Joseff

Is it ok if I copy it and read it to my grand daughter? Joseff

Bandana on the head helps, sometimes a wet one around the neck does too. Used to be able to get cloth tubes full of hydrocellulose to soak and wear around the neck, they worked real good, but I never found wet stuff on my neck to be comfortable. A good product now is Under Armor, like sports pros wear. Just remember, its nylon, so it'll burn. I kept a big insulated mug handy with ice tea or ice water, drinking periodically while I worked. and such things as pickles are great for afterwards, when you really need the salt. And as far as that goes, if you've never had a nice cold slice of cantaloupe right after a hot session at the forge, you just don't know what you've missed. Mainly, though, learn to recognise the signs of overheating, and just quit. Joseff

I always used chunks of those wax and sawdust fireplace logs to start fires. Of course, someone gave my nearly 20 of the things, and I only needed a small chunk. Joseff

Beeswax and olive oil. Melt the beeswax, pour in an equal amount of olive oil, let cool. Becomes a paste, just rub on and apply heat. Joseff

Most things that old would ave had a gasket made of either paper, cork, or leather. Any of those will make a good enough replacement, as would any of the modern gasket materials. I would use leather, but that's just me. Joseff

It is half an anvil, that's just strange. Joseff

Expense aside, you really should try olive oil, even just once. Its a little less volitile than petroleum, and smells a lot better. Joseff

pete46 is right, we pay about 40 % of our gas bill to the government. Joseff

Aluminum can be cold forged easily, there is usually no need to heat it. I am of course talking about plate aluminum. It will get brittle when over worked, but with a bit of care, you can do a lot with it. Joseff

I wouldn't think the concrete itself would be a problem, if cast iron can stand up to the heat, wouldn't concrete? Just make sure not to mix river gravel in that concrete, because I know for a fact that river gravel will explode at those temperatures. Yes, the idea of concrete is intriguing, I hope some of the more knowledgable members chime in on this. Joseff

Not a good anvil, I agree. If I absolutely had to use it, I'd place it over a substantial block of wood or something. Better to find a hefty chunk of train rail or something. Joseff

Welcome mrfixit, I'm fairly new here myself. Feel like a kid in a candy store.

Hoary, I made my portable out of fire brick and plain old red clay out of the back yard. I used 1/4" diamond plate with drilled holes for a grate, and connected it with 2 3/8" bolts to a 2" galvinized flange. Then I made the air passage with 2" pipe nipples and a T. Worked pretty good in the scale I was using, and the cost was negligible. Joseff

This may test my mettle, but I have too many irons in the fire as it is. Probably the terms quench and slake have smith origins as well. Joseff

Much of this has the ring of truth Joseff

Appearantly my last registration didn't take, so I tried again.