metalliferous

Excellent work like always. I've always admired how your forgings have a definite texture, but still have such clean lines.

I'll have to put something like this on my increasingly long "to-do" list. It may have a bottle opener instead of a corkscrew, though, to better suit a more blue-collar market.

I going to go ahead and assume what you mean by browning is heating steel that has had a thin layer of oil applied to it. That's what I call browning, at least. For an even (and lighter) color, I generally sand/wirebrush off any rust or scale and then wipe down the piece with old cooking oil. To heat it, I either put it over a coke-downed fire or use a propane torch. I've tried heating the piece though the tempering range and then quenching it out in oil, but I can never really get the thing to stop feeling greasy that way. For a darker color, I apply old oil of pretty much any type and heat it until it just begins to smoke.

Alright, so if it affects iron salts and proteins alike, it sounds like a faulty enzyme (if not that, it's some other "iron from food to iron for blood" conversion problem), and I can see how the IV iron could be dangerous (since all humans are pretty sensitive to iron overloads).

Just as another idea, I wonder if you could more effectively absorb iron through the mucuos membranes (gums, nose, etc.) than through the skin, and if a carrier compound like dimethyl sulfoxide could increase the absorption through the skin.

On a side note, while looking for more info about DMSO, I found an odd article. Apparently it's is already used as a carrier for iron, but for plants. Weird stuff.

I don't think I completely understand why you'd need pure iron (as opposed to mild steel) for an iron source. Is it because of the manganese present in modern steels?

Also, does your genetic condition affect the absorption of iron-bearing proteins, like hemoglobin or heme from meat?

Hair grows back faster than skin. I'm glad to hear there was no lasting damage, and that it didn't scare off the younger smith.

Brand: none
Weight: 190 lb.s
Condition: good horn. partially broken hardface that required rebuild
USD200$, 2007

Putting a radius on one edge is probably a good idea. Anywhere from a 1/4" to 3/8" radius should work well.

Theoretically, I don't see why copper and steel couldn't be forge welded, although copper contaminating the fire is one reason I've heard for a failed weld, and it may be trickier than it's worth. A more sure bet would be to silver solder the pieces together. Note that this is is hard silver solder (which melts somewhere around a low red heat), not the lead free silver bearing soft solder sold at your local hardware store (which goes somewhere in the 400-600 degree range).

Maybe they're the world's least comfortable bracelets.

Thanks Thomas. BTW, by the side blast being "recent" I meant having remained in use until so recently. The forge previously at the house was for a large sized plantation a fair distance from any major cities in Virginia, so I guess it'd be meant for general work.

That's interesting. I didn't know side blasts were that recent. I'll see if one of our team members can drop by the Staunton Forge and check it out if they head home anytime soon (it's pretty much on their way). Thanks for the info.

Hey everyone. I

If you're doing this to demonstrate the process or just as a hobby, mild steel will do fine. I'd figure SS would work too, but I can't see much of an advantage.

Good job. It's a good clean design that was well executed.

I can't be sure if this is the same problem, but I've cracked a cultivator blade before from forging it at a dark red. Maybe try forging it at a higher temperature (somewhere around orange).

I'm with azIRonSmith. It'd probably be better all round to buy some aluminum plate and save your Al scraps for other castings.

DerekC, ASOs are cast iron. There is basically no industrial output of wrought iron anymore. I've heard that some small steelworks in the UK still make both wrought iron and "pure" iron, but it isn't used in large scale commercial applications.

My guess, and this is only a guess, is that most are some kind of carbon steel. I know that at least some (of the non-forged variety) are malleable iron. As to telling aluminum from steel, the weight is a pretty easy and reliable way to tell (as long as you know about how heavy each metal feels in your hand).

Maybe we should also have a "how many fuels do you use" poll as well.

Definitely was a file, definitely can be anything.

Congratulations on the forge, Arbalist. That looks like a good setup.

Try out a few pieces. I've run across some old iron that'll split like crazy unless you work it at a white heat. Of course, other pieces do just fine. I usually try to test any new source of iron (or steel), and I've had some things go to pieces on me because I didn't.

I'd like to nominate myself, but I'll be 19 in February, so I might be a little older than you want.

Isn't the zinc from galvanization technically a sacrificial anode itself?

Glenn, that was the very pic I was looking for. Thanks to everyone for looking.