welder19

Good luck! You would have to be brain dead not to jump on an oppertunity like that. welder19

Welcome to IFI. This doesn't have to be a real expensive hobby, if your willing to wait and find the good deals that will come along, look and talk around and before long you'll start aquiring what you need. If your impatient and want it all now then it will be costly. Either way your in the right place if blacksmithing is want you want to do. welder19

That's the good thing about this line of work, almost everything you buy is too heavy for her to lift or do anything about it....once you get it home it's there to stay...all she can do is holler, atleast I hope so for your sake. welder19

I don't know a whole lot about glass but a couple years ago the small glass window (approx. 9"x7") in my woodstove door cracked, no big deal...I have two glass company's within 15 min. from me and 4 stove and fireplace stores within a 1/2 hour, all the stove places told me to call the glass places, the first glass place said they didn't have it but could order so I called the second place and they were like, no problem how big do you need it ( I though great finally after a 1/2 hour of phone calls, the place that was 2 min away from where I worked have it!!) so I give them the dimensions and he say's is that all, no problem we got that, yeah that's all, how much is it? $90 !!! When do you want to pick it up? he says' I had to ask twice, I still think he was trying to sell me a windshield for the space shuttle. So I now have a woodstove with a very nice looking piece of plain old 1/4" mild steal plate in place of the window, it cost me zero $$'s as it is from one of my many supply pile's out back and took me about 10 min. to cut and paint black with high temp spray paint. That's what I know about fire rated glass. welder19

I've never done any research on it but according to Ron Reil, His website, the third paragraph down, breathing coal smoke can cause nerve damage. Bottom line is, unless it's pure unpolluted/uncontaminated air, it isn't gonna be good for you and just about anything in high enough quanity or long enough exposure is likely gonna give you some kind of trouble. I knew a man who smoked and drank excessivly his whole life and right up to the day he died, at 87 years old and he went peacefully in his sleep and was about as healthy as an 87 year old man would be, but then you hear about a guy in his thirty's who dies of a massive heart attack or lung cancer....it's just hard core evidence that every one's body is different....I guess. There was a woman lived not too far from me, I knew her some, enough to say hello when I saw her and she was a total health freak her whole life, eating healthy, exercising and was a Chiropractor, a few years ago she died in her early to mid forty's of cancer, she was diagnost and six months later was dead....makes no sense. welder19

I've always used aloe, the plant, not the bottled stuff from the store, although the stuff in the bottle does work good for sunburn, since you normally need such a large qty. for sunburn as compared to a burn from something hot and direct contact. However I'm always willing to try something new whe it comes to home remedies, I'll have to try the Lavender Oil and the potatoe pulp, since I haven't heard of those two before and they seem to be highly regaurded by Sam and Tim. welder19

I don't know a thing about eye surgery but I can say that I use more care and precision when gutting a deer than that DR looked to be using on that eye. Safety awareness and equipment is so much better today than it was even just 10 years ago, regretfully that is why I'm in the situation and condition that I am. And 20 years ago it was practicly non existent as compared to today. Don't get me wrong, I still think some of the stuff that goes on in today's "safety crusade" is completely overboard but most of the time it's better to "over do" than "under do". welder19

Thanks guys, I appreciate it. Jeff

Paul, thanks for the advice and the prayer, I need both. I have heard about writing a hardship letter to SS and I have started to write one, it's good to hear it worked out so well for you, with any luck maybe I'll have the same luck. I have tried to get help through the state but with little to no success, I did manage to get food assistance and have applied for utilities assistance. For no good reason they denied me for cash assistance, even though at the time we had zero income and now my wife finally found a job so they definitely won't give me any even though she is only making $8.50 an hour which isn't even enough to pay the mortgage, the system does not by any means work the way it should and so much money is wasted and handed out to so many people who don't need or deserve it that there isn't enough left to help the people who really need it and so many people are out to get somthing they don't deserve and to scam the system so that is way you get treated when trying to apply for any of it, it doesn't matter that I've been working on the books and paying taxes since I was 13 and have never even so much as collected an unemployment check.....sorry don't mean to complain, just blowing off some steam. So with the hardship letter, I should write it but have my lawyer send it in? Thanks, Jeff

Thanks guys, I really appreciate it! I may have a potential buyer for my quad....I hope so, that will get my bills up to date and maybe even another months worth. I can't even describe how much of a blessing that would be. Thanks, Jeff/welder19

