Glenn

Welcome to the forum. I found that 2 air holes 1/2" x 3" with a 1/2 or 3/4 solid section between them is about right for the air in my forge. But that is my set up and the next fellows set up and is different but it works also.

Ben, follow the advice given and find a blacksmithing group. The friendship is worth the trip to the meetings. The tools and knowledge gained at the meetings are a bonus.




No, that is not me that forges while wearing sandles. :shock:
Till you can secure an anvil, most anything with 75-100 pounds will do. This is the "hole" from cutting a circle in a piece of plate steel, and was being used at a demo to show folks that anvils do not have to "look" like the thing that falls on the head of a cartoon character.

If you go with the rail road steel, try to get a 3 or 4 foot section and stand it on end. All the mass is then under the working area.



This is an example of an anvil that is not a "standard" shape, but worked for the blacksmith that used it, and the anvil stand is rather unique I must admit. Not the usual tree stump you expect to see. Notice the vise on the right side of the anvil ?

. .
Pictured is a 4" x 18" section of round bar that weighs 75# on top of a 100# Peter Wright. It is as long as the anvil, has a wider face, a 4" round horn and is easier to move.

There are some more anvils and anvil stands pictured at IForgeIron>Tools>Anvils

A photo of the vise and close-ups of the important features would be nice. :wink:

I have been following this with great interest and it would seem that at least some of Eurpoe has system of communication between the blacksmith and the striker.

A series of rings on the anvil gets your attention. After that we need to quickly set up a communication skill to convey our intentions. The blacksmith is the one in control of the process. He is also responsible for explaining to the striker what signals are to be used for a specific action.

Strine's "lay the sledge up against his anvil and walk away" is not only universal in translation, but many times the only safe thing to do if signals are unclear.


As to the original post on taping: I will hit the metal instead of the anvil. Only because I was told that it still does a little work, and provides a "rest" for the arm in multiple swings. I can not recall the hit/rest ratio but do know that it varies with the nature of the work.

There is more than one way to skin a cat - just remember that you want a skinned cat when your finished.

1/4x3/4 size of stock - Let's see

* That is 1/4 by 1-1/2 cut in half the easy way (NOT 1/2 by 3/4 cut in half - what I am calling the hard way :wink: )

* Buy a sheet of 1/4" plate and have them shear it into 3/4" strips.

* Buy a sheet of 1/4" plate and have them water jet it into 3/4" strips.

* Buy a sheet of 1/4" plate and have them plasma cut it into 3/4" strips.

* Buy a sheet of 1/4" plate and have them laser cut it into 3/4" strips.

* Call other companies that order steel from the supplier and see if you can add your order to theirs. Chances are the big boys get a discount that will offset the special order charges.


Heating and beating is fun for the first couple of feet then the other options start looking better. The special order may still be the way to go depending on the length of stock needed. Run the cost of the special order against the labor and time of the other methods.

Anyone have any better ideas?

The rectagular one is for a 1/4x3/4 size of stock. I have a project that I'll need lots of stock of this size to do it.

Why not go to the steel yard and order that size stock? I needed that size and they ordered it and it came in with thier next shipment.

Is there a formula to figure what size of round to use to make a square of a certian size.

When a blacksmith changes the shape of metal, he is changing the cross section but not the volumn.

Area of a circle = 3.1416 times the radius squared
Area of a square = width times the height

To get a 1" wide by 1" tall = 1 square inch.
1-1/8" circle has a area of 0.09940
1-3/16" circle has an area of 1.1075
1-1/4" circle has an area of 1.2272
This does now take into account any loss due to scale etc.
Numbers and formula from the 12th ed Machinery's Handbook

When in doubt, go get the kids play-do or modeling clay.

Others may have a better hands on explaination and I would certainly like to hear a "rule of thumb" on this one.

If you think that the old springs are comprimised in some way and not holding the weight they should, look into a set of new springs.

Rich has a very good point. Consider the original GVW (Gross Vehicle Weight). 1 ton springs on a 1/2 ton truck may hold the load, but what about the 1/2 ton brakes trying to deal with a 1 ton or greater loading? The ply rating and load rating on the tires must be considered also. Truck tires take 70 psi of air or higher as normal depending on the tire and ply rating.

It is easier to make two trips with two smaller loads, than to overload a truck and stress the truck or break something.

I was a little confused until I rewrote the whole thing. Now, for me, it is easy to see how the conversation works. (Daryl, thanks for the explaination. Great post.)


Smith: 5 taps on the anvil
.....Smith requires a striker;
Striker: 1 tap lightly on the heel of the anvil.
.....Striker is ready and waiting for signals


Smith: Strike and 1 tap on the anvil
.....Signal for striker to commence striking where the smith is hitting


Smith: Strike and 2 taps on the anvil
.....Striker can take the next strike as normal, though his 2nd strike is an empty one (light) either on the heel or the horn while the smith repositions the iron (this is such that the rhythm may be kept)
Smith: 1 tap afterwards on anvil
.....Striker to only hit in the center of the anvil, as the smith will now move the iron to where the strikes are required



Smith: 2 taps and drags the hammer
.....Striker has one last strike and then is finished for this heat

Break the habit before it is too late, take up knitting.

