Jose Gomez

You have to be able to supply the hammer with 21 CFM @ 140 psi minimum. The compressor that I have pussing it is a 7.5 HP Ingersol Rand that provides 24 CFM @ 175. So far it supplies more than enough air to outwork me...

Thomas, I'll let you know as soon as I get some more details on the hammer. ApprenticeMan.........Thanks! The roling mill was a gift from a friend. It has turned out to be a really neat tool for making perfectly flat billets and drawing material out verry quickly. you can easily double or tripple the lenth of a piece in one heat with no noticable change in width. I know that the tools don't make the blacksmith makes the tools, but good tools make it easier for the smith to produce more and better tools.... it's a vicious circle...

Hi Thomas! If your looking for one I know where there is another 50# Little Giant comming up for grabs soon.

Thanks! I have only been forging damascus for about 6 months now, but it was not that big of a leap after smithing for the last 13 years or so. It's an interesting new challenge!

I also have a ka 75 and a 110# treadle hammer..... Yeah.. I'm addicted to power hamers...we need to start a support group or something...

Here are a few shots of the latest batch of knives that I recently finished. All are hand forged damascus of some sort, and most of them went away with the hollidays. I use a range of materials (depending on the day, what I have lying around, and what best suits the purpose). Hope you like them!!

Well I finally made the leap from a mechanical hammer to a pnumatic unit. My new Big Blu 155# came in on Friday morning, and after 3 days of rearanging stuff I managed to get it installed. Man what a difference!!! EXELENT controll coupled with TONS of power! Im really looking forward to exploring the limits of my new equipment. Looks like I have a whole lot of work ahead of me!!

Heres a pic of my 25# little giant and a "new" 50# mayer bros trip hammer, I can't imagine doing anything without a power hammer anymore!!

Kelly is the best if not the only source for powdered metals. he also carries anhydrous borax and 15n 20. His prices are extremely fair and he is a pleasure to deal with. Good luck!

You could cut a short section (4 or so inches),forge weld one end shut and form the shut end into an axe edge, slit a hammer eye into it and foge the other end into a bowl and presto changeo you've got a pipe tomahawk.

Thanks for everyones input. I went ahead and made the leap and put the check in the mail today, so I guess that only time will tell. I'll be sure to post pics, and give a thourough report as soon as I get to pounding with it. If all goes well I should have it up and running in under two weeks, so we'll see.

Thanks for the info. I plan on using the hammer to suppliment my 25#lg and a KA 75 that I currently employ in my shop. most of what I do is artistic architectural ironwork, sculpture, and pattern welded steel. To me the most attractive features of the big blu are the number and type of available dies, the quick change die setup, 18" throat depth, 9" stroke (enough to allow the use of the hand tooling of which I am so fond of), no special foundation requirements, and small foot print (shop space is always at a premium). With the addition of the 7.5 hp 24 CFM @ 175 psi Ingersoll rand aircompressor, coupled to the system that is already in place to support the KA 75, I will be able to supply the shop with about 50 CFM at 140 psi. The Big Blue will be used for a little bit of everything from knocking down 4" damascus billets to drawing 4 foot tapers. You never know what you might have to forge tomorow so I wanted to try to get the best hammer possible, and unfortunately the only air hammer of any kind that I know of around here is a 110# Say-mak that I recently made a 350 mile round trip to try out. It was a great hammer. A hard hitter with excelent control, but just a wee bit too large to fit into the shop without pushing something else out of the front door.... which is what brought me to where we are now. Back to Big Blu.

I am considering purchacing a Big Blu max 155 and was wondering if anyone has had any experience with them (good or bad). I have more than enough air compressor to run it, but I am wondering what kind of problems they have, if any, and what kind of control can be expected. I'm planning on buying soon, and i think it would be foolish not to ask for I forge irons' opinion, so any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.......