The only thing your gonna get out of a pair of 25 year old boots is feet, leg, knee and back trouble. When I was younger one of my friends was so cheap that he would wear his shoes and boots till literally the duct tape would no longer hold them together, and we all used to tell him that was only gonna come back to haunt him later in life and sure enough by the time he was 25-26 or so he started having major back and feet trouble, his spine was crooked and bent in places it shouldn't be. Those few $$'s he saved on boots he spent 1000 times over in Dr. and Chiropractor bills, he's better now then what he was but he'll never be 100% right. Ask any Chiropractor, foot Dr. therapist, etc. and they will tell you that the shoes you wear every day should be replaced every six months, and that's if thier good quality shoes, cheap ones need replaced even sooner. Jeff

Quiting smoking about 5 yrs ago and it was one of the best things I've ever done, however quiting drinking was nowhere near as pleasurable but had to due to the medication that I have to take. But as far as cigarette's go...I highly recomend it. Stll a neat trick though. Jeff/welder19

Thank you!! I've managed to sell just enough each week to get us by but of coarse I'm going to run out of stuff to sell eventually, but I know the good Lord will see us through. I sold my sheetmetal brake which was tough to do but that lump sum was a big help, if I can get my quad sold and my big Snap-On tool box then I would really get a few months of relief. It's really tough watching all the things I spent so many years breaking my back (litteraly) to get but I try and be positive and look at it as at least I have the stuff to sell to help get me by. Well I don't want to sound like I'm complaining so I will again thank you all who have sent up a prayer or two for me and hopefully I'll be able to post some good news soon. And if there is any one looking for a 4x4 quad or big Snap-On tool box then by all means pm or email me and I'll gladly show you what I have. Thanks & God bless Jeff/welder19

At the end of the day that is what really matters. welder19

This is true, I prefer headsets (ear muffs) anyway since they are so much quicker and easier to put on and off. welder19

The hand held grinders not only have thinner cutting discs but also have a much higher rpm, as was mentioned above, keep it moving, don't stay in one place. If your gonna stay with metal working your gonna want to get a oxy/acet torch at some point any way, you can also save some money by going oxy/propane and the larger the bottle you get the less you pay for gas (at most places). I switched to propane a couple years ago and I love it, I have 2 100lb bottles and run the forge, oxy torch and crucible furnace all off of the same bottle, and you can have them come right to the house and fill the propane bottles, and if you ever run out you cn steal the bottle off of the bbq grill. welder19

Looks good even if it were your 100th project. Nice job! Just need to resize those pix. welder19

Well I wish I could post something more positive but unfortunately it is not the case, things have not improved much and now the only thing that is keeping me from loosing my house is that I have had to resort to selling things which was going fairly well but now has come to a stand still. If you would'nt mind saying a prayer or two that will send some buyer's my way I would really appreciate it, I have a couple larger items that really need to get sold in order to keep up with at least the mortgage. The good Lord has gotten us this far and I trust him to get us through this one way or another but he does like to hear prayers so I figure a few more from some of you folks might certainly help. Thank you! welder19 aka Jeffrey W. Hyer and family, just in case the Lord doesn't keep track of our on-line handles ;)

I am so sorry to read this, that is an awful thing to have to go through, many times those who take their own lives don't think about the one's they leave behind. I will definitely pray for his soul and for you and your family. I am so sorry. welder19

Technology would maybe be ok if they took the time to perfect it before they released it. It is one of the things I miss the least about working, dealing with the factory trying to figure out why their latest and greatest junk wasn't working, we constantly got responses like "I don't know, we did't have the time to test that" or "wow! never saw that before" or "huh, I don't know, we'll have to get back to you on that one". We were on first name basis with the factory engineer's and had them on speed dial in our cell phones. I don't miss that stuff at all. I'm not bashing the engineer's or anyone who may be one, it's normally not their fault, they are working with what they are given, unfortunately it's just the way big corporations are these days. welder19

Have you gotten any news yet Alan? Just wondering how your making out. welder19

It is a very nice looking setup, well made and sturdy looking. You said that twice so I am just wondering why that is? I am by no means questioning if it really is, just what in your opinion makes it so? welder19

Very nice! As always. welder19

I was gonna say it looked like a cast iron step stool, like the little wooden ones you see for kids to brush their teeth and such, no worries about that one tipping over. But kidding aside I'm also gonna say bridge anvil, are there any markings or words of any type? Great find by the way. welder19

Any idea what the weight of that vice is Hofi? I have never seen anything like that before, what about maker or where it was made? welder19