ofafeather

My thanks, too, Frank! Great post.

Ahhh yes. Seems I had 'heard' that expression on the forum. Now it makes sense. I'll look into that. Thanks! Do forge welded items show a seem?

I guess I was exaggerating a bit when I said 5 lbs. I think all of my tongs are in a reasonable size/weight range. Nothing for extra heavy work. I think Grant's tongs are great. Being new to this I went for the OC brand based on recommendations here. I also really appreciate the fact that Grant is a member of IFI. Now having personal experience of some of Grant's tools I can add my own personal recommendation. I have 3 different sizes/styles. The 1/4" V-Bolt ones are a dream because they are so light. The others are a wolf jaw that he makes and an 1/2" (or 5/8", can't remember) gooseneck v-bolt. I like this style a lot. The offset lets you hold stock well past the end and still have the tongs parallel to the stock. One problem that I have is that I don't have anything specifically for 3/8". The wolf-jaw does pretty well with this but, to me with my experience level, not as well as a dedicated 3/8" would do in one of the other styles. That's good to know. I have used them a bit with the 1/4" but they kept sliding down. Guess I was squeezing a bit and the reins on the 1/4" flex a bit. I'm not quite up to making tongs yet, I don't think. I would like to, though. Can you leave the tongs in the forge, or is that bad? I've been avoiding that because I wasn't sure. That would certainly help when working with smaller pieces, though. One part of my frustration comes from trying to grip smaller things once they are in the forge. (I use a gas forge) Smaller items need to be repositioned a lot before they can be gripped. A coal forge is easier that way, having full access at different angles. I have a pair here somewhere. Thanks for the input. I appreciate it. All good things to keep in mind.

Thanks, Grant. Will do that. Experience always helps and I am getting better with time but I was hoping for a little guidance from the more experienced folks. Yeah, part of the frustration is that I can just picture how simple it would be if I could just use my hands instead of these 5lb chopsticks. Ever watch people eating with chopsticks for the first time? Thanks for the pointers here. My main tongs all are similar to the bolt tongs in that they have the open part behind the bits. This comes in really handy. I might try more flat tongs on the hook as opposed to square/diamond ones. I have a hard time keeping the stock in the plane I want it to be in sometimes with the v-groove tongs.

Thanks for the input, again. Guess I'll have to wait for the wife to help me forge weld separate pieces (except when I'm working on that 12" thick stock! Good point. Will be careful of that.

Happy to oblige! ;)

Hi, All. After getting a taste of smithing in the Fall, I finally have a small smithy set up at home. I've been forging for a few hours a day for about a week now. One of the things that I sometimes find frustrating is using tongs. I have a few pair of decent tongs (Grant's OC brand 1/4" V Bit, 1/2" Gooseneck V-bit and Wolf Jaw to cover the rest in the smaller sizes). I also picked up a box of older tongs in assorted shapes and sizes. Grant's tongs are great. They really hold well with the square stock that I'm using. My biggest trouble seems to be after the shape changes a bit. The end is dressed in a taper, or ribbon and getting a good grip on the material can be a challenge. Maybe there's a bend for a hook, and I want to work on the other end, etc. Any suggestions? Also, Grant, if you read this, I need to adjust the 1/4" tongs. They reins are too close together now. What's the best way to do that? Thanks.~Eric

Thanks, George. Just saw your post when I was replying to Thomas's. I think I will practice some forge welding soon so I'm happy for the input.

Thanks. That's what I thought. In general is my understanding of forge welding correct (below)? When preparing to weld you heat the pieces to be welded, brush them to remove scale, put the flux on and heat to welding temperature. Remove the pieces when they are at temp, do a quick brush to remove excess flux then mate the pieces starting with light to medium blows getting heavier as the stock cools. If I am uses separate pieces of stock, say mounting a hook to a piece of flat stock, would I have enough time to use a hold down on the larger piece? Do I need to heat the anvil a bit in order to give myself more time to position the stock? Is there some other way of holding the items to be joined?

