Farmweld

Bit of a story to this pet peeve. I found an anvil on eucalyptus.com that looked reasonable and wasn't too bad price wise so I went for a two and a half hour drive on a 36 degree day to purchase it. Three cwt Peter Wright which was pretty cruddy, had been badly painted and been out in the weather for a while. Plenty of hammer dings on the face but it looked reasonably flat and the edges weren't too bad so in the back of the truck it went and I set off home. Got up this morning and unloaded it and started cleaning it up with a cup brush, found the stamps in the side confirming it was a Peter Wright and the numbers 3 0 ?7 so I was very happy to see them. Unfortunately the cleanup showed that the face had been welded up sometime in the past which is why the face was dinged up so badly (the striker needed a new pair of glasses by the number of miss hits!). I've taken the high spots and mushroomed edges off with a flappy disk so now to work it for a while before I do any more to it. Sorry no pics yet as the phone went flat before I could take them. Anyway, the pet peeve, why is it that some people, having re-pointed and hardened a chisel, have to prove it is sharp by belting it into the side or foot of the anvil leaving a b***dy great divot or even carving a chunk off? I don't know whether this is an Australian thing but about 60-70% of all anvils I have seen have had this done to them and it peeves me because it's abuse of workshop tools. Andrew

Lots of very well done openers there, doing all the QA testing must be difficult and time consuming!

Definitely a power hammer for me, and then came all the heavier tools to handle the extra power, and the learning curve associated with a new tool, then the thinking about how to use it in different ways, then making the tools to see if you can use it that way, then modifying those tools to get the desired result or keeping the fortuitous mistakes and redesigning the new ones to get closer to what you were after, etc, etc. Occasionally work is achieved as well. Andrew

And here was I thinking it had something to do with that dog leg lever on the side of a motorbike engine and being careful about the amount I ingest for a month.

What would I make? chandelier, jewellery display stands, roses, leaves, any scrollwork that requires fine and intricate forge welding because wrought forge welds so much better and easier than steel and if done properly has that blacksmithing "WOW" factor, the one where people look and ask how you did that, and if it's really good other blacksmiths ask the same question. Andrew

Over here in Australia that stuff is becoming increasingly rare. Put the wrought away somewhere safe and learn on steel, do your practise pieces in steel and then drag the wrought out when you want to make something really valuable. Andrew

My faithful assistant, Igor (the one with the hump,limp and lithp), had a pithy saying "I thuggetht we thtrap it to the table and feed a bolt of lightning through it Marthter, thatth what we uthed to do in the old dayth"

Play fair, there are more than aircraft timing gears in there, I spotted pushbike and motorbike chain cogs as well. I spent plenty of time putting those engines together so I recognise some of them as cam drive gears and idler/transfer gears, and the face of the little one is a pump or generator drive gear. Very inventive use of what would otherwise be scapped so congratulations. How much are you selling them for?

I built a similar size fire pot out of 4mm mild steel plate to go in a cast iron buffalo forge I was loaned (4mm was all I had on hand at the time). Mine was a bit deeper, about 150-160mm from memory, and I raised the floor with a piece of 10mm bisalloy plate cut and ground to fit at about 100mm depth. I drilled 5 x 8mm holes in this for air blast. I used it with coke and it worked well, I managed to burn enough steel in it if I wasn't careful. Turned down it had a nice oblong fire and cranked up the gaps around the edge came into play and it had a huge fire. Worst problem was clinker and ash collecting in the bottom so after a couple of hours there was a soupy mess in the bottom that had to be scraped out and the fire rebuilt, Second worst problem was when it was cranked up it started burning the steel on the sides, no steel in there but sparkles coming out. Surprisingly the plate in the bottom hasn't looked like burning, just the sides, don't know whether that is because of the air going through it or because of the alloy. My suggestion would be to go for a plate in the bottom to start with, you can then keep drilling holes/cutting slots until it works how you want and if it doesn't work you can repurpose it and try something else, grid of bars maybe. Andrew

One for the Aussies “All Steamed Up” at Mannum, Engine, Blacksmith & Boat Festival Saturday 15th & Sunday 16th November 2014 9:30 am – 4:00 pm See http://www.psmarion.com/events-exhibitions/ for more details or contact the Artist Blacksmith Association of SA http://www.artistblacksmithsa.org.au/Welcome.html for more details According to Chris there are nearly thirty blacksmiths already booked in and we're running out of accomodation space fast! Andrew Edit: to fix up the hyperlinks I stuffed up

It was listed as 98kg so around 220#. He still wanted AU$780 for it so at $4/lb I thought I would give it a miss. On a slightly different note, I've been to a few auctions and clearing sales lately and $4/lb seems to be the lowest anything anvil shaped goes for, and by anvil shaped I mean well worn, sway backed, chipped edges, hollow cutting deck, chiseled and punched sides, etc. Anything that is slightly decent starts at this price and rapidly moves on up through the stratosphere. The other thing in demand is swage blocks, very few come up and high prices when they do.

