oakwoodforge

Harley, I still need that address to UPS that Vice , and the few other misc tools that I shook out of the shop this weekend. Jens

See this Blue print ... BP0343 45 Degree Peen Hammer http://www.iforgeiron.com/blueprints-300-400/bp0343-45-degree-peen-hammer.html Jens

Instead of concrete to line the bottom of my forge like this (see pic) I Just used mud from the yard mixed and topped with wood stove ashes, its been in constant service for several years now. If I want to change the shape or dimensions of the fire-pot. I just move and re-pack the ashes and move the firebricks, this allows for quite a bit of flexibility, and has the added benefit of being free Oh and don't worry about trying to bolt your air grate in, gravity has been working fine in mine for years, been using heavy cast iron floor drain covers, they are about $5.00 ea at my local home improvement store, I haven't burned one up in a couple of years now but YMMV... Jens

I'm with Bill, Tru-Grit is a great place to deal with, My last several belt orders have been with them , they get 5 stars in My book. I recomend the Norton Norzon and Norton Blaze belts they last and work fast. Don't buy hardware store brown A/O belts they just don't last with HC steel. Jens

Any art supply stores that carry block/ lithograph printing supples will have Ferric Chloride. Jens

Roger, One of my blacksmithing teachers, Yataiki ( Miyano dai Endo) had a hammer with a randomly textured face that I think was for making finishes like this. Wish I spoke better Japanese, I Might have a better answer for you if I did. Jens

Nice blade S.F. I Love the hamon. Skal ! Jens

Wow Rich ! thats a Beauty ! Jens Golden Boar Armoury

Simply Beautiful Knives !!! Welcome to Iforgeiron.com Jens Butler Live Steel

Dang Mike, Now that is a masterpiece !!! I love that blade ! Jens

Here are a few drinking horns I've been working on , the one with scrimshaw in red has Odin's Horns & a quote from Havamal in Futhark Norse runes. the other has a Lotus Knot in green ink. These are tons of fun to make. Jens

Laminated Viking Style Hand Axe, med carbon steel body with a 1095 high carbon steel edge forge welded in. Differentially hardened and tempered to leave the edge harder than the body of the axe allowing for good edge holding, but a tough axe. Blade is blued and oiled for rust resistance. Handle is straight grained high density cherry, double wedged for safety

Latvius , I just used my hammer, swage block and anvil, no special tools. Though an extra long and thin Bick would be handy, I should make one sometime soon. Jens

Simple Early Viking leaf shape 7 1/2" overall 4" blade, 1" socket opening. Hand forged 1065 med carbon steel, fully hardened and tempered. Hand rubbed 400 grit finish,

Jim, I tend to file those in the " learning pile " , is this a problem with a particular batch of steel or is this a heat treating / forging issue ?

Very Nice Bill, 1080 & 15n20 is one of my favorites to work with,I really like your file work too, and the mosaic pins just finish up the whole package nicely. Jens

Sounds Like Fun Thomas , I 'd love to be part of a Y1k Smelting team someday. Got any Pics or Links to pics form the Melts you've done ? or any pics of the WI hammers ? heck I'd Love to see the whole LH kit Jens

As far as I know the Mastermyr hammers were almost exclusively iron with almost no "steel" as were most tools and ferric metal objects from that era. A correct material for a "true" reproduction would be semi refined wrought iron made from bog iron in a charcoal smelter with a blister steel face welded on (Blister steel is carbonized bloomery iron of somewhat random carbon content) Our Viking ancestors would have literally killed for a few bars of 1095 or 5160. Steel production in the Viking era was a VERY costly & labor intensive process involving many 100's of man hours and tons of charcoal to produce a few scant pounds of wrought iron then 100's more hours and tons more charcoal to produce a small quantity of blister steel of unpredictable quality and carbon content. Honestly, I'd try a piece of axle shaft from the scrap yard or some new 4140 , 1080 or something like that and use the shape as a pattern for everyday use. Save the Wrought iron & blister steel for display or the museum. Not even the most rabid "Living history nazi" is going to give you a hard time for correctly shaped hand forged steel hammers. Heck he'd need a a metallurgy lab to tell the difference between antique and modern steel, and How "Period " is that ? Not to discount the quest for doing things the way our ancestors did, but doing things the old way requires LOTS of extra time and effort, and NOTHING was store bought. In our modern recreations we are sometimes pressed for time and using modern materials but ancient patterns or techniques is usually a acceptable compromise. Hope this helps Jens

For some more than basic heat treating info this is a good read http://web.utk.edu/~kjohann1/mse201/lab4.pdf Jens