ToolSteel

John, I am simply amazed. Your explanation was clear and vivid. You've answered questions I didn't even know enough to ask. I'll practice on smaller stock until I can locate a #10 tip. Thanks. ToolSteel

Boy did THAT suck! I don't know how many welding mistakes it's possible to make, but I made a lot of them. First off, I don't think I was using nearly enough acetylene and oxygen. I used a #5 tip and set both gasses to 5 psig, but I now realize I never cranked either gas as far as it would go. I managed to melt the edges of both pieces of steel but I don't think the heat penetrated very far. I believe I used an R45 (?) filler rod but I just sort of "buttered" the rod around the weld area without making sure it mixed well with the steel. When the pieces were cool, I put each one in a vise and gave it a solid whack with a 3 pound hammer. I knew from the thudding sound that things weren't right. When I took the pieces apart, there was no melting and intermingling of metals whatsoever. I'll probably try it again, but more aggressively. I'll also give brazing a try. Even though the final result was bad, I managed to learn a lot of things NOT to do next time. This is generally how I figure out my projects. Thanks for the input. ToolSteel

Thanks for all the comments. Maybe I should clarify a point or two. Because it's so heavy and steady, I'll use the hardie hole on my anvil from time to time but I probably shouldn't have called these items hardie tools. That implies cutting and shaping red hot steel and that's not what I plan to do. I'm trying to make raising stakes and forms on which to shape and planish copper. Some of these pieces will be 12"-24" long. I'm using 1.5" and 1.75" steel rods as my source material and roughing out the general shapes with an angle grinder. I have 1" square rod I'll be using for the shanks. Since these forms won't be heavily stressed and since nothing catastrophic will happen if they snap, I may consider brazing, but I'll definitely try to weld them first. I can easily put both form and shank into a forge and quickly bring them up to bright orange... if that will help me weld. Now for the high school thing. There's an obvious benefit to watching and learning from others, but it makes absolutely no sense to have someone else do this for me. Making things myself and learning as I go is the whole reason I became interested in blacksmithing and metal working. Anyway, I hope to find time in the next few days to work on these items. Success or failure, I'll let you know what happens.

It is. Thanks.

I'm fairly new to blacksmithing and an absolute beginner when it comes to oxy-acetylene welding. I've made some hardie tools and stakes for metalworking. I want to weld them to shanks made of 1" square steel. I have number 2, number 5 and number 7 welding tips. If I'm reading tip charts correctly, I'll need a number 15 tip to join pieces of 1" steel. Can this be right?

Tom, I've been away too. I'd love it if you'd email me the photos. The Internet being what it is, how do I go about sending you my email address? ToolSteel

I agree with everything everyone's said. I bought the economy two burner a few months ago. First time I turned it on, I put a 1/4" thick piece of flat bar beneath the flames, stepped inside to get some tongs, came right back out and the steel was pumpkin-orange. Very impressed with the Diamondback's simple elegant design. ToolSteel

Firstly, thanks for the pointers on making a substitute for ITC-100. Earlier today, I bought six pounds of zircopax and five pounds of kaolin. It should be WAY more than I need. I'd like some input on ways to use this solution. I know Fiberfrax makes Moist Pak-D, which appears to be a ceramic fiber mat saturated with a coating material. This appeals to me because it would seem to be easier to put in place and extremely durable. So here's my question: What if I were to soak Durablanket 2600 in a zircon/kaolin/water slurry, then sort of "plaster" it in place? Would this have a different insulating-reflective effect than using the same material as a topcoat? On another note, I've been talking to someone who's sold ceramic insulating materials for decades and he says compressing a ceramic blanket actually makes it more effective as an insulator. Seems counter-intuitive but he seems to know what he was talking about. Any ideas? ToolSteel

Phil and Frosty, Thanks for the replies. I can get zirconia at a local ceramics shop and since I live in Georgia, kaolin can't be too far away. Do you recall the ratio of zircon flour to kaolin? ToolSteel

I'm in the process of making a small propane-fired furnace. I plan to use it exclusively to melt copper/zinc/tin etc. inside ceramic and graphite crucibles. The inside of the furnace will be lined with DuraBlanket 2600. I guess I'm the last person to be shocked at how expensive ITC-100 coating is. I'm wondering if much-cheaper Kiln Wash can be used instead. I realize it's not a bargain if it doesn't work well. Any thoughts would be appreciated. ToolSteel

Tom, This looks like an amazing little forge. I especially like how you've put the fiber blanket between the inside bricks and the outside metal skin. I've been looking at other equally-fine forges, but many have the blanket exposed on the inside, or covered with TC-100. Even though a picture is worth a thousand words... and I'd say you're up to 13,000 words already... do you have any written instructions to go with the photos? ToolSteel

Thanks

Like a lot of others, I'm interested in induction heating. It's the price that scares me. I see some cheapo (less than $100)portable induction units for sale. They're meant for kitchen use. Are these strong enough to heat steel? What sort of specs does one look for?

Phil, Thanks for the quick response. I have plenty of time so I can afford to wait. In fact, the main thing I like about this anvil is the undamaged horn, so I may just go ahead and use that.

Hi, I have an old VERY beat-up Mousehole anvil. If there's a step below "spare" when it comes to anvils, this would be it. It's not especially important to me, but I would like to bring it back into serviceable condition. Recently, I used an angle grinder to smooth off a broken heel and flatten the anvil face. As I was grinding down the very last tiny pinhole, it turned into two pinholes, then grew into a hollow spot about the size of a grape. I'd like to fill it back in. I have plenty of metal shards from the anvil. I'm wondering if it's possible to melt this metal and pour it back into the hole. I don't have an arc welder, nor do I have an Oxy-Acetylene rig. I have a Bernzomatic oxygen and MAPP gas kit, which I've yet to use. I know this is pretty feeble, but would I be able to melt metal with it?

Thanks. It's nice to know this anvil has been around for more than a century. I'm sure it will still be in use long after I'm gone. In a strange way, that's sort of comforting.

I was told it weighed in at around 70 pounds. If I were to try and lift 177 pounds, I'd need hernia surgery. I guess I hope someone can tell me about the serial number and what it means. But thanks.

I recently purchased a Hay-Budden anvil. I'd like to know a little about it. There are a pair of 7s beneath the company logo. The 1st is under the "R" and "O" in BROOKLYN. The 2nd is under the "N" in BROOKLYN and the 1st "N" in N.Y. There's a number 1 stamped under the tip of the horn and a number 4 to the left of the front waist hole. The serial number appears to be 160956. I'd appreciate any information about this anvil and when it was made. Thanks.