rusty_iron

Good Idea, Thanks Jose, Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Thankyou irnsrgn Regards Rusty_iron

Gday all, I went to use the MIG today only to discover no gas coming out of the regulator even though there is gas in the bottle. Upon checking I found a wasp had packed mud into the gas outlet were I had disconected the line. To get all the mud out I had to unscrew the outlet from the regulator. There was sealing compound of some sort on the threads. Would the thread sealing compound or tape used with LPG be ok to use with MIGgas? I have some awaiting the build of my gas forge, or do i need to get a different product? Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Brian, You could get some u shaped Alum channel, but you would still have to screw it on. Or you could use small angle for the frame, either with tabs welded to it to hold the glass in or weld some angle to the back of a frame to form the U channel. Pad the glass with foam, felt, rubber or some such. Hope this helps. Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Malcolm. Nice hammers mate. Where in Qld are you? Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Hammerkid, try looking up "fonly lathe"(stands for If Only I had a lathe) its a home built lathe from timber/metal etc, minimal cost and minimal equipment needed, no casting. Most educational, and achieveable, to start with. I know the pages have been archived, but are still on the web. If you can't find it, I'll see what I can find for you. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday all, You know I save the "damaged" tools in a box to the side, like the punch that cracked the other day. It can't be fixed, but looks fine. When I meet some one with good, useful smithing tools hanging on the wall, I offer them a trade of 2 or 3 bits for one of theirs. They are often happy to get more to hang up and I get something useful in return for my "junk". Hoping this will work for an anvil one day Sorry guys, I'm guility of anvil collecting, I have 4 plus the home made ones, and I'm just a hobbyist. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Hammerkid, I'd keep the treadle hammer and build a power hammer from scratch. Treadle hammers are oh so useful and handy, if you convert it, you'll just have to build a new one later, so why not just keep the one you have? Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Hammerkid, You could look at the Anvilfire site, there was/is a series on junkyard hammers there, lots of pics, and some how-to info. From memory, no "plans" but if you look around enough, and add 2 & 2, you should be able to figure out the bulk of the design. Ask here for specific details you can't figure out. Personally I think this makes it a more interesting project, a better talking point (ok blowing your own trumpet;-), and you will learn oh so much from it. Good luck & kind regards, Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Thanks Kerry. Tapes like that are a bit hard to come by here in Oz. Regards Rusty_iron Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Philip, Coke is what I use most of the time. Nomally I start the fire with wadded up paper and some charcoal or a large handful of kindling. I add the charcoal and a little coke, then as it gets going I pull more coke around the fire and into it, till its going properly. It does take a little while to get going, but far less smoke than coal - I've used both so i know. Check the size of your coke, I sift out the fines, as they blow out of the fire and spark a lot, also large chunks are hard to get alight. so bits no smaller than about 1/4 inch across and up to 1 & 1/2 inches or at the outside 2 inches, but thats pretty big. if its around 1 inch its a good size. If its damp, its hard to light, and if you add damp coke to a going fire it will spit and pop bits out of the fire. Dry it out first. Think of it like a sponge structure, its got holes in it and it holds water. Most of the impurities have been cooked out of it, so the smoke is not too bad, but I avoid it as much as I can anyway. Hope this helps, Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Now all you have to get is the powerhammer Nive, very nice. Have fun, Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Chris, welcome. I don't know anything about horse drawn vehicles, I didn't even know that horses could draw :-D But I'm happy to help with the smithing. You should find all the help you need here, there are even a few Victorian smiths. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Ratel10mm, Welcome to Brisbane, Say Gday when you get here. Importing smithing tools sounds like a good idea, but I suspect you will run into import duties on them, particularly if they are new. You may get away with secondhand tools as your personal "collection". Check it out before you come, you wouldn't want to get hit with a bill greater than what you'll make. Prices on secondhand smithing tools have been running pretty high lately, particularly on ebay. That said, a fly press sounds like something I want I almost imported one from India when I was there a few years ago. I've not seen many forsale here. Large anvils are harder to get than small ones, good condition is even harder to get. You can buy new small anvils up to about 100kg easily. check out Stockmans Supplies-Farriers & Blacksmiths Specialists. Ph +61732686400 who are based in Brisbane. Swage blocks are not very common, with almost none here in QLD, or so it seems.The village smith The Village Smith also based just out of brisbane sells one cut from 50mm plate, price was $145. Hope this helps. Let us know what you decide to do, I may well be interested. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz. Ps, don't belive Dale, its not too hot here, well ok it might be for you Poms, in the summer Consider it good practice for when you go to the hot firey place for hammering cold iron :-D Its hot in most parts of Oz in the summer, but thats what the beach is for :)

Thankyou HWooldridge and Fionnbharr, that was most informative, I'll look up the reference, thanks. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday all, I was reading the winter 07 edition of the Hammer's Blow, the article "Power Hammering with Bob Patrick", the other day. The article mentions a tool called a snapper which is used with a hack to cut steel under the hammer. Can someone explain what a snapper is and how its used? Even with the photos I couldn't figure out how its used. While were at it, please feel free to share pics and explainations of your specialised power hammer/treadle hammer tooling, I'd love to learn more. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Hollon, check out the pics in Uri Hofi's gallery. He posted a lot of different twist photos, many of which include chisel work or fullering before the twist. Most of the pics also have an explaination of what he did and the stock sizes. That should give you a good idea of the effects. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Toad, welcome. We need more Ozzies here, we're out numbered and surrounded Stay in touch. Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Philip, My forge does not have a fire pot as such, the fire is built up not down. The disk plough is slightly dished, with a 1 and a bit inch hole in the center, over this I put a round disk about 2 inches in diameter, this has a number of holes drilled in it. This 2 inch disk is mounted on 3 small weld legs, built up above the plough disk about 1/4 inch to give open space all the way around through which air can flow, as well as through the holes in the plate. Hope this makes sense. I build the fire around and above this. It will burn coal, coke & charcoal. I can forge weld no problem, I just build the fire up a bit higher. hope this helps. Regards Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Gday Philip, Heres mine. Built from 1/2 a truck rim(tractor trailer) with an old disk plough welded in as the base. air inlets are 2" waterpipe. All from the scrap pile. And yes i have a hand cranked blower for it. Regards Rusty_iorn

Oh I expect that it would just make you want to quench your work again after 10 minutes and then again 10 minutes later.... I guess that would just be the Chinese forging effect Rusty_iron, Brisbane, Oz.

Philip, You could consider Lost foam casting, its easy to cut foam and glue the bits together, If you have a good pattern made there, take the measurements and when you get home make the pattern out of foam and get it cast For what its worth, my swage block is made out of 2" thick steel plate. It was laser cut. Its got a selection of half rounds and right-angles around the edge, with a large 100mm/4" hole in the center. Regards Rusty_iron Brisbane, Oz. Ps. did you check out the "Quickie tongs"?