Rashelle

I used hot pink. It way reduced the incidence of theft and reduced people borrowing them too. Seems to me it was only the guys that were secure in themselves that would borrow them, and they were the ones that would return them anyways. So it was a good thing to do. A great color to mark ones tools.

I like the idea of a "sucker set" Frosty. I was thinking of pre-sizing/fitting some rings then forge welding the rings on, using a second heat to shape the suckers. Or at the end of the welding heat. Could use a sucker set at that stage probly very well. Heehee sounds like you might be trying it somewhat soon. If so let us know how it works for you.

Knifemaking unplugged, is the Tim Lively dvd I have. There is a Hoods Woods video also. I can't remember if I seen others from Tim Lively. I liked them also Thomas.

That is just too cute. My brain is spinning with ideas. Much like the fan blades now. I liked it.

Emailing bugs,,,,,,,,, that'd make it a computer virus, :wacko:

Yup and a fun exercise in thinking how to do so. Along with a nice challenge to make oneself improve. Through adversity (challenges) we gain strength (skill). Only by pushing myself past my limits will I pass my limits. Otherwise it'd be easy for me to become complacent. I really liked the tentacle, and enjoy thinking through various ways of doing it.

I've got a couple months worth of stuff ahead of me. It'll be June or July before I might have a chance to try. But hopefully I'll remember to try forge welding a tentacle like this, and for comparison try punching in then raising the lips of the punch marks over. It'd be an interesting self test and learning experience for me. A challenging one at that. Sounds fun. LOL also sounds like it's making me hungry for squid curry. Rashelle

I don't know how to do modern welding. Just forge welding, which is worth a try for this in fact would make a real good practice piece. I had sort of thought that it was done with modern welding as I was trying to figure out a way to do it small scale but traditional only methods. Every time I see something I like I try to reverse engineer it, even if I never do it. The mental exercise helps me out. Rashelle

I was afraid you were going to say that.

Figure I'll chime in here as I do a lot of strikers for Fort Vancouver. Unless making a bright oval striker the following is the main way I do the strikers. While forging I make sure I have a flat (as forged) smooth striking surface, normalize the piece after forging, edge quench just the striking surface. let a little heat bleed back in if it gets to hot to touch requench the edge (I alternately occasionally just hold the edge in water until the whole thing is cool to the touch). The arms and non striking surface not being quenched don't get hardened thus providing some shock resistance. Clean off the striking surface after treatment. With a file, a brick, sand paper whatever just to get rid of any decarburized area. Check with a SHARP piece of flint, chert, agate, jasper etc. If good sparks good if not good sparks then re harden this time more aggressively quenching more of the striking surface further up the face. No quenching the arms of c or j style strikers. What you are doing with flint and steel strikers is the flint ( or whatever) is harder then the steel, using a sharp edge you shave off tiny particles of the steel which is what sparks. Rashelle Oh yeah I forgot to add in some people just edge quench by placing the edge edge down into a shallow pan or shovel or whatever of water. Letting the whole thing cool down while keeping the edge cool. When I do edge quench I do move the steel back and forth in line with the body/blade of the steel. Another way to do the temper is use an oven and temper the whole thing. Real important if hardening the whole thing is to temper the whole as the body and arms are hard and may be prone to failure in use.

The spring shop I get some of my 4140 and 5160 from makes round springs out of 4140 and leaf springs from 5160. That is that shop. Other shops may have other steels. Junk yard steels are mystery steels unless you know where the steel came from in which case it isn't a junk yard steel. Vehicle manufacturers may have tried different alloys in the past. That said you might have 5160 for the leaf springs. Rashelle

If you break the lock there will be a delay before another lock replaces it. Frequently a cheaper lock, lol, until the people realize they need to up the quality. Then if they do up the quality the chain is a viable next target. Lets you victimize the same place more times. If a chain is cut people seem more liable to replace it faster and upgrade everything faster.

Cool I like the lillies and leaves everyone has been showing lately.

