jason0012

Does the whole thing rattle like a drum when you are hammering? I have considered doing something like this for my shop as I am in the city and building a proper shop would be a problem for a number of reasons. I was concerned about space and how the impact/shock on the anvil would be absorbed, let alone the power hammer.

The ram on my 75# Bradley weighs in at 98 without a die.

I thought they were good plans and well drawn. He did use a number of unidentified salvaged parts like the cone pulley for the clutch and coil spring. I started building one many years ago but found a LG and then a Bradley and the whole project got shelved and parts scattered.

I keep getting asked to repoint the BIG bits (4"dia+) and have to admit I have no idea what to charge. Do any of you have experience with them? I repointed a couple 2.5" years ago and still have the die for it.

Good idea Dan only rather than grease use bearing blue- that stuff wont wash off and gets into everything. It would be like the dye packets banks use.

any old belting will work, and that is probably what was used on yours. Whatever was at hand on other words

A 25 isn't a whole lot of hammer. You shouldnt need to go 3' deep. wider and longer is going to help you more. It sounds like your soil is less than ideal, but with a hammer under 100# I doubt it makes a huge difference. Soggy ground is the problem around my area. Going deep would be a good idea for big hammer, particularly a really big hammer where the general wisdom is to go deep enough to hit rock, or drive pilings. This isnt a 25,000# steamer so thats really not useful advice. A 25 will get by lag bolted to a 6" thick floor slab or bolted to a wood base of 6-8" timbers. Thick timbers also raise the little hammer to a more comfortable hight. My 25 was bolted to a 3'x3'x3' with 4" of pine between hammer and concrete and was absolutely solid for the 5 yrs I used it. That was definately overkill, but now the anvil of my 100# sits on that cube, so it didnt go to waste.

Jim Batson described this sort of weld as a pipe bomb once. The hole is important. (I have since seen Jim perform this very weld, but no explosions)

For many years I was a full time smith. I had to move on to other things awhile back due to financial/family concerns. I am looking at returning to iron now, as things have settled a bit. I am curious about the importance of having a web presence. The internet wasnt as big a part of life back in the 90s as it is today and i suspect that it is likely an important point of contact these days. The bad part is, I havent a clue how to set up a web site. I spoke to a web desighner on a few occasions and have to say they leave me with the same feeling I get from a car salesman. Any sugestions were I should start or what features I should look for?

Is this hammer free, or nearly so? I wouldnt recomend putting out much $ upfront. The Bradley is a wonderful machine and this size/style hammer would become a central part of a working production/professional shop. But you are looking at a feww hundred hours/ or thousands of dollars. A combination of time and money must be reached based on your own needs/capacities. Bradley built many machines like this one and surely there is one out there in better shape, or more complete. I could rebuild this machine, but would likely pass for a better one. ( I already have one like it, that is restored and operational) If you were to choose this massive undertaking i hope you have a background in machinery, and if you dont, you certaianly will by the time it runs! If you do dive into this I would be willing to throw in advice as to how to proceed having been through many such machines. I may even be able to loan a few taps for the wierd bolts.

It is a huge project. The guides and helve re not really a big problem and are pretty easy to fabricate. You biggest issue i see is the aparent lack of an uper husck and about half of the lower castimg apears to be missing. This is a difficult part to fabricate and locating a replacement is unlikely. To add to tjat it apears the whole drive has been badly abused and quite improperly repaired and will require extensive machining ti bring back. Cortland isnt much use for these parts in my experience. This hamer can be saved, but you must be prepared to put an awful lot into it..

I use alliugator lacing on my belts as they dont require special tools. Look up conveyor belting in your phone book. I found that companies that supply industrial conveyor builders are helpful and have often just given me the tiny peieces needed for my belts. Many forms of belt lacing will require special tools to instal properly.

In a 50 your dies should be at least 1" apart or you will choke the hammer when stock is between them. That causes double hits, week hits and erratic behavior. A hammer needs room to swing to function properly.

Weld it with nickel rods, a whole lot easier that brazing, though a bit more expensive. And I would definitely want to pin those pieces before welding. As far as uses for the thing, you will need to fabricate some punch and shear dies. This would make a good alternative to an ironworker and its always usefull to be able to put holes in parts. Ernest Weimman built scroll jigs that fit the flywheels on these puppies and could crank out scrolls in a single stroke! Once you start tooling these presses they can do a lot of different things.

Most repairs on a Little giant are a piece of cake. Babbit, arms, pins ect. The one you don't want to get into is the frame or dovetail. I found this photo on that E-xxx site the seller wants close to 3000 for it and its been up forever.

I have built up dies out of all manner of junk. Clifton would forge a pair of dies for that hammer on that hammer. I am not that much a glutton for punishment and own a shaper. If your welds start to go you will hear the tone change long before you get full separation. V out your welds pretty deep, preheat/post heat and use a 7018- e70s or better. Run hot and let it cool slow and it should hold. The bad thing about welding a dovetail is the fillet getting in the way of the wedge. Try to get a minimum of 60% penetration

Alex Weygers had one, smaller I think. It was described in "Modern Blacksmith" and "The Use Repair ad Recycling of Tools". Most of his hammer stuff is kind of generic, but his was a common sense.

You could always drill tap and counterbore the backside of the dovetail for some big hex bolts 3/4-1 inch. Drive them in with the die good and warm then weld over the backside, and grind flush. They will hold the two halves together even if the welds fail.

I would recommend a pair of matching flat dies. You can do a whole lot more with them in the way of tooling than drawing dies or combo dies. Forklift tines are usually something on par with 4140 witch makes great hammer dies. Good luck with the cool Beaudry!

I once had a neighbor call the EPA on me. That was back around 89-90. I was told that I would have to report to them only if I were producing something like 60 tons or more of pollutants a year! As I only burned about half a ton of coal a year he figured it was a safe bet that I was well under that. The fire marshal usually insists that I have a good fire extinguisher in the shop but has been pretty cool over the years. The big thing in my experience is don't XXXXX the neighbors. If your chimney is safe and you aren't in danger of burning the place down it should be ok. That said I haven't dealt with air pollution laws the likes of California's. Watch your language

get the black impact sockets if you are concerned about the plating

There is a good article in "the best of the hammer Vol.2" that produces a habaki from copper pipe. I am not sure if it is still in print.

An awesome hammer there. Mine is #1207 so I am a bit curious what you find.

100# Bradley upright helve. I would really like a 200-300#.

I forged one years ago. I used plain HRS and no heat treat. It got kinda knarley and had to be straightened often but on a hit would stay bent which was kind of cool.