swedefiddle

Good Morning, I think your anvil is Yours!! It has a horn, but no horn button. It has a Heel but it doesn't have a Boot. It has a Face, but it doesn't have any Brains. It has a Step, but it doesn't know how to March. Enjoy YOUR Mousehole, it doesn't matter when it was born, unless you want to have a Birthday Party!! May I come????? Neil

Good Morning, There is no incorrect decision regarding hammers. You made a decision, nobody else has to give you permission or a pat on the back. The pointy end of the Hammer could be steel or wood. Just because the handle is called a handle, doesn't mean the handle can't be used as a hammer. Sometimes you reach for a wood mallet, sometimes you just straighten something out with the butt of the Handle. Like an Anvil, there are many more surfaces to hammer on, than just the top face. "No Holds Barred" Neil

Good Morning, As Jim says "Forge on and make Beautiful Things". There is an unspoken/spoken agreement between Blacksmith Newsletter Editors, "If you reprint an article from somebody else's newsletter, print from where/which/when Blacksmith Association Newsletter it was from". NOT NECESSARY TO ASK PERMISSION unless it has a copyright tag. I have seen articles go from the West Coast, to the East Coast, to somewhere in between, to anywhere else. I think that there are enough people doing different things, that putting another spin on something is wonderful. If you don't build the Box, you NEVER have to think outside the box!! :) :) Neil

I find it interesting that someone had so much time on their hands. They had time to make a self pouring wine dispenser. Who did they expect was going to clean up the mess?? :) :) How lazy can someone be??? The mind is a wonderful thing. What one man can dream up, another man will implement. Usefull or knot. Would you like to buy a bridge?? Never had salt water under it. ................................ CHEAP! :) Neil

John Emmerling has the large write-up about the "Ribbon Burners". He is on here sometimes. Gearhart IronWerks in Gearhart, Oregon John had a large article in the NWBA "Hot Iron News" a few years back. Ribbon Burners can be Venturi or Blown. They sure work good, spreads the Hot Spot. :) :) Neil

Good Morning, I wasn't meaning that the Drill Doctor doesn't work, It does quite well (I have and use one). What I was trying to say is that it shouldn't be a MUST HAVE tool. It is better if you can walk up to a bench grinder and know how to grind a drill bit. I teach grinding drill bits in my Beginners Blacksmith Class. :) :) Neil

Jackson; Heat it up to above when it loses it's magnetism. Which will be a bright red / start of orange. (I have a speaker magnet hanging on a wire, near the forge. Wave the piece close to the magnet, if it is attracted, it is still too cold). (1) You can let it cool in still air (will take 1/2 hour); or (2) Turn the gas off for your forge (close up all openings) and leave the piece inside the forge until the forge is cold (2-4 hours); or (3) bury your orange piece in a pail of garden lime or vermiculite insulation or fireplace ashes, until cold. or (4) Drive to the end of the block, stop and talk to your neighbour, have a cup of coffee (or wobbly pop), and forget there is a job to do :) :) LOL Learn how to grind drill bits. Make a cardboard or sheetmetal, drill angle gauge of 59 degrees and grind the two leading edges of the drill bit so the center of both sides is equal length. Don't buy a "Drill Doctor", do it by hand. Drill slower than full speed of your drill. Absolute #1 thing!!!! Smile and make holeage. :) :) Neil

Happy New Year Stormcrow, Look up in your Heat Treating Book. If you don't have one, you should. Sometimes, you bite the dog. Sometimes, the dog bites you. :) :) Neil

Heat it back up and don't quench it. Let it cool slowly. Neil

Happy New Year, Ted is correct!!! Get a copy of "the Blacksmithing Primer" and work your way through it. To get to first base, you can run 3rd - 2nd -1st, Then get to do it all over again. OR Find out some basic rules and run to first, first. Glenn has a good idea with a dinner triangle. Make each leg 1" different length, it will give you three tones. Neil

If I remember correctly, there is a problem with tempering 4140 to 500 degrees +/-. There is NO NEED to HEAT TREAT 4140 for your application. Seems to me this has been said over and over!! I guess I am just a Grumpy Old Man, quit worrying about your 4140 and work it!!

