Larry H

You must have confidence in your work. A properly forged tool should out live it's maker. I make things that peoples lives depend on, mine included. Over the years confidence comes, but one should always guard against cockyness, failure is the by-product of it

I use coke only, it's the best way to go if you can afford it . Its the cleanest, hottest , most ash free fire you can burn your job with. somewhere here I posted pics. of welds, all welded in a coke fire from 7/16, to 7/8. my guess is you aren't getting hot enough , burn two pieces together, meaning heat them on top of each other until you see sparks, then wait until the sparks get to going then you know what the fire looks like when you ruin your job, do this and you get to know when its time, by the way, pull those burning pieces out and just tap them together with your hammer with increasingly heavy blows I think you will be pleasantly surprised

It looks simple enough, top and bottom fuller or guillotine tool ? That's the way I've done it when making candle holders

I don't do anything, that's the only time I get to rest.

Alex,... Where in NY are you? it's a big state

here are some examples of forge welds. The round stock ring is 7/8 steel the pear shape is 7/16 The sq stock is 3/4 wrought iron,... notice the center of the sq stockit was only heated and welded only one time,... it was left to show how the weld is after one heat. Also notice the piece was not upset enough,... if the weld was completed the material would thin out and be an unsuccessful job for that reason,.. the piece is supposed to be uniform in size upon completion . the pear is on the way to being correct. I put the 2-1/2 pound hammer there for size. The round ring is 4-1/2 " O.D. the wrought iron is 7" I.D. the pear is 4' I.D.

If the metal is thick the ends should be upset to be thicker than the web, then form the scarf to look like a flattened pyramid, heat to bright orange, apply borax, return to CLEAN fire heat until yellow ( I know some will disagree with this next step ) may-be see some light sparks like grinding sparks, pull from fire start with light taps getting harder. On 3/4 sq, strike 3-5 times return to fire to finish weld on opposite side. I hope this helps.

Thanks Bad Creek, I moved it to a new topic so some of my new friends will find the finished piece easier .

finished ! !

Call Cornwall coal in NY they deliver to conn.

Where do I get one?, how do I make one?

I once traded my skills for beer, I must have done a real good job too!, there was a lot of beer involved, I wish I could remember what the job was

You can make your own touch mark by cutting the head off of a 1/2" Allen bolt so you just have a hollow hex shaped hole, this will be your guide, take a 1/2" Allen wrench for your touchmark. Carve or punch your design so you can see it through the hex hole , weld it over your design, mark the wrench so it goes in the same way for each heat and start heatin' n beatin'.

Frank, It not only reminds me of my shoeing days ,but I still use it daily. Mine is a diamond, I always think of making a new one but something else always come up

I used machinist layout fluid for the color, I never use paint on art pieces except marine spar poly for rust protection.

Here is an incomplete piece I'm working on for an art show I was invited to, called "Wreath Interpretations " I have to finish by Dec. 6. this is the first time its early

New jersey blacksmiths, a good group, and at least one certified weldor. Look at ABANA s web site for a full list of BLKSM associations

I don't like the way they are across the photos interfering with the full picture

good job on the bamboo, never made it myself, you got the right side of the brain workin'

I was not offended that nobody knew me,.... most people don't, makes no never mind to me, .... I was offended by the fact that it sounded like he was expecting me to send him my resume' so he could determine if I was worthy of his time. This is not the first time someone wanted to learn, six months after one other person was learning in my shop was on T.V. pretending to be a blacksmith!!!. He told me he always wanted to learn blacksmithing , and now he had some horrible kidney disease and wouldn't last much longer,.... what a load of xxxx, hung out his shingle and everything.

so this kid ( i think ) puts a post on a very popular web site looking for blacksmiths in my area. I give him a call, because I'm a sucker for people who wish to learn. He says he is in North Carolina at a blacksmithing school. So I wait a week and call him back. He tells me " i asked around and nobody ever heard of you " And never called back for FREE lessons. May be no one ever heard of me but I think anyone looking to learn should make better decisions. Even scoundrels and fools can be bearers of wisdom, Thanks for letting me vent its been stuck in my craw for a few months now. I hope I can give it a rest .

When you make your first 50 one heat leaves you will understand

It takes a lot more time to " forge " a forge weld than to make one. Laying down a bead then grinding it away, smoothing it so you can't see the grind marks, then heating it back up to even out the color, it all seems like a waste of valuable time

Northeast blacksmiths they just had the fall hammer in at ashokan near Kingston e mail me at nyblacksmith.com and I'll hook you up