yves

Automobile block heater installed in a steel barrel.

It was a nice moment to see this this morning. Thanks.

I started forging and did not know what I was doing. I came here and to every question, I found an answer, went back to the forge tried it out, got it to work and came back with a new problem. And got an answer. Just read what is in here and try it out. It will work.

A sharp punch will cut the slug out easily. Dull edges on a punch do not work as well. I just noticed that the edges of the holes of my bolster plate have become dull. I have to make a new one.

Nicely done. Keep going.

I thought you had ment wooden barrels from Molson. Still jealous !

Salut, In fact wooden barrels are easy to find in my area. The probem is with the through heaters for animals. They have wires. I just can see myself dunking a piece of hot steel on a wire and cutting it. Sometimes I think of the next step in the work. That is not, how shall I say … conducive to me using a contraption with a wire immersed in the tub. You got me thinking. I could install some plumbing in the side of the wooden barrel and use the block heater in that plumbing. As for Molson, they have been, for a long time, brewing beer in vats large enough to go canoeing in. And if there were any wooden barrels from the old, very old days, they would be a collector's item around here.

Thank you for the quick answer. My water drum beside the forge is steel. I had installed (too mechanicaly chalendged to do it myself …) a block heater. Took me years to think about it and the village mechanic. No more winter long emptying a (too) small water bucket and carrying a new supply every morning. It was the emptying that got to me the most ! This block heater idea might be possible for you as a solution for the colder periods. I have mine on a timer. It heats the water drum (November to April more or less) for 1/2 hour every hour and 1/2. Since I do not like my steel drum and would prefer a wooden cask, I'll have to see if a block heater can be installed on this. I'll ask the village mechanic who is mechanicaly gifted …

What do you call the "bosh", please?

Alexandr, Congratulations on another beautifull work. I know you cannot send me, somehow, your very enviable skills. However, could we come to some agreement with regards to your boots ? This morning was -27 Cº over here.

Biggundoctor, Here is the jig I used. I put the end of the 1/8"x3/8" flat in the stopper in the first heat and bend as far as I could. In the second heat I moved the end of the bar to the side and bend (with a third heat at times) under the end of the flat. Then I cut the ring with a chisel.

There was no need to weld the ends together. The ends met perfectly or almost and the line where they meet is hidden behind a collar. I thank you for making clear how and why the jig is used. I found out by myself and was wondering if there was a better way, barring the use of a (cold) bender.

Thanks. No, the collars are a tight fit. They are 1/4" half round. This material is not available here. I forged about 40 feet of 1/4" square cold rolled steel in a swage block to make the collars. I bent them with a torch after having seen what happened to the example /study I had forged when I installed the collars hot from the forge. As you can see in the pic below, the half round has disappeared under the hammer and an unsightly flat appeared instead. As you can see in the pics of the first post, there are no flats on the collars of the gril in front. Since the back is not seen, the gril being installed on a wall, it did not matter that there would be flats in the back of the gril. No machine. I thought I was very smart when I came up with a jig to bend them. It appeared to work. Of course the steel tried to come back on the easy side but it was easiy controlled with a light hammer. When I checked in a jig (square of 4-5/16" sides), none, I repeat, none of the rings fit perfectly. I put them back in the forge and adjusted them to fit. I guess after all that the jig is OK and that it is normal that things would happen that way. The jig gets you close to your diameter and you finish by forging. I would repeat the process if I had to make another run of these. Unless you would offer a better way … I'll take a picture of the jig and post it later.

I checked my notes. I put in some 175 hours.

I will get back to you on this. Irondragon, very happy you liked it. Dimensions : height 49-1/16". The height was not crucial. Width, 39-1/16". I could not be more than 40" and less than 38". Daswulf and JHCC, thanks. Your appreciations are welcome.