jkmas

Nice matching pair would make cool book ends at the very least.

I purchased a TFS 300 lb Smithy special about ten years ago. The face is supposed to be hardened to 52 Rockwell.  I have used some heavy stock on it over the years and the face and horn have held up just fine.  When I put a strait edge on the face its still nice and flat.  Just my two cents worth.

The carbide chisels that i own were made (and still are) in Barre Vermont.  Troy & Holden is still in business. They sell good quality pneumatic carving hammers and carving chisels. I also have some heavy shanked hand chisels that work very well.  

The carbide tipped chisels are really only necessary for granite carving.  I carve limestone with the steel chisels which hold an edge for a very long time.  Cutting and carving stone and sharpening my brick hammers is what got me interested in blacksmithing.

It's amazing how tough the thin  braze weld is between the carbide and steel.

Ditto that (price and lead time).

I don't believe the little know fact either. The Church had to hire the artisans in the first place.  I would hate to see what the Church did  to the sculptors.  However, I like the idea of the blacksmith club.

I wish I could make a pair of gloves last six days.

Battery tong???

Hey Frank,  Do You know what kind of tree and how long ago it was made?

Cool lookin cleats too.

Looks like what my wife uses to wash my work clothes.

It is a shame that this show needs to be competitive  and full of bling instead of educational.  I would rather watch a master of his 0r her craft in a documentary  over what  I just saw on this show (nothing against the smiths). It is way more entertaining for me to read the informative info that I get from the posts from advanced members as well as the newbies on this forum . However, I suppose that it is good to get the word out about blacksmithing on tv  it might trigger some kids to want to work more with their hands.

Ten grand???  Network should cough up a lot more.

Where are you located in the chgo area? North, South, or West???

I think you are wright Black Frog. That is where I bought  my dies from. They also gave me an about date on when my machine was made (1920's) by giving them the serial number.

I have a 50lb moloch . When I purchased this hammer it came with an AO smith Century 230v 3.0 hp ( motor works great by the way) 50lb little giant dies should fit. You may have to fit the die shims a little.  My clutch may be different than yours.  I will try to post some pics.

I made a pointing trowel out of a piece of 3/4" square bar in 2013 just because I did not have much to do one night.  The handle, shank,  and blade are all in one.

I'm trying to figure out how to get pics from my iphone to this site (I know that I'm way behind in the times when it comes to this simple procedure.).

Sorry Charles, I aint much but I'm all I got.

I'm not sure what Marshalltown or W Rose uses for the blade, But we masons prefer to call it a "pointing trowel".

Nice hammer. I have a 50# Moloch (which I believe is an older version made in Kaukauna Wisconsin) . Everything looks the same on your machine as on mine.  I don't see any cast numbers on my toggles and ram like yours does but the parts look like they are from the same mold. Some one at little giant told me that my machine dated back to the 1920s.  You got your machine for a much better price than I did. I did not have to do much to my machine  but make some minor adjustments and I made a brake.

I'm still trying to find room for my bed in my shop. Maybe I have the affliction as well.

(Flour) "Honey, I smell fresh baked bread!"  Ha Ha

keep it away from the front of your pants.

We use the large rawhide mallets to seat thick cut dimensional granite in a slightly damp portland cement and sand bed ( old style of high end paving).

I wonder how my anvil would look with a hardware fabric skirt and a barb wire collar?

I have one of these I bought from Trick Tools.  They have the 2" x 36" belts in various grits. The contact wheel gets a little hollow (even when new) but is very aggressive for it's size.  The contraption holds up well but most likely does not compare to higher price machines.  Belt tracking is a bit tricky when you first install.  Decent enough tool for a hobbyist.  Not a bad tool for the price.