Hi, All. I have never forge welded before and have a couple of questions. First, can you use straight borax for a flux on mild steel? Second, if you successfully complete a weld and bring the stock up to welding temperature again does (should)that first weld hold? i.e. welding a series of smaller pieces onto a larger piece. Thanks. Eric

Grant knows his market!

Interesting discussion and I think that the perception on both sides is correct: Unions are necessary and can be a positive force for both the labor and the company as a whole. Unions can also be obstructionist and misguided, even corrupt. There are cases for both statements. Unions can protect workers in the case of unethical management but the unions themselves need to be ethical. Unions should be about setting, applying and maintaining fair standards for safety, pay, time worked, etc. Sometimes these elements get lost in rhetoric. Bad workers get protected sometimes, even though that's not in anyone's interests. Also, since the union's job is to look after the good of the workers they often fail to see how they affect the health of the company they work. These are complicated issues and can't be decided based on one incident. Union's might not be as necessary as they were, but they are still quite important. There are still plenty of people waiting to take advantage of workers who have no recourse.

That was great! Right now we have an open lean-to so it has a roof, no walls. We have the remnants from an old shelter that collapsed so have the tarp/door section going right across the back of the lean-to. It's great because it has a zipper on both sides so you can roll the door open. I have another just like it that we'll put on the front and we may tarp in the sides, at least temporarily, to get some weather protection. I don't plan on forging there with the tarps down but need to at least provide protection for the equipment. I think that some point we'll put more permanent walls up.

Sounds great! That's what we'll do. Can't wait!

Hi, All. My wife and I built a lean-to smithy in the fall and never really had the chance to use it before the weather turned. Now that the nice weather is here we would like to get it going. The question at the moment is what to do with the floor. It's grass. Can we leave it and work that way? Is the grass a fire hazard? Will the anvil lose some of its effectiveness? (I can always sink a post or stump for that). We are considering digging out the sod at some point and putting in crushed stone but are wondering if it's necessary. Any ideas? Thanks.~Eric

I'll have to check that out. You don't happen to remember where you went?

I can't tell you what a great place this forum is for learning new things, sharing information and just a general sense of community, especially for a newbie smith. The amount I have learned here over the past few months is fantastic. I never even thought about angle grinders before digging in to this thread. Some great food for thought in application, types of grinders and safety, too. Thanks, all for your contributions.~Eric

X2! Welcome back, Frosty.

Anyone use a cordless grinder? I've heard good things about the new Ryobi line of cordless tools. They are inexpensive but seem to perform well. Also you buy a drill or similar tool with a set of batteries then interchange them with all of the other tools. I had gotten a really good deal on a Milwaukee 18V cordless Sawzall but it only came with one battery and the batteries are around $70. It's a great tool, but only when it has power ;)

Brian, that's really interesting. Thanks for sharing. Can you tell me about your table? That looks really handy.

That's interesting. The other effect would be to create more of a slicing (shearing) cut which should be easier. The highest point of the crown is the only part that's chopping.. All of the other parts are entering at an angle to the material and are slicing. I'm not at all experience in metalworking but I know from woodworking that when you skew a bladed tool (even a straight bladed to) you get a slicing cut instead of a chopping cut which is usually cleaner, especially on end grain. Also the resistance drops dramatically. The few hardies I have seen in my vast experience (I've been to one hammer-in ) have all been straight. Would you do the same for cold chisels, too?

Yeah, but with an axe doesn't that have to do with the pendulum aspect of the stroke? Carpenter's axes and splitting axes tend to be straight across. Gransofr Bruks Carpenter's Axe When someone starts swinging the hot cut hardy, it's time to leave. Why are curved chisels/hardies better if they aren't being swung?

Brian, why would a tapered shank cause the heel to break? Thanks for the ideas.

Brian, it's really amazing how a small change in thinking can make a huge difference. I never thought of making a hardy tool to fit the hardy hole on a bias. It makes a huge difference in what's needed to secure the tool. Do you notice any difference in stability compare with a full square shaft? Have you adapted this for other hardy tools?

Never used a wickless one but I have used both glass and steel wick lamps when doing musical instrument repair. Side note-thingmaker3, I live in Columbia County, too, only in NY. :)