Keep the outsides of the coal wet. As the fire burns, push the outsides toward the center, add new coal to the outsides, keep it wet (not soaking wet, but, damp wet. Unlike Dry wet) LOL The heat from the fire, dries out the coal, the heat turns it to coke, you get your heat from the coke, not the coal. The smoke from the coal is the impurities leaving the coal, what doesn't turn to smoke or coke, turns to clinker. Colonel Clinker or any one of his family!!LOL One drink for the fire, one drink for the fire-man, Etc. repeat, repeat :) :) Forget about what you are worried about. Light the fire, make smoke, get something hot, hit it with a hammer until it quits squealing (gets dull red), repeat as long as needed. When you are not smiling, you sleep!! Job is never done, Knowledge is never fully known. Enjoy Neil

Celcius????? :) :) :) Neil

Happy New Year, Glenn is correct!!! Your notebook/scrapbook/scribler/sketchbook is the most important, next to your digital McCamera. When your rememory gets a little slow, it is worth GOLD to look at your notes. How did they do that??? Which part did they do first (other than the toilet). Etc. Etc. You can't take enough NOTES!! and Sketches!! I find that by drawing out the progress, you will understand which part you missed and then can ask, while the person is there to ask!!! Neil

Happy New Year, Here everything is damp. I use water to slow down the burning of the coal so it will coke up better and keep the fire hot-spot smaller than otherwise would be. It depends on your climate, whether it is fines or not, which shoe did you lace up first. If the coal is very dry, it will burn easy and your fire-ball will consume your coal quickly. It you keep it damp around the edges/sides, it won't create a huge hot-spot. I can't remember, does coal come in a 20lbs. or a 100lbs. tank???? :) :) :) Neil

The Museum of Making, near Cochrane Alberta has a huge collection of African trinkets. It is a private Museum built in an underground, temperature controlled vault. http://www3.museumofmaking.org/dbtw-wpd/machine.htm Neil

Happy New Year, If you want a simple straight bar, buy it the size you want! If you are going to weld it and it pulls all over the place, make a 3 foot long propane forge (one brick wide, 3 bricks tall, 4-5 bricks long, aim your burner in one end and semirestrict the other end) and heat and straighten 3 feet at a time. The good part about heating and straightening, all the internal stress and strain from welding will be gone. Neil

Happy New Year, Anvils work harden. Go to work on it, Don't hit the anvil directly, hit the Hot-Spot. It's magic, it takes quite awhile, but between now and then you will learn to respect the anvil face!! Neil

Happy New Year, You can use the fire-box you have, it will take a while to come up to temperature. I have used fire-brick forges for years. The high temperature brick is refractory, it reflects the heat back into the fire-pot. High temperature bricks are soft and break easily, they need other outside support to live a long time. Please focus on another burner. There are many designs that work or you can buy. Frosty has a simple design that works. You need a larger volume burner than what you have. You could use that burner for a one or two brick forge. Neil

Happy New Year, Take a piece of bicycle or motorcycle chain. Make a pin or hook on the side away from you, to hold the end of the chain. Make a foot hold like a stirrup on the other end of the chain. Hook the chain so it is the correct distance to hold your piece, when your piece is hot tuck it under the chain, put your foot in the stirrup and press down. Job done :) :) Neil

Happy New Year, Forget the coal forge!! Make a propane forge. Easier to get fuel, cleaner, no smoke to annoy the neighbours. Easier to start, warm up and shut-down. Less expensive in the long run. Neil

Happy New Year, It is good to try things. That is how you prove what does not work. This is a subject that gets asked over & over by people who don't read what is available in the history. Cut to the chase, The burner is wrong/too small. You can not make that burner work with that size forge. Neil

Happy New Year, I've got 2 legs, 2 arms, 2 eyes and ears and me. Everything else is extra!! Get it hot when you can, turn the mind on and enjoy the journey. We all have the same destination. Making a scrap pile is not important, making beautiful things out of someone elses junk pile is beautiful. Keep up with the "BISH" (rubish). :) :) Neil

Happy New Year, Safety doesn't come with a "cheap" designation. Buy a reasonable priced regulator and hose. Propane and Acetylene SHOULD have left hand threads (so it can't get mixed up with a non fuel gas). If you can get regulator, hose and shut-off from a local supplier, support your neighbour. If you don't support your neighbour, it is awkward to ask for help and expect an answer. A shut-off ball valve is your "Get out of Jail" card. If you are working and have to shut down for an unforseen reason, Turn the Ball Valve (Fire goes out immediately). A ball valve should not be used to vary fuel flow, that is what a regulator is for. All good regulators have a port for a gauge, you can buy a gauge from many places (your neighbour welding supply). just my $.02 Neil

It is a GREAT book and it will always need updating as more information comes along. I haven't heard of an update, but I'm sure there will be one sometime. When you purchase your book, don't be shy about using a pencil to add new knowledge and send the information to Mr. Postman. Neil