the iron dwarf

from memory the Azad and zomax look the same but it is a while since I looked at mine, will check again tomorrow.

I have the 25 and it is a lot less from whitlox IIRC

all the castings look the same including the black base, will check and get a pic of the handle shaft casing

pix of the impeller after bending, I put a piece of threaded rod through the hole with a nut each side, put a blade in the vice and turned it till the rod lined up with the front of my bench, then done the same on the other blades

they are the same as the ZOMAX ones supplied by the place that sells whitlox forges, the zomax one I have has no bearings in it as far as I can see and the cast iron wheel driving or the steel worm looks like it may wear

it works but I dont know how long for

this is why I am using a small chain and 4 sprockets to keep it compact, I am also going to place the sprockets as close together as possible

will be beveling the teeth, 10 tooth is not to costly here but 60 would be and I need 2 of each, also I  need them to fit on my 12mm shafts, the chain I am using is british standard 3/8" chain.

I am expecting the 10 tooth to wear so will make up spares

here is my way of making an impeller, it is about 8" across, each blade was twisted by 90 degrees after this pic was taken

closed in to keep the worst out and with 2 small holes in the top to get a few drops of oil on each chain is what im thinking but things can change as needed

the only problem with using rower parts is where can I get a regular supply of exactly the same item, if I need 20 in the next week for example I need to buy new rowers and hope the maker still makes the same model for many years, I can buy new bearings for less than $2 and can supply them as spare parts when needed.

the one way sprocket I have is very common on cycles that dont have derailleur gears and it is the exact part used on the victorian grinder

one type of cheap chinese hand crank I have seen here lasted only a few minutes, it broken when it was turned the wrong way, cost about $65 IIRC

I have a Zomax blower made in India and it works but IMO using worm and wheel the wrong way and no bearings that I can see it will wear fast

I want to make one that lasts and is affordable

yes im making it to sell

there will be pix of it when it is working

im going for 36 - 1 and hoping the sprockets / chains / shafts have enough inertia

2 10 tooth sprockets and 2 60 tooth with a 3/8" pitch chain

large sprocket is about 8" diameter

using clutch bearings in the handle

impeller is 4 blade and about 8" diameter

I want to make the unit to hook on the side of my forge and if using foot drive it would fix to the legs too

got the idea for foot drive from an old foot operated grinder I recently bought, a chain going down to a pedal and a one way sprocket, chain had a long spring on the other end

reason for getting sprockets made is 60 tooth gets expensive compared to laser cutting them

most parts will be laser cut steel

for bearings I will use brass olives for pipe

fabricated steel case

the forges I make are bottom blast with a single hole of about 7/16 in the tue and work at a higher than average air pressure, they have been in use for years and there are many hundreds of them in use from the shetlands in the north of the british isles to new zealand

they are plated so maybe you dont want to weld on them Aus

here black ones are nearly as common as plated

I have an india made one and the quality is no better than expected,

some progress

first attempt at sprockets failed but one of the 2 sizes needed has now been drawn by my associate and the other one should be easier.

4 sprockets, 2 chains, a handle with a clutch in it so the handle stops when you let go but the blades still turn.

fan made,

sketches done for casing

shafts for sprockets and fan got

bearings sorted

have to wait about 2 weeks to get sprockets made and then can sort layout

did you put it back together correctly?

one nut will have a left handed thread and the other one will be right handed,

are all the spacers / washers in the right places?

did you cross thread the nut?

I think there is a need.....

so.....

recently have been working on a hand crank blower, it will be a while yet before there is anything to see though, maybe by TORM

parts ordered

impeller made

awaiting parts

it may also be foot powered in the future

will post here when there is news

its a bit to far for me to swim

I have steel balls in stock up to 8" diameter,

I make hydraulic forging presses

3 1/2" is prob about right for these fly presses

we have square tapered drifts

we regularly swing 7 lb hammers

I can drill a 1/2" hole through a ball in a couple of minutes and a few minutes more to get them hot so it is not difficult for me but thanks for the link

If I find one I will let you know

Hi Neil

if you need to use a better forge just ask, I have not made hammers but many do, I will look out for a rounding hammer and get back to you.

one alternative would be to modify an ordinary hammer head to suit your needs

Welcome to the mad house

FIF is more entertainment than blacksmithing

for instructional vids try people like Joey van de steeg ( technicus joe ) and several others on you tube

avoid anything by king of random as his aims seem to be to get people a darwin award ( dangerous and dumb )

if in doubt ask here first

in your forge dont have exposed ceramic fibers, they are like asbestos and need coating if you like using your lungs

im more local than some here but still a long way south of you.

I have sent quite a few forges to scotland and one to shetland even ( I make solid fuel forges ), the furthest one has gone is new zealand

check sellers in germany on evilbay

mine came from germany, it is a pity about the recent large tariff on steel as that adds to your costs

it also put up steel prices here due to most commodities are priced in $ so steel from india or china coming here and never going near the US went up 10% recently

I buy new cylinders to get the spec I want, they are cheap these days, the one for the next press build is about 4" bore, 8" stroke and works at 200 bar, 3000 psi.

at a rough guess it is 25 tons and it cost about 100 uk pounds about $130

got a bit of 4140 and had it cut into cubes of about 15cm, that is just under 6", they weigh 36.2kg each, thats about 80 pounds.

I am going to have to rehome some of these

so 30mm stroke then

punch presses dont need much travel and hydraulic cylinders are meant to be tight, what is the distance between the 2 fittings ( piston can easily be 10cm of that )