sand" and the 90 says feldspar.... as in all industries trying to make up losses from fuel prices, are they substituting cheaper goods for what is ordered? are these the same quality for refractory and casting as the silica i've seen in the recipes?

I recall reading somewhere(don't have a clue at to where now) of an old tale of a smith starting his forge fire with some cedar splinters, soaked in sulfur. Taking a piece of metal and hitting it cold until hot enough to start the tinder going. Has anyone ever heard of this? Or is this just one of those things that your mind think up when you've had a heat stroke? Assuming i'm crazy and this has not happened, would it be possible?

Hope someone can help me with this. I'm trying to make museum wax using Brian Gilbert's formula which involves mixing the wax with white spirits but I don't know what the Australian version of white spirits is. I thought it was methylated spirits but have since been told it is mineral turpentine .To add to the confusion I found some white spirits which is used for stain removal in dry cleaning.:confused: I don't want to waste the wax that Brian kindly sent me so can anyone can tell me the name it is sold under in the land of Oz ?

Im wanting to make a few damascus jewelry things and curous what would be best to protect it from rust. Because this is something that some one will ware dont want any thing that will feel to oily or slimy or leave something on the skin.

I was at a hammer in last weekend and the resident smith was going to quench the edge of a tomahawk. He pulled out a shallow pan, about 8" x 10" x 2" and there was a brownish paste in the pan. I will not get too descriptive but you can imagine my first thoughts. He took out the heated hawk and put the edge into the paste and it melted and flared up. It was a mixture of motor oil and parafin wax. He said it was safer than keeping liquid oil in a can as it did not spill once it cooled and solidified again. Seems to have done a good job of quenching the edge of the hawk, too.

under the heading of waste not pollute not and if your great grandmother can do it so can you Charcoal > Forge > Potash > Pearlash > Soap, Glass and Ceramics Potash How to Make Lye - wikiHow

Correct me where I am wrong, I'm trying to put together a article so to speak on the anatomy of fire. Three Parts to a Fire. Image thanks to wikipedia. Could not make a decent triangle. A fire exists only as long as long as there is oxygen a fuel source, and heat. Fire is an oxidation process -- just like scale on a piece that you're working with -- that releases energy from the fuel in the form of light, heat, and smoke. The bi-product is ash and carbon dioxide. (Note: It is not recommend that you stare at the bright flame of a fire.) Once going fires can maintain their own heat by the release of energy in the form of heat provided there is a readily available or…

Lard was used for many years as a cutting oil for lathes, drillpresses, taps and dies. Bacon grease will also work. Peanut oil will work for cutting fluid. Kerosene will work as a coolant.(be aware of fire hazard) Milk will give a nice finish on copper when used as a cutting fluid. Old solvent (that has been strained through a paint filter) works good on alum.& mild steel as a coolant.(be aware of fire hazard) Crisco works well in about all tapping situations. *

Hi. As I promised, I will post an idea for saving oil. Unfortunately, a doggie ate my longer post last night, so I will just post the outline:( Recently, when quenching some handled top tools in oil (to protect the eye), I experienced a fire . The stench was also disgusting. I decided to try a polymer quench: o did not want to buy the minimum quantity of Dow UCON A o try to find an easier to source alternative o do not use antifreeze: this is ethylene glycol, not PAG, and it is toxic o ideas: CMC, psyllium seed powder (Metamucil), snails and slugs, shampoo o settled on used disposable diapers from the local baby (cheap or free) o each diaper contai…

Hi. I bought a brazing torch set and found that the valves are a little sticky. It is a National 3A torch. What do you recommend for greasing the valves to free them up? I would be tempted to use Black Swan, but this might not be safe. The welding supply sells Krytox, which is definitely oxygen safe, but this is $81 for a 2 oz tub (enough for hundreds of torches). Dupont 111 might be OK, but it is not recommended for liquid oxygen service. Somebody suggested silicone high vacuum grease. I suspect that any of the non-petroleum based greases should be OK for low pressure oxy service, but its best to be safe.

Hey everyone. I am working on putting together a list of formulas, concoctions, finishes, fluxes, etches etc. for our next newsletter over here at the Blacksmith Guild of Virginia. I am trying to compile a BIG list of what smiths are using. Everything from the ordinary flat black paint and borax to the exotic and wild home-made concoctions. If you would like to share your personal formulas for our newsletter I will publish it with your name attached if used. I think also it would make a great Quick Reference post here on IFI. Thanks for your help I will only use your contribution if you have given me permission too... Peyton

What Books would be best to teach me general information metal properties and melting points ect. I wanted to learn so I wouldn't be scratching my head when I used a certian metal and expect it to be able to work into something that it just isn't cut out to be.

It seems that I am having a hard time getting a brass finish that stands out, it is usually very dull and hardly noticeable. Here is the process I usually use: - Black heat then brass - Apply beeswax (hot enough to smolder) - Green coal in fire and hold over for just a few moments - Let Cool - Buff with rag (mixed results here, especially if there is excess wax) Just looking for any suggestions for getting a good finish that has a blackened yet smooth appearance with bright brass highlights.

I had two blade blanks in the gas forge at the shop yesterday, and I slid a piece of brass flat stock in so that I could anneal it. I turned around to place a hot cut hardy in the anvil, and when I pulled the brass out, a substantial part of it had melted off onto the blanks and the floor of the gas forge. The brass appears to have fused to the blade blank surfaces (W-1 + heat scale + propane + brass), turned red, and doesn't seem to want to go anywhere without grinding and filing. Can someone tell me what I've done here and whether or not I've got two letter openers, or two blades that might feature "unique decoration" once I grind the brass off the blade surfaces? T…