fat pete

I have 2 abrasive manufactures in my area. They are trying to work thru the web. They have been closed to walk ins since covid and they are starting to open up. I have a 2 x 72 OBM grinder and got an assortment of 14 belts for 25 bucks. I was lucky they were local. SO I picked them up. I bought local purposely supporting my neighbors. I am near Reading, PA we have Reading Abrasives who I have bought from in the past. But now they are making to order. https://industrialabrasives.com/ I recently bought from Keystone abrasive also in Reading. They were more responsive at this time. Ted Mullins is the sales guy so you call them and tell you what they want. https://keystoneabrasives.com/index.htm Niether manufacture has minimums. Both will make to order or they will have over stock from other orders so they may offer substutes.

I bought a chilli forge more than 10 years ago. Rebuilt it after I welded in it... but it still works great. Getting good heat is important. I think it is important to have a forge that your work fits into. I also keep a coal forge handy for certain purposes. I found nice doesn't work in a forge

I have a 60# small enough to load on the pick up and take to get filled and it gives me about 40 hrs of forging time.

I am down in , Knauers...not far.. if your in Morgantown, Pa

I play guitar and the last 3 strings are the only strings that are not wrapped.... E -B - G are unwound strings the E string usually can be as small as .009... thats pretty slinky... fast lead players will buy something that thin I think you will need a whole lotta strings to get a knife out of them.... The steel used could be a stainless type ... but some do rust if you don't play them often... they do have to be picked up by the pickups which are magnetic. There are so many outr there because they are experimenting what all the different alloys sound like ....usually what the wound ones use is the same steel as the unwound as their core. Hope this helps FatPete

i jave a 60# tank I have a 2 burner chili forge and I run 1 burner most of the time... 40 hrs I like the 60# because I can move it around ...and I am not picking up propane all the time/

Throw them in a pan of vinegar it will dissolve the rust ... use some baking soda and water to clean them off... then you will see overnight or 2 should work

ha, yes sir you can put that in a hardy hole if the stake end fits. I cant see the hole underneath but I guess it could be a forge hole where the tongs would fit in... JHCC has the best question here for you to answer.....

yup just like I said a stake anvil ....

looks like what they call a stake anvil... almost like a big hardy tool.... what does it weigh??? any other markings on it??? That hole could just be a hole the previous person wanted and drilled into it... looks like it has been used as it is really chamfered...

Larry is famous for his ladels... he is a good guy.. this is in the same style of his ladels and forks....

cool guys thanks for standing by the same anvil and holding the same hammer guys... lets hear some more

Man I will tell ya it is not like riding a bike or tying your shoe... I have been tied up in a real job, so to speak, for 5 years. It was a lucrative period in my life practicing something I have doen for over 35 yrs. Trouble is it has nothing to do with smithing.. So I essentially took a 5-6 yr hiatus away from smithing..do not ever do this... I enjoyed smithing very much and at 1 time I started to get pretty good... Well the corporate world and I do not get along for many reasons..and this distributor decided that they wanted to "close my department" ...ok fine ... see ya! well I started that department and built it into millions of dollars of production. When I got there they had no idea of where the geothermal was what was a geothermal heat pump or anything to do with them at all... So as they say sie la vie.... So it took me about a week to gather my wits and kinda of absorb the shock of not having to get up at 4 am and find my way 60 miles down the road to commute to an office of which I never in my life had to report before... So now this weekend i was able to go out into my workshop and start to forge again... what a mess!! I had to start making hooks again to re learn the basic hammer control .. that come with hrs of practicing... lost the finesse ... forgot how the metal reacts... hard time keeping a fire going... geez it is like I never touched a piece of coal before. I am sure it wont take too long to regain the spot that I left off but I am sure I will need plenty of scrap metal before I make something I could actually sell again... I couldn't make a leaf I couldn't put a point on a piece of 1/8 round to make a scroll... so My advice to anyone who thinks they can always just go back... good luck , take your time and do not let your ego run the show....stay with it!.

I think a lot of the guys get bummed when they know the answers to the questions are already all over on the site... a little searching pretty much brings up anything you can ask.... so the lack of energy expended prior to asking a question does not demonstrate one of the qualities of the a blacksmith, the solitary battle for answers. It is like being used...Just one point of view.. the other thing is maybe it is your day in the barrel...ha

I would buy one like it ... maybe a 1/2" too long ...and the pattern in the metal is cool too! as far as the clip goes 3 screws would be right...and if you made it black like the pattern in the Damascus ... That may work ...the stainless is fine tho.... My compliments!!

please remember buzz glahn. he was my friend and my first teacher. he passed today.