Showmanship at a demo brings in the croud and folks expect you to tap between blows, cause that is how a "real" blacksmith does it.

If you have not found it already, try this link

http://www.iforgeiron.com then Blueprints

There are several how to articles (some 235+ at last count) on that site covering tools, jigs, and projects you can make.

Another source is the IForgeIron Tuesday Night Live Blueprints where the new blueprints are presented live across the internet every Tuesday Night at 10 pm EDT. Doors open at 9 pm. Usually there are two blueprints presneted each week

When donated blacksmithing related material is available, there is a door prize for those present. Door prizes have included CD's, cone mandrals, tongs, gloves, welding rod cases, aprons, etc.

http://www.iforgeiron.com/bp_location.shtml

Everyone is welcome. Join in if you get a chance.

That is what is needed.

No one said it had to be done hot, just that it looked "hot" or "kool" or whatever when you finished. :wink:

Rantalin
Any chance of a blueprint on the hanger ?

yesteryearforge, I heard that saying a little differently.
Sometime you get the bear, sometimes the bear gets you, and sometimes everyone goes home hungry. :?


Hollis, the heat, the weight and how far something has to be carried, having to outfit kids for school, when they got the last pay envelope or social security check, etc all affect sales. Once September is out of the way folks start thinking Christmas.

Use the Bill Epps rule for sales, lots of stuff under $20.00 that looks good in a double wide and always keep a couple of high dollar items on hand so the $20.00 looks even better.

Try this:
Point the hammer handle always to the fromt, and try swinging the hammer real slow with the knuckles just missing the outside of the pants pocket on the down stroke. Elbow should be tucked in. Don't twist or bend, but walk the body side to side to put the hammer on the anvil where you want it to hit. Your body may be in line with the hardie hole but the hammer is in line with the shoulder. Then take 1/4 step backward from the anvil. Once set up, adjust as needed for your body configuration, long/short arms, legs, etc.

Go to IForgeIron.com > Blueprints and look at B-0063 Helve Hammer

Plans there for building a HelveHammer. Irnsrgn and others like the design very much.

The original question was "How do i take a nice long heat on a bar?" From there it moved to how much bar can you work before it gets cold and have to reheat.

I think we are referring to two different situations, one a new blacksmith trying to figure things out, and number two, a production run.

Making the first one of anything is a challenge and takes several tries, and sometimes many heats, to figuring things out. The second one takes less time now that you know how. Jigs cut the time again as you figure out what part of the process has to be done by hand and what part can be done with a jig. Now that you know the steps involved to make the item, you can make one more to be sure everything works together as one entire process as well as it did as individual steps. This is the point where the number of heats become important and decrease with your increased speed of work and using the same heat for several steps.

The point is that if you make an item one time, the first one can take many heats figuring out how to get things to work and get the piece to look right. Hollis I agree with you that the number of heats are important in production, as everything is figured out, the steps in line, and each heat or step costs production time and therefore money.



Makin Moore's comments are in the IForgeIron story section
The Smithy - Blacksmithing and Baseball

Makin Moore, production manager of "The Smithy", once told a fellow that worked in his shop, "We sell products, we don't sell heats. You take as many heats as you need."

Getting it right is more important than how many heats it took to get there.

Lets list some ideas on what we found to make life easier for us in the shop or workplace. For instance:

Storing chain
I found that a one gallon paint can will hold a LOT of chain in the 1000 pound test sizes. Bucket makes it easy to carry and keeps it from getting all tangled up or knotted. For bigger or longer chain, use 2-1/2 gallon or 5 gallon buckets. Sure cleaned up the chain storage problem here.

Spray paint every 5th link from the hook on each end to identify the length of the chain. A 17 foot chain would have links #5, #10, #15, and #17 painted. Besides, you know which chain is YOURS when it is time to take it back home.

Daryl, I would suggest that a certain size stock be used to keep things uniform. As each set of links is added, that chain can get real heavy real fast.

Turn that Rail Road track up on it's end. 3 feet of rr track can weigh 100 pounds or more and on end, all that weight is directly under the work. The tarrget area looks a llittle small at first, but you get used to it quickly.

Visit a flea market and look for old chisels, hammers, and such. Usually you can get them at a fair price.

Ralph
Welcome home and back on line. Dawn will I am sure keep you current on your meds. Take Care for yourself.

Ralph had to have blood, afterall. He got two units on Wed, which kept him in the hospital for longer than we were hoping, but he's coming home today!! I'm so glad. It's been a L O N G ten days!

Ralph will have our laptop with wireless Internet on his lap here at home by this afternoon, so I'm sure everybody will be hearing from him soon.

Thanks again for your support! Dawn

Very nice wife, keep on her good side.

Start with a veggy oil or new ATF quench first, (caution about fire) then hot water, room temp water, ice water and superquench.

As your not sure of the parent material, expect it to shatter and take precautions. And what works for one ball may NOT work for another.

How much iron (what length) can you work at one time before the metal looses heat? Hand hammer or power hammer?