Saw this one on the local eucalypt site Looks like someone did an interesting repair job a while ago Andrew

Ausfire, who's a lucky bugger then, I've had to pay for all of mine so you got yours for the right price and it looks to be in good condition for a farm anvil. More pictures once you've been using it for while please!

You will be reminded of that vow of poverty in the future, I hope you get to break it. The shop looks too small already, not enough space for really big projects, I suggest you start planning the extension soon so that you know where you want to put everything in six months time when it is built. Other than that, good luck in your endeavours and enjoy your new shop. These photos will be interesting to review in a years time when compared to the shop then. Andrew

One of the BABA guys identified it definitely as a Mousehole Forge, Soho pattern, from the late 1800's. Thanks for your comments Thomas, I know the best tools in the world aren't going to make me a better smith, my interest is because I like to know as much as I can about the tools I am using, make, model, history if it is something that is old(er). I have a Peter Wright that has a anchor stamp on the front foot which I rescued from a front garden and I am still researching about. I have a Wilkinson that has been abused, heel and half the deck broken off which was repaired by a previous owner (plate + gussets welded on for the heel and lots of hardfacing on the deck), and there is the Attwood with the O/A gouges in the face that you have to work around. All of them are in use by me and the people who attend workshops at my forge and all have their own "character". Now I have a Mousehole who's character needs to learnt and who's story is being added to. Andrew

Bump Still trying to find a maker and as Foundryman said "Some London pattern anvils were made without steps but they don't pop up that often in my limited experience." This one has not been milled down and looks to have done very little work, and it has very good rebound. With Sheffield and England visible in the stamps it's definitely from England. Doing an image search the only anvil I have seen that comes close is the SOHO anvil on this page http://www.britishblades.com/forums/content.php?53-Anvil-recognition-for-dummies&s=20f64519f56fb8d96949cc369fbd99e0 but that has a hardy at the base of the horn. I might have to try acid washing the markings to see if I can get them to show up better. Andrew

I picked up this anvil yesterday and would like to identify the maker, any help appreciated and thanks in advance. It was covered in a layer of red lead primer and black paint which obscured most of the markings so I got stuck into it with the cup brush and cleaned up the important areas. The stamps are not very deep but reading from top to bottom I could make out obscured (possibly solid) obscured obscured (possibly wrought) Sheffield England Warrented (LOGO ?) O L F(inverted or bad E) Patent 2 1 21 It also had 07 80 stamped on the front foot. The anvil is a bit distinctive in that there is no step to the cutting deck. The face has a couple of minor flaws but nothing that can't be worked around so I just need to make a stand, scrape the last of the paint off and put it to work.

I got contacted about some gear that was for sale. Went and had a look yesterday and came home with these. along with another bench vice which I sold on the way home. The big anvil was covered in a couple of layers of paint which I started scraping off to try and identify (I'll post more pics in anvils), it worked out to be 273#. The baby is cast steel and I have no idea of maker but it got carried inside and put on the dinner table temporarily as a table ornament.

In Australia a paint company called Solver market a range of micaceous paints in different shades. Might be worth seeing if you can get the equivalent over there. http://www.solverpaints.com.au/diy/ProductInformationDocuments/FC-4105-02.pdf

A year or two ago I found a wonderful website for an artist blacksmith who also had "tutorials", "practicals" or a "how to make" section on his page for some of the gorgeous bespoke items he'd made. He had some wonderful pieces including a pair of bespoke side tables (also known as console tables, hall tables, foyer tables). I think he's located in the USA but I cant, for the life of me, find his website - I think the bookmark was lost when my computer crashed. I do recall that he said in his website that he believed in sharing his knowledge which is why he was putting up the instructions. The site was an old html website so the practicals were broken down over several pages. The console table had a textured top edge which had been made by oxy cutting steel and he also used rio rod for additional texture. The heavy legs had been tapered, upset and he forged ball feet on them. He also had some lovely flowers which were on the front of the tables, each one different. I think the other table was more art deco in style. He had pictures (I don't think it was videos but could be wrong) of him using his power hammer and the tooling he used to make the balls. Can anyone remember seeing the website (or maybe even is part of this forum and owns it). If so I'd love to have the URL again as I've gone nuts trying to find it using Google. For all I know the site may no longer exist. Any help tracing it would be much appreciated. Tricia (I've hijacked Andrew's account!)

