ThomasPowers

It's fairly simple to make a set of "stops" for a power hammer that lets you bring metal down to the correct size fairly fast and easily. Exp for a hammer with flat dies: take a piece of cold rolled the correct dimension and bend it in a "U" shape; then bend the base of the U 90 deg so it can be clamped to the side of the die leaving the two legs going across the top of the die with a clear gap between them. Now heat up your oversized piece and run through the gap til the top die is tapping the "stops" and you will have sq stock of your desired size Thomas

Looks to my eye that the piece had that shape too it otherwise he would have tapered it more for the crosspein by forging rather than the sharp grind. Thomas

I had a friend pick up a mint condition wagon tongue vise for $5 at a fleamarket once---none of the other's in our group had asked about it since they generally ran above $100 there and that was too rich for most of us---he asked... Thomas

Salt water comes out a lot of oil wells too Thomas

Maille (as in "chain mail") One quad-state I saw a blade made by a fellow who welded up lathe swarf! (Collected it ina a large coffee can, compressed it under a large press, fluxed it and welded it, nice pattern) Thomas

I built a forge much like Tim's back in 1981 I left the back end of the tuyere pipe open and put in a "ramrod" that I used to control how long an area received air to set the length of the fire. Thomas

I have a cutting plate with the center marked all the way across with a chiseled line and then it's laid off in 1/4" increments going both ways from the center---helps me cut billets into even sections!

I use firebrick in parallel walls to hold the charcoal fire deeper but not have it spread over the forge table.