Glenn

Good thing your first project was not door hinges, or you would have had to build a building to use them. :roll: Keep the stake turner as it is your first project. It will bring back many memories as your blacksmithing continues. Keep us informed as to your progress (projects). And if you have questions, ask.

Pick one item you like to make. Make 50 good ones and put it on your shelf as stock. Move on to item #2 and make 50 of those, etc. You have to get hammer time invested in each product to find out how the metal moves and now to make it most efficently. If the piece has a bend, do the bend by hand till you develop the skill and feel for the bend, then move to the bending jig or machine to do the work faster. This hands on learning will serve you well at your first demo as you will know how to work without the jig and machine. This would be a good time to start a notebook on how to make the item, length of stock, bends, etc. Later when you need more you will NOT remember all the details. Besides, if you send your notes and some photos, we can use them for a Blueprint. :wink: Then you don't have to remember where you put your notes, just go to the Blueprints Section of IForgeIron.com :D

Bill is back home in Mesquite, TX.

Great Article Quenchcrack. Bill is still in business as a blacksmith. He also sells educational tapes on blacksmithing Forged Animal Heads, Bugs and Birds, Leaves and Flowers, and just came out with a new book on how to make things from iron (critters from angle iron as I recall). Bill Epps web site

Decide what you want to do, and then make the things you enjoy. One type of sales will not support your challenge. You will have to use every method available to get your product out and in front of the public.

Archie At rest, the bottom chamber is filled with air. When activated, this air is squeezed and pushed into the top chamber which starts flat and now has expanded with the air from the bottom chamber. The bottom chamber is opened to again to fill with air and the top chamber now, by gravity, pushes top chamber air into the fire. Repete as necessary. Flaps of leather, rubber etc. act as one way valves to keep air flowing toward the fire. These things have been in use for many years and work. Build an existing design first to see how and why things work and then you have a base line of knowledge to work from for further modifications. Or go in search for a small squirrel cage blower and be happy with all the air you can use, and no sore arm muscles. Big squirrel cage blowers work also, you just have to vent the excess air.

Ed did that rum cup holder come from Tony, a fellow that lives on the east coast of England hear an air force base?

Hello Everybody, I just want to let everyone know that Ralph's surgery today went very well. They removed an area under his arm about the size of a hot dog bun and grafted muscle and skin harvested from his back. He had two surgeons, and both said it couldn't have gone better. He'll be in the hospital for a few days. We've already got a hospital bed set up for him at home, so he should be comfortable when he gets here. In the meantime, just a lot of pain medication and sleep. His mother is here, too. Between the two of us, we'll take good care of him. Thank you for all your prayers and good wishes!! Love, Dawn

With the summer heat upon us, how can you tell when you are getting too much heat and into trouble ? How do you stay cool ? Wearing sunglasses and hanging out with the dog, cause he knows all the "cool spots", is not the advice I am looking for here. :wink:

HELEN (Mrs. Sandpile) goes back tomorrow find out when the surgery is to be. We now know that she has an orange size cyst on her right ovary.. We now know that all the trouble in the past month are symptoms of Ovaryian Cancer. We are not borrowing trouble but are gearing up for the strength it might take to get through this, if it is. We are by nature, optimistic. We will make use of the best medical practices and keep praying.

Someone jump in real quick and mention flash back supressors. Some new torches (Victor I think) have them built into the torch. Get a set and use them.

The Lincoln Ac-225 compact stick welder has a broad welding amperage range of 40-225 amps. It produces an extremely smooth AC arc for welding a wide variety of materials including carbon, low alloy, and stainless steels as well as cast iron. Metals 16 gauge and heavier can be easily arc welded with the AC-225. Applications include: repair and maintenance welding, fabricating or modifying equipment, building tools or fixtures, build-up welding on worn parts or dies, and hardfacing new or worn parts for longer service life. Also for cutting and piercing holes in steel. Information Source: http://www.lincolnelectric.com Lincoln has produced a bunch of the AC-225 welders, produced them for many years, and continues to produce them. By the time you out grow the welder, it will have paid for itself, and most likely paid for the new welder also. A Lincoln 250 amp AC/DC welder came available and I grabbed it. It seems to want to work from 1/8 inch thickness to what ever I have ask it to do. I am sure it is a better machine than I am a welder. I purchased a 110v mig welder to work on my truck. It did not take long to figure out it was a thin-tin welder only and did not work well as it approached the 1/8 inch thickness. A Lincoln AC-225 became available, and was in very rough shape, but I got it anyway. With little money invested, I tore it apart, chasing out wasp nests and an old snake skin, and cleaned the inside. I purchased new welding leads from the welding supplier and plugged it in. Whitesmith mentioned that he had a birthday in a couple of months before the first rod was consumed. At least I got one rod burned for the price I paid. Talk to the welding supplier and ask which welders last longer and which require more repairs. Ask the welder that is using the machine, the old welders, and get their opinions. Ask the welding supplier is he has any used machines that are still servicable. Many times he will take them in on trade for new ones being sold. Miller, and Hobart make good welders also. Look at all that are available on the market, NEW AND USED, and make the choice that is best for you. Till then, what is wrong with forge welding, using rivets, bolts, or other ways of fastening things together? And do not overlook Ox/Ac welding. It has fallen out of fashion with Mig, Tig, Arc, and other methods available, but is still a very servicable welding method. Learning Curve: Whitesmith burned up 10 pound or more of old junk rod playing with his "new" Lincoln AC-225. He then spent 4 hours with a Nuc Welder. I learned as much as he did by watching them. When he came back home, I suggested that he burn the remainder of the junk rod, but no, that was junk and did not work right. He poped open a new package of rod to practice with. He reasoned that if he was going to learn he should learn the right way, and with a rod that worked properly. I will have to have a talk with his teacher, and real soon, about his attitude. :wink:

Pardon me if I get a little off topic for a moment. --------------------------------------------------------- From Lincoln Welding web site on Storing welding rod and exposure limits. SMAW electrodes with low hydrogen coatings, such as E7018 and E8018-C3, must be kept very dry since hydrogen induced cracking can easily occur. Purchase these electrodes in hermetically sealed containers, which provide excellent protection against moisture pickup. *Do not open the hermetically sealed containers until the electrode is needed for use. *When the cans are opened, electrodes that will not be immediately used should be placed in a cabinet at 250 degrees to 300 degrees (120

Ralph, You have a great attitude about this and it will serve you well. Best of luck and we will keep you on your thoughts and prayers.

The welding supplier locally has several types of "welding" gloves. There were two pair that caught my eye, one pair had the leather so thin and so soft that you could tell if a dime was heads or tails and then pick it up. The second pair was more of the normal welding glove, but with an aluminumized foil backing to relfect heat. There was a 5x7 inch aluminumized foil backed pad with elastic straps beside them to use over your existing glove to reflect heat. Carolina Glove Company is one source for gloves. McMaster Carr is another source for gloves. Search for gloves or see page 1622 in their catalog for Welding & Heat-Resistant Gloves. Gloves are designed in many different configurations for many different purposes. You just need to find the style glove that will work for you in your situation, and keep your hands safe from being injured or damaged. Then tell us. :wink:

Archie, next time you build a fire, try adding fuel to a depth of 4-6 inches. Then add enough air to get a fireball. I would expect it to be maybe less than the length of your airtube and maybe 2-3 inches in diameter or more. When you put the metal into the top section of the fireball, give it just enough air to keep the fireball up to temp, not loosing or gaining temp. When the metal goes back into the fire for the next heat, just add enough air to bring the fireball back up to temp, and then transfer that heat to the metal. I think you have the right idea, just not enough fuel in the forge.

Careful about getting those gloves wet. Next time they get hot the water can turn to steam and you may get a steam burn.

Welcome Don, When you finish catching up with reading the BlacksmithForum.com, you may want to visit www.iforgeiron.com. The material there is also divided by sugjects to make things easier. Like everyone else that visits the site(s), you are encouraged to post or to contribute to any section, of any site, at any time.

Bruce, just post the text and send me the photos. I will place them into the text for you. or you can put the photos on the IForgeIron.com/gallery, and I can pull them from there and put them into the text. or place the photos on http://www.yourimg.com and then post the URL inside the text. I will pull the image and place it into the text for you. The important thing is to get the photo into the post, not the process. The best size for the gallery and the forum is 400 pixels wide or tall which ever is greater. If you have problems, contact me directly.

You folks write it, I will post it on IForgeIron.com :wink:

I usually forge barehanded. When the metal gets too hot to hold, I turn it loose! Gloves can be dangerous but can also be very useful. If the glove gets hot, turning loose of the hot metal will do no good as the heat is still coming through the leather toward your hand. You must remove the glove to remove the heat. Gloves can trap and contain hot slag, welding sputter balls, etc. Wet gloves can give you steam burns when they contact hot metal. On the other hand (pun intended), gloves are very helpful when protecting the hands from abrasion, cuts, UV from welding etc. . I usually remove the cuffs from "work gloves". The glove still protects from abrasion, cuts, etc. but if the glove gets snagged, it can quickly be removed from the hand and with little effort. Bruce, Please post photos of leather palms made out if old welding coats or aprons, and the peices of leather just held on to warm bars to handle them.

Portable Forge, what a concept! :wink:

Archie posted the photos on a new thread on the Blacksmithforum. http://www.blacksmithforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=201

Reference BP0127 Bellows Construction I also added the link to the above post.

There are enough sources of air available at little or no cost that you should have no problems in the air department. Bwilloughby came up with a novel approach for his air problem by converting a HVAC whole house furnace fan to a blower for his forge. Jim Carothers solved his air problem in another direction, by using what the neighbor threw into the trash. You will have to look up BP0128 Forge Blower to find out what he started with to get the fan :wink: I am sure there is at least one available very close to your location LOL. Both of these will move a LOT more air than you need for a solid fuel forge. Plan on venting, diverting, or using a valve of some sort to keep the excess air away from the forge. Hint: A fellow could put a "Y" or "T" in the air line and use the excess air to cool the blacksmith. But do not overlook the little blowers that still a LOT of air for their size. This one was recycled from a junk yard and has been in service over two years. It puts out too much air for my forge and I vent the excess. . If you had a big kitchen table you, some scrap wood, and a little canvas, you could just build your own bellows. See BP0127 Bellows An old hair dryer, vacumn cleaner on the blow side, and lots of other things have been used. You need to find out what is available in your area and put it into service making air.