doc

Dave If you'd like a black hard finish on your hooks with linseed oil. Dip or quench the hook completely in the oil when at its highest black heat or just as it is beginning to show color.Swish it around a bit as it cools and then wipe dry with a rag as you remove them from the oil.This will give you a black oxide type of finish that is quite hard and durable. The linseed , beeswax ,turps and japan dryer finishes are for cold finishing and the item to be coated is warmed only enough to make application easy. Hope this helps Doc.

Another thing of note about this vise is that it was originally made as a finishers vise or filing vise. The high jaws with that lack the curve of heavier forging style vises shows this.

Hi Glenn, Great job as always. I like the method you used connecting most of the smaller limbs, saves alot of cleanup and gives you a better look. By the way that shovel looks familiar The one I have of yours has been doing great service at the coal stove this winter.

Hi Dave, I'd definitely start with the block heater. On cold days and 40* is cool enough my hammer can run like I'm pumping molasses through the lines instead of air. It needs to warm up, even if it isn't freezing the oil viscosity in the lines can get thick enough to slow down the action of the valves. I'd also check the ram slide for lubrication,excessive tightness or if you used grease to lubricate it it could also a little thick in the cool and slowing things down. After all these checks if you still have issues, then I'd follow ciladogs suggestions. Almost forgot: Remember compressed air cools as it expands so the ambient temp can be above freezing and you will still produce ice vapor within your air lines on a moderate temp day.A temperature of 40* with high humidity can turn your air lines into mini refrigeration units. Hope this helps Doc

Thank you All Roseann's operation went well! We'll know in a week or so about all the rest after a biopsy. Again thank you and Roseann thanks you as well. She was so pleased that I put her here on our list.

My mother in law has gone for surgery today to have her cancerous thyroid removed. Prayers are needed for her recovery and that the cancer hasn't spread. She already holds a record for surviving a certain type of rare leukemia for more than ten years. Thanks for your prayers.

WOOOO....HOOOOOO!!!!!! My double bad :(

Sorry macbruce I didn't mean to make you Irish instead of Sottish :D

I agree. mcbruce is correct

Hi Frank, I know of the affliction of which you speak. Some people exaggerate it to the point where there whole torso from the waist up moves up and down with each hammer blow.I don't think it causes any injuries but it seems to be a large waste of energy.I also feel that the exaggerated form of unnecessary upper body movement is a great detriment to any type of accurate hammer control.

Ric Thanks Very interesting technique hard to tell if this was always the traditional French way of making these or if it is a newer 19th century method. The 17th century English method was to forge the finger loops by drawing out, wrapping over and welding at the shank just behind the joint area since the short grain of iron would not allow punching and stretching. Then much smaller pieces of steel were laid on in the manner used for making draw knives for the cutting edges. It seems to me that his method might have been devised in a later period when steel became less costly and mild steel superseded wrought iron.

Tormentchris One thing you might try is instead of closing your shop up tight when it's cold try leaving a window or door cracked open just a bit rather than opening completely after you notice the smoke. When a chimney draws the smoke up the flue it is taking free air from the space of your shop up with it. That air must be replaced from somewhere or you loose your draft.If your shop is reasonably tight that air is not being replaced fast enough, hence you loose some of your draft and the shop starts to fill with smoke.Also remember that since it is colder outside the draft should draw harder due to the differential between heat at the bottom and cold at the top.But once the draft is diminished due to lack of air on the bottom the colder air in the flue is heavier and drops down the flue compounding the problem. This is why it's less noticeable when not so cold. Hope this helps.

I don't know how many tines your fork needs but bigfoot is correct. Good one piece forks are hot cut and opened out. Each tine and the tang are then drawn out to length shaped and tempered.It takes a lot of skill and practice with convenience bends and cutting to accomplish this.

ajclay, Your attempt on the bull control in your flash is close,but when the treadle is stepped on the bottom end of the link only pivots it doesn't move back and forth because you've moved it reward when you stepped on the treadle and it will remain there until you release your foot.

Try this link for another but similar method http://forums.dfoggknives.com/index.php?showtopic=17918

Check out this link

This is a google link to turn of the last century blacksmithing and mechanics magazine articles. WOW!!!!!!!!!! what a treasure editions:97HmAAAAMAAJ

Not trying to put a wet blanket on things but remember.....when you use an air tool like a drill or sander instead of using an electric power tool your running a 7 hp motor to drill a 1/4" hole instead of using a 1/2 hp electric drill motor. Some tools like air chisels make sense but many others like drills and sander although cheap to by can burn up their savings in electric power costs very quickly.

macbruce.. Thanks, that's the shop model........it's semi portable. the portable one is made of 1"x1"x1/4" tube and I use it on already installed rails and for making templates on lighter stock for curved rails. On the shop model I use the 10 ton cylinder and the portable the 4 ton. You'll see that the carriages for the pins are movable and have a locking bolt on the backside that isn't visible in the pic.This way they can be positioned anywhere along the length to fit between obstructions and also to make tight or slow bends more easily. The hand pump works well but it's slow.....then again what is slow when there is no other way Here's a pic of how I built the sliding member during construction.The pins just drop in and fixtures can be fabed to hold awkward shapes.

Say ironsmith I don't have the link but as far as cheeking the hammer eye check out Mark Aspery on U-Tube .He has a shot of doing it on his Anyang.

I've been watching this thread for awhile and thought I'd send along some pics of the three point bender I've used for the past ten years or so. The first pic shows the bender itself. It's main frame is made of 4"x4"x1/4"wall tube. Mounted on the back leg of the "T" shape frame is a port-o-power type hydraulic cylinder,this is actuated by an air over hydraulic pump with foot switch.The top leg of the "T" has two vertical pins in carriages that can be moved in or out to help make tight or long slow bends easier to form. The second pic shows bending a piece of 1 1/8" octagonal bar. This bender easily bends 2"x2"x1/4" tube or 1/2"x2" flat.

Lets return to the the original post. " Are Peddinghaus anvils good anvils" If you want to buy one you won't go wrong. Are they the best? That's a hard question to answer there a so many good anvils out there now who has the time to work on any of them long enough to find any weaknesses. True the Peddinghauses our supposedly the only fored anvil still made.The quality of modern cast steel is so high now that IMHO I don't think it will make a difference. All this said I bought my 165lb Peddinghaus in 1973 and still use it every day as I have since day one and it's never let me down.

If you do have a bearing you can either find the # on it or take the measurement and order them from McMaster- Carr.

Francis Sorry about what was perceived as a blanket statement,but according to another post I was 98% correct :D

Sorry Francis but that is NOT the proper spring shape or linkage for this type of champion power hammer. Perhaps S MYER or someone else who has champion could make a drawing and give dimensions for the proper spring, so the person asking the question isn't going round in circles to get his hammer up and running.