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Is LDW with him

Sounds like a real good time I live in Minnesotat and will be at the Guild of metalsmiths Madness the same weekend. Allison Finn and Bob Patrick Anyone going to New England want to trade some video from here?

Will you be at the madness in September if so hope to meet you I will be the one filming Allison Finn or buying stuff at the tailgate

I use 1/2 sheet of news print but am using charcoal which is easy to start

what about lost styrofoam casting make the piece you want and risers out of foam if the piece doesnt have any tiny intricate parts I have seen it done with loose dry sandblast sand definately do this outside as the burning foam is a killer

Most use coal or gas forges I make my own charcoal from 2 X 4 ect wood in a barrel that I cal make air tight after the wood has burned to the right consistancy. Briquets have dirt added in the process. Boughten charcoal would be cowboy or lump not briquets. As for tools anything will work some type of tongs, vise grips or leave the stock long enough to use as a handle until finished forging and then cut the piece off the parent stock. Anvils can be as primative as you have to be even a large rock Good luck and try to find a group near you for hands on training

probably easier to start from scratch and forge a whole hammer

their web page doesnt list pices and I havent recieved my notice in the mail yet so cant help you

Welcome also checkout the NW Blacksmiths for some one on one smithing in your area.

I would use a brick on each side a few inches on each side if where the air comes in this will control how big the fire gets and alow a deeper fire. Control how much air comes on by blocking the area the air gets to the fan with tape

I will second to bring money but the best prices might be wed

Before you roll it up bend the petals in a 90 which will give it much more life. I do little ones 1/4" rod and smaller on the anvil and 2/8" and up by letting the PerfSpot stick out of the vise jaws and bending with the hammer. The bigggest rod I usedwas 5/8" round that was a large pair of tongs which made a beverage holder similar to a rush lamp.

looks like it would made a lot of copper rings and bracelets not to mention $$ at the scrap yark

most likely the pien is way too sharp also. when you use it you want rounde inpressions not a sharp gouge. Without seeing the hammer maybe 1/2 inch needs to be taken off to get a good radius and you will not be able to do that with sand paper in one day.

I have a Peter Wright that when you drop a ball bearing on it it barely rebounds and is difficult to work on as it doesnt put energy into the work from the bottom or at least I think so so I use a differrent anvil. It is the one I copied for my first Peter Wrong that was recently at the ABANA conference.

Wehave been here since sat night Bring a bike it is spread out

I will be there wearing a crew shirt. Pictures every day wherever Brian Brazeal is

I switched to PH minus or PH down both the same thing sold by the same company mixed with warm water. I get it at Walmart or sometimes garage sales. Faster than vineagar. Use it to descale and lately to take the plating off some hardware. Do this outside and stand UP wind

Pink Floyd

Al is molten at 1260 depending on alloy I have melted aluminum in a home made steel crucible made out of pipe with a bottom electric welded on. I watched an old Williamsburg film where they melted brass in an iron pot on the coal forge and brass has a higher temp than alum.

Very nice work

Lots of good stuff gets scraped or trashed every day you just got to be in the right place at the right time. With the crazy price of scrap steel many a great servicable tool went to the smelter Just think of the tons of anvils, power hammers and tools that went to WW2 in the scrap drives. An old retired now ded scrapper around here said During WW2 they used to come to you place and just take without paying all the iron you had laying about. His dad was a scrapper before him.

Welcome to the group. Are you building a gas or coal forge.

Nathan Robertson at jackpine forge or Brown brazeal would make you one both will be at ABANA in 2 weeks. I prefer a square flat face with round edges and a rounding hammer as the other face. Use the edge of the flat face as a pien that way you have 2 cross 2 straight a flat face and rounding all on same hammer aka Brian Brazeal.

I have a cast fire pot from Roger Lawrence, IL sells which is simmilar to the SOFA pot. It is square and tappers as it goes down about 3/4 of a fire brick at the top to 1/4 brick at the bottom I set the 1.2 brick down into the pot I do small things and leave about a 3 inch opening between the bricks Charcoal burns fast enough without heating a square foot