Des hasn't had much in the way of interest yet, I think everybody is still getting over mad march, so he hasn't run any workshops yet. Have to see what happens once all the displays ABASA have to do are finished. There has been plent1y of interest in the hand forging workshops both here and at Penfield, most of which are getting booked out well in advance. Andrew

Hi everyone! Got a few random questions, I know some of them fit into other categories on the forum, but I think this is faster and less hassle..SO! 1) Is there ANY such thing as 6mm square bar in south australia? I recently found myself a supplier of steel that sells most sizes for a really good price (It's mild steel or somethin') But they don't have 6mm square, and it's ALOT of effort to square up a 6mm round bar from end to end. Closest to you would be Mt Barker Steel Supplies, ring them and if they haven't got it they will be able to order it in for you, otherwise I'm pretty sure Southern Steel,Senturion, One Steel, Bluescope, Brice Metals, or Orrcon all carry it, you'll just have to pick it up or pay to get it freighted. If all else fails buy some 8 or 10mm and get some hammer practise drawing it down 2) Can I sink a piece of thin metal without the use of a swage block? I'm only just starting out and it's hard enough to find hammers in this country :P I'm thinking things like leaves and spoons, so nothing major...I've read that I can carve out a dip in a log and soak the dip in water to stop the wood burning, but it seems like alot of work for something I'm only going to do occasionally... Answered above 3) Is borax I buy from the shop 100% suitable for forge welding? Or do I need to cook it first? I've seen on here that most of the time moisture gets back into the borax anyway, so is there REALLY a point? Answered above and I like to buy it in the 5 kilogram tubs so I've got plenty. The bigger hardware stores all carry it. 4) Do I really require another person when I want to make a hammer (Eventually?) Is it something that IS possible on your own? If you want to join ABASA Des Mumme runs powerhammer workshops and if you asked nicely he would show you how to make a hammer. I'm pretty sure he is currently doing a big order of 4lb mash hammers for a hardware chain out of his workshop at the moment. Alternatively you could attend the workshops at Penfield or my place and once your skills are up to scratch you could get some assistance making a hammer there. 5) Is there any other source of coke in South Aus besides Farmweld? I don't mind buying coke from there if I need to, but I live a fair way away and it's a hassle to get down there. To be blunt, no, because I supply most of the other suppliers. If you don't want to travel then check with APD what it would cost to get it delivered because they do pick up from here. Andrew

Just got hold of these and I was wondering what would be the best way of putting a point on them They are just over 1m long and 150mm in diameter, worn out breaker points from a quarry a mate works at. I'm actually going to donate them to the Artist Blacksmith Association of South Australia for use as permanently mounted outside anvils. By the time they are concreted in I don't think anyone will be able to put them in their back pocket and walk away with them. Andrew

Hi Andre, which part of rural SA are you in and do you want to give us an idea which historic forge you are looking after? I'm based in Birdwood and am a member of ABASA as posted by Dale a couple of posts ago. We look after forges at Mannum, Angaston, Roseworthy, and are hoping to start at Balaklava soon. The forges at Moonta, Riverton, Tailem Bend and Tumby Bay have all been scaled back to static displays due to OH&S issues. Not sure but I think the Koppio Museum is still up and running. ABASA is also holding workshops at our new homebase in Penfield on First and Third Saturdays and the last Sunday of each month and at my workshop on the Fourth Saturday. There are also "Doris Days" for the ladies on the (I think) second Tuesday of each month. One of our more experienced members wants to hold power hammer clinics at my place as well which we are in the process of organising. Other than that, email or ring me and I'll see what I can do to help. Regards Andrew

I just acquired another to add to the shop so I thought I'd put pictures of them all up here. First off is the new arrival 348# Peter Wright and I've got to make a stand for it yet. This one seems to have a narrow deck and a long heel and horn when compared to my 250# Peter Wright Then comes a completely different beast, it used to be a 400+# Wilkinson which copped a fair bit of abuse and the heel was busted off. Someone did a repair job on the heel and welded up the deck as well. A lot shorter, wider and thicker than either of the above but still perfectly OK for beginners to learn on. Next are a 210# Attwood on the left and a $240# Peter Wright on the right, one of these will have to go as I have to be able to justify the new puchase. Then there's my travel anvil, a little 1cwt no name that I use for displays And finally there was my birthday present last year, yes it's a cast iron ASO but who could refuse when your name and birthdate are cast on the side! Regards Andrew