Arean Ellis

Ha ha! Awesome! Great compliment! Thank you!

Naturally! The one pictured was made by a friend.

Trip went very well! Hammer worked great. Here's a few pictures from over the four days... http://a5.sphotos.ak...736007606_n.jpg http://a1.sphotos.ak...241957055_n.jpg http://a7.sphotos.ak...839433031_n.jpg http://a8.sphotos.ak...749071067_n.jpg http://a3.sphotos.ak...650301240_n.jpg http://a4.sphotos.ak...950911513_n.jpg http://a5.sphotos.ak...113886270_n.jpg http://a2.sphotos.ak...392601723_n.jpg

The handle is hickory.

I'm pretty happy with the strength. If anything, I'm more worried about the handle breaking, rather than pulling out. The tool will never really see full body weight. Mostly the point of it is for setting and removing pitons. It may be used as a climbing aid, but will always be a secondary tool.

It's all good. I suppose my comment was a little off topic. I should have started my statement with "It's refreshing to see people interested in safety...ect."

It's a shame that most construction workers have a "better than you" attitude toward anyone trying to stay safe. I don't know how many times I've seen some sort of mockery for someone wanting to wear a mask, or ear plugs, or anything else. I'd say respiratory protection is at the top of that list.

Forged a North Wall Hammer yesterday. Took 5 hours, including carving the handle. The steel is from a hydraulic rod. A north wall hammer is used for climbing ice. It does not have the adze of a normal ice axe, but rather has a hammer head for setting pitons. I'll be using it this weekend on Mt. Whitney. http://a4.sphotos.ak...019822054_n.jpg http://a7.sphotos.ak...817747340_n.jpg http://a6.sphotos.ak...120565607_n.jpg http://a7.sphotos.ak...562413843_n.jpg http://a5.sphotos.ak...694674946_n.jpg

I really like your design! Great job!

Another awesome idea!

I finally got the chance yesterday to refurbish my chaps. My dog chewed them up around 7 years ago. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. It got me to thinking. What features do you prefer in a shop apron? and... For what tasks in the shop do you wear an apron?

Anyone have a recommendation for an Android Decibel meter with a 'max' setting?

What an awesome idea!

How did you do the silicone? ...how thick? Did you smooth it first and let dry? I'm stoked to try it. My main method is to hang an S hook from the pritchel with 15' of chain hanging from it.

Wow! What nerve.

Kind of figured that would be the answer. The notion is gone from my mind. :)

That's rough. So, no fines in the end then?

I'm curious about cleaning up my anvil as well. My anvil is a loaner; so I want to be very careful with what I do to it (Also, I'll ask the owner before I do anything). Like any anvil; the face has a ton of blemishes and dings. Some are around an 1/8" deep. It looks like the tool steel plate on top is around 3/4" thick. Is it acceptable to 'resurface' the anvil with careful grinding? And is that what people are talking about when they use the term 'resurface'? It's a pain in the XXXX to be doing detailed work and have the rust pattern or dings from the anvil on the back side of my work.

Exactly! Perfect wording. I grew up living in the country (more so than I am now.) and if you didn't get along with your neighbors; you didn't belong there. We were close and trusted each other and self-governed ourselves very well.

That's kind of what I'm afraid of. I don't want to deal with fines, harassment, or court. ...in general; long term pains in the XXXX. I've moved my shop into the garage and now have to drag the coal forge in and out...and I'm facing out toward the street now. I was in the backyard. I've lost my privacy. But on the flip side my shop isn't going to constantly fill with leaves and require a leaf blower every morning. Also, my tools wont rust every time it rains. I see the situation as half loss/ half win. My wife thinks I've rolled over and am 'taking it'...which sucks.

I agree... And to HWooldridge; great analogy! This particular neighbor called the police on us the first time my son had his band over to play. (at 12 in the afternoon.) After that we talked to her and came to an agreement on times of day (11-4). Next time he had the band over we gave written notice to all the neighbors, including her. We also talked to her personally. She again called the police that same day. Since then she has called all our neighbors, our land lord, the police, and code enforcement. NONE of our other neighbors are bothered. Including our other next door neighbor who is a pregnant stay at home mom. (It's mostly for her that I stick to a 10 - 5 forging time frame.) Today I'm having all my neighbors and landlord write a letter for me on the subject and I'm going to talk to the police about her harassing us.

I am very tempted to go to gas. I have a few things holding me back though. How does the cost of propane compare to coal? As in: does 30 dollars of propane last as long as 30 dollars of coal?

Sounds like you're to a good start. Welcome!

Thank you everyone for the positive responses! I appreciate it. My course of action right now; is to move my shop into the garage (no more rusty hammers, tongs and chisels! yay!) and keep the forge just outside the garage door. This will put my 'art studio' on the other side of the house from the pesky neighbor and hopefully lower the noise by having the anvil inside the garage. In the morning I'll be going to the city office to have a few more questions answered... Then will be talking to my neighbor. I'm fairly set on not letting this get me down... or stop my hobby. This neighbor has called our landlord, neighbors, police, and now code enforcement. I won't be surprised if she still pursues this to legal action (which is her last available option).

Basically that I'm running a business out of my home and that a residence is not zoned for industrial work.