Mike Turner

I forgot it was a freebie :p

well this followed me home a while ago but have been to busy to get photos. It is a little I beam 11" X 10" X14' weighs 1600# the main web is 1 1/8" thick the center web is 1".

Rich very well put, I for one have tried to help some of the new guys that are making basic mistakes, that if they started with the basics and perfected the basic skills they would have never made those frustrating mistakes. Not that I don't mind helping I personally find it frustrating when you give advice and it goes in one ear and out the other and this makes me want to stop helping just because I feel I am wasting my valuable time trying to teach someone something that they have no real interest in learning the fundamentals of the trade they just want to jump to the end and be a master without ever being an apprentice. I am really glad this thread was started and wish it could be a sticky thread so all the new guys can read and be humbled. Maybe we could get more interest in the Tuesday night blueprints by posting a schedule of what will be covered the coming Tuesday BP. I know many times I have stopped in and had no interest at what was the BP for the night and missed others I wish I could have caught and if I knew it was on the schedule I may have found a computer just to sit in. I do strongly agree with all the that has been said by our senior members. I am farrier and I apprenticed for 2 years after I went to a 8 week course, I am not a blacksmith as the majority here are but I am very capable forging anything. Most of the best smiths I have ever meet are or have been farriers. I have spent a good deal of my years as a farrier perfecting my skills and my craft and now that I want to do more smithing I myself have gone back to basics so that I may perfect the skills and craft I wish to pursue now. Again thank you Rich for starting this wonderful eye and mind opening thread.

all the sucker rod I have used has been 4140.

How about some pictures of the broken punches at the break we need to see the grain structure of the steel. I personally don't use mild steel for punches but can't imagine mild steel breaking being used as a punch A36 is generally .20% to .29% so not much carbon to harden very much. I use almost exclusive H-13 for punches and chisels for hot work and S7 for cold work. I am starting to think you have something different than A36.

Like Dale said practice practice practice you can get the anhydrous borax at ceramic supply shops or easier yet drop Kelly Cupples an email at octihunter@charter.net he also has nice selection of steels for knife making and at the best prices.

On your shattered blade i would just toss that it is only going to cause you problems. I have not done any swords but have helped a friend do some heat treat on some Tantos. These were clay coated and from what I understand it is the difference in cooling rates from the spine and edge that causes the blade to curve not the quench medium. Some of the best makers I know get crazy hamons quenching in oil. I would suggest starting with some smaller blades and do lots of reading JPH has 3 of the best books I have read on the subject if you don't have them get them he has a link I think on his website. I also hope to be reading book #4 when he gets it finished. Here is a link to JPH's website Salamander Armoury. If I was you I would start with a knife get the idea of the steps involved otherwise you will just continue to waste steel and more important your time.

Here is one that my instructor was yelling at all of us at farrier school. You'll go to hell for hitting cold steel.

My forge will freeze my 100# bottle when it starts to get low, just get a slack tub larger than your bottle and fill with water. We do this trick at horseshoeing competitions works great.

I dry weld bar shoes in a coal/coke fire all the time not for the beginner, definitely flux it there are fluxes that have things in them to help ease the welding I think they sell some here. In my gas forge I use 20 mule team ( which is borax) or anhydrous borax and works fine for me. Not knowing what type of fuel you are using makes us guess if you can tell us that you could get better help. Also when I am forge welding things like bar shoes I have the stock touching at a red heat I tap to make sure they are close as I can get them then flux bring up to a weld heat bring out brush and tap flip tap back into the heat and repeat, then I start working on my edges we call it peeling the corner down I do this to both side then once you are sure you have a good weld then you can start forging the stock down. If you don't have it stuck it will just pop apart and frustrate the heck out of you. I would also find a smith that is near that knows how to forge weld. If you were welding high carbon stock it probably would have been welded mild steel can be a bit tougher to weld especially if you don't clean the scale from the weld area.

Thanks Glenn the many folks looking for that info thank you as well .

Glenn the data that sstreckfuss has supplied is different than that in the BP hence my comment. No reason it can not be added.

Welcome Chad your going to hate us if your not addicted to smithing yet you will be .

It would be nice to have that data added to the railroad steel BP.

It depends on which side of the anvil I am on as to which way the horn points . I would say 90% of the time it is left, as Bruce pointed out the for shoe making the tong hand needs to be near the horn. I am ambidextrous but I prefer right handed hence the 90%.

Robert that is truely one of the most simple but beautiful knives I have seen. Can you post a close up of the blade?

I have to gas forges one I use for shoeing horses and the other for knife making. My shoeing forge is a NC Whisper Mamma, I am not very fond of this forge at all but it was expensive so I use it. It is a venturi burner forge and just heating shoes I have to run it at 11psi. My knife making forge is a blown forge it is 18" long and has a 7" ID in 15 minutes it is up to temp. I used a 3000

Karl that is sweet, I have always liked your work my friend and they get better with each knife :cool:.

Stefano that is a beauty of a knife :cool:.

Thanks Leb .

Rich ol' buddy i could ship you some . I use rain water and well water. I am not particular as a bladesmith I don't quench in it, I just cool my tongs.

I had some that where S5, but like Thomas said spark test against know steel.

A friend of mine, son Gene Martin works for the railroad and if I recall he said it was 1080 or 1084 can't remember, maybe he will chime in on this.

I agree I would get some 10XX steel for mixing with that.

Very cool plate stock lock Bob.