High frequency is commonly used with DC tig to initiate the arc without having to touch the electrode to the base metal. This is common with tig welding because the high frequency is capable of jumping across the gap between the tungsten and the base metal, thereby eliminating the need for "Scratch starting" or initiating the arc by striking the electrode across the base metal like a match (which typically contaminates the electrode). with DC positive or negative the arc only has to be initiated once because the current is only flowing in one direction, so no significant diference in weld performance aside from a slightly more stable and focused arc will be noticed. Where HF is essential is when welding with alternating current. With AC the direction of current flow reverses 60 times per second (60 hertz typicaly) which means that the arc ignites in the positive cycle, then extinguishes itself, and then re-ignites in the negative cycle. all of this happens 60 times a second, which is where HF comes into play. HF continuously bridges the gap between the electrode and the base metal thereby keeping a "pathway" open for the arc to remain lit while the welder is transitioning between the positive and negative cycles. this constant switching of flow direction is where the AC arc gets its signature BUZZZZZZ. The reason that almost all tig welding in steel and stainless is done with Direct current electrode negative is that 70 percent of the heat generated by the arc is focused on the positive side of the circuit. this is why the electrode remains sharp when used with DC electrode - and it "balls up" or melts when used DC electrode+ or AC. When the electrode balls up the arc is much less focused and tends to wander more. As for you argon consumption, im not sure what you have your flow rate set at, but you can run as low as 15 to 20 CFH, anything more is a waste. Kind a long winded explination, but I hope it helps.

Can someone post a link to the video on you tube... I can't find it, and don't know if it's still available.

You might also ask your local RV dealer. Most larger RV's Are equipped with on board generators that more often than not are in need of some type of repair.

In the past, when the situation required a more heavy duty solution, I have had good luck using flexible exhaust piping (for automobiles) and band clamps. They are heavy enough to take quite a bit of heat, come in a variety of diameters, and are relatively easy to locate in auto parts stores, muffler shoppes, and junkyards (the flex pipe normally conects the motor to the exhaust system on most small cars). Hope this helps!!

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There are a ton of ways to keep steel from rusting. It just depends on the aplication. For example, you can paint, powdercoat, clear coat, dip in oil, seal with bees wax, linseed oil, or a mixture of wax and oil, and you can use gun bluing (on smaller parts). It all just depends on the size and purpose of the part.

Thans for the link, Tons of great info!!! My brain is still smoking..kinda hurts a little.

Here's a neet tool steel selector guide that might help you figure out what you have now, and will make it easy to figure out what metal to pick for any aplication in the future. www.pvsteel.com/docs/Tsb-093.pdf Enjoy!

Exelent!! I might see you there (need to stop by & get some coal from rob) thats if I can make the time for the 400 mile round trip from Las Cruces.

D-2 is an air hardening cold work tool steel with high wear resistanceand deep hardening ability. It is best suited for things like cold punches slitters shear blades, and knives. If you go to this linkDiehl Steel - D-2 Air Hardening tool Steel I think you will find all of the info that you need on forging, hardening, and tempering temperatures. Good luck!!!

Mix 32 oz dawn dishwashing liquid (not concentrate), 7 oz Shaklee basick OR unscented jet-dry, 5 lbs of salt, and 5 galons of water. when used to quench mild steel you can expect hardnesses in the 40 to 45 rc range. But, it's not advisable to use superquench on high carbon steel due to potential cracking. when used right you can make great short run tooling like stamps and chisels out of mild steel, a real time and material saver, and it smells GREAT! when the solution is used up it will turn from blue to green. I don't perform and post quench heat treat after I use this to harden mild steel.

This is a shot of my shop showing my drum set. Starting off.. my primary anvil (the grey one in the middle) which is a 64 KG cast tool steel english anvil with a 1 1/4 hardy on a 5" by 3" legged tripod base that weighed in at 260 pounds after I filled it with 120 pounds of sand and topped with a 1/2' layer of lead between the anvil and base in order to kill the ring. in the foreground is my demo anvil, a + or-130 pound fulton on a simple, easy to transport stump. And last but not least is my 180 pound trenton wrought anvil in the background. I also included some left overs, and an anvil's eye view of the shop just for fun!!