WIN_wall hook.JPG I have no clue if this worked. Excuse the modern screw. I just moved into a new place. I made these hooks some time ago. This is an example of what I was talking about above. Some were done with two welds doing a branch weld then a butt weld. Others were a cleft weld, a third type I did was welding at a 45% directly onto the other piece. So all of the options I mentioned above work with same result. If you can upset the parent branch in the area you want the weld, if not be careful. They Y ones I preferred not using a cleft weld. Instead a short sharp flat taper, then rounded to fit partially around the branch. Being careful at the lower part, of the transition where it is thinnest, to blend that in. I hope this makes sense. It's been a long day.

Forge weld the two upper parts of the branch together then do a second weld welding on the lower part. So first weld would form a V second weld would transform the V into a Y. Or you could do a cleft or a T weld onto the side. Easiest for me has been doing the 2 welds rather then doing the side weld. (Can't think of the right word at the moment.) I did a set of triple leaf hooks for a family heirloom rifle for a park ranger, one each way. I then did a series of triple leaf hooks as a way of testing various flux's and lack of flux. Branches welded on at a 45% with a leaf at both top and the bottom hook. Easier to do on square then it is on round. And if going the one weld approach plan for material loss from scaling and or miss hit hammer blows. At least that is ways that has worked for me. Rashelle

You could simply cut into rectangles, put a 1" hardy hole at one end, put legs on them (or go without or with slots cut for people to mount on stumps themselves) and make striking anvils also. I know of a couple people who's be interested with or without legs. Cheaper to ship without legs and people could weld or have welded on their own legs. With legs on you could make them be like the striking anvils Brian Brazeal uses. Quick easy use for the steel. I also like the idea of the double horn post anvil and swage blocks.

here should be a link to a Mark Aspery video of a square corner bend. http://search.yahoo.com/r/_ylt=AwrSbmZ4UfhS2XwAhOJXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEzczhocHJhBHNlYwNzcgRwb3MDMwRjb2xvA2dxMQR2dGlkA1NNRTM0Nl8x/SIG=12tjaah3f/EXP=1392034296/**http%3a//assets.calsmith.org/cba-cdn/414/Upset_Sqr_corner_bend_original.pdf Followed by a link to where the process is written out. You could also do the corner differently but these should show a way to do it. Hope they help. Rashelle

I agree, the Fort has been and will be closed. Darn area closes down with a little snow. On the almost bright side I am chiseling out the barrel stock on a NW trade gun. Then again on the down side the chisels I forged really needed to of went back to the shop and be redone. So I cheated and dragged out the grinder onto the apartment front porch and did the chisel adjustments via power tools. Followed by file. No clue where the belt sander went with the move across the river. Tomorrow will be dig out the hide clue and put a rawhide backing on a bow stave. Then more chiselling on the flint lock. Sorry to hear about your smithy. Rashelle

Do what you will. As long as you'll enjoy it it is all good. A good anvil will be spendy but sounds like not really an issue for you. What would probly be one of the best bets for you would be to spend money on lessons. That will take you the furthest, the fastest, and won't eat a lot of the disposeable income. See how well you enjoy it.

Don't muscle it. Relax when holding. Shoulder, elbow, wrist, hammer, object being struck all in line. Hold loosely with fingers. Only enough pressure to keep ahold of handle. Throw the hammer down. Let the hammer do the work. Let the hammer rebound. Do not muscle it. Don't hold with a tight grip elbow out to the side and try to force the hammer down through the work. Strike by throwing the hammer down into the work and letting it pull your arm back up. Muscles should be loose and relaxed, not tight. Stretch before working and keep hydrated. Relax.

Whewwwwwww, That means there is hope yet. Now if I could become the next model and have instant recognition of my besmudged self to catapult me to stardom. Ok that'd be nice, sort of. Now to go find me an artist to model for. I think if giving them artistic license (they are the artist, aren't they?) The end result wouldn't look like me. I find these pictures amusing thinking "what are they thinking?"

Oh great I knew I was doing something wrong. I need an even bigger hammer, a bigger anvil, got to get my hair done much better (In other words a visit to the hair salon), and figure out how to get them darn smudges off my face. I'm doomed.

Welcome, You might find you both really enjoy it.

Herschel and Frank House both have videos out on gunsmithing. Old videos but to me at least they have a lot of information. Not sure if the other brother did videos also.

You could make your incense holder with feet and a tail into a lizard Glen.