fat pete

I use a 41/2 angle grinder for all kinds of stuff....defiantly moves scale....i keep 3 all hooked up with different wheels..ie cut off cup brush and scotch brite..... i get em for about 25 bucks at the Black and decker outlet store....if they die they r cheap

I am also a member of PABA....I live near adamstown....good group!....touchstone school would be right south of you below pittsburg....

the best one i saw was at turleys school....he has 1/4inch plate welded together to the size of the bottom of his anvil(rathole) and its filled with sand....no noise.....none....nada.....nice and simple

stay awake or it will bring you HARM

I have a copy of a "jingle" type bell that uses like 3/16th sheet makes a neat bell ...I will try and come up with a way to send it to ya if you like.

I have been told that that is a good idea. I guess you should find a good hammer at yard/garage sales and modify them....would be way cheaper

Did you ever use a rivet set?

did you use rivits to attach or tennons .... looks good i have been wanting to do that

Creek I am sorry I missed your thread I just posted So You Wanna Be a Blacksmith thread that may interest you. Fat Pete

Presently I am attending a 3 week school of blacksmithing. It has been the best experience I have had in a lot of years. I have been working on the craft for about 2 yrs...the first week we did the basics on steroids...We made fire tools with a couple neat little tricks. We welded the first day,worked on hammer control exercises all week,great exercises. the second week i just finished we covered heat treating and making small tools. Cant wait till next week sadly the last week. I have to say it is intense. There are 5 of us. and working in a forge with 5 other guys is a different experience in it self. The exercises are all traditional blacksmithing with a small use of oxy/ac and use of a neat little 25# little giant power hammer. we even had a field trip to Old Town Santa Fe thru some museums, antique shops looking for iron. We went to a Japanese antique shop and found some amazing forged locks. All had some little snap or clip or slide that allowed you to get to another button to open the dresser or desk. Very interesting stop. Believe me our ages range from 21, 50's and 60's and at the end of each day most just go home and sleep its a hard 8-9 hrs with a lunch break. Makes you appreciate Grandpop, most definately! We made center punches, scribes, and cold chisels,3 kind of hinges, ball ends, tongs, a million scrolls and learned a little Blacksmith metalurgy. Needless to say I am a little behind in completing projects but I only burned one leaf scroll in the fire. I will tell ya you make em till there right! With out ever attending anything other than small demos at a couple of different hammer ins, I would recommend this school to anyone, The instructor is interesting and his curriculum laid out well. It is aggressive but you get plenty of time to work on your projects. The camaraderie, the education and the weather has also been great! The location aint bad either. www.turleyforge.com I was not prompted to post this by anyone for anyone only for you to know Fat Pete

I am with ya Jimmy and your family

sometimes it looks real nice and convenient to have a little blower...i mostly see it good for lighting the fire or re-banking it mid stream....but i like to crank, it makes me one with the fire....i still burn stuff...but it is mostly because of my inaccurate placement of the metal or a distraction...it really is strange when i go and use the propane forge after using the coal forge...waiting or the metal to heat up and no coal to move around...and way cleaner...but i digress

why do I crank my blower?

I have some .005 carbon content .... almost like clay when real hot yellow...but really works good at the red dark heat it draws amazingly easy....i used a chisel on it today and it wasnt colored at all and it didnt take much of a hit to make a mark.... after you work some real tuff stuff like a rasp or mower blade hit on this stuff its relaxing....like a cool down cause it behaves so well......

wire cup brush may remove the bondo and other things....could also use a scotch brite pad on a drill

Finnr said........."I tried it on a lark , I figured if a backwoods blacksmith......" didnt the feathers get in the way?? Didnt it smell funny??? did you eat the bird later????

thats cool bentiron....i am goin to try with the propane....i feel more confident not puddling it that way my coal forge is outside so I cant get a good read on the color.....I had it sizzlin tho in the quench....I have used the same stuff to pin things like knife handles.....it shines right up tho ...nice....thanks!

I was told that some brass just isnt forgable only machinable....I have a pile of this stuff my pop liberated from a machine shop he used to work at...I have copper and alluminium from there also.... I appreciate the discussion and as I find out more I will continue....thanks for your help!!

some good answers thx...maybe i didnt get it hot enuff n maybe i should use the propane forge....so u guys think it wasnt annealed enuff...I will work on it....u know it acted a little like aluminium.....

I have some brass rods and flat stuff. I was trying to work it and I handled it like copper...heat it and quench it then hit it....it splintered, weird, like wood almost .... so i tried it not heated it would dent but then also splinter....i had it in the fire for maaybe 20 -30 seconds and it didnt melt (red hot coals no yellow in the fire) can any one tell me a little about brass workin ... I wanna use it for decorative rivits and eyes stuff like that..... thx

hey x your close to correct ..I dont think the wok would woork for long tho....take a look at the 55 forge its in the b-prints and there is a thread on it

I think if its too tight you may have trouble puttin it in or pulling it out....but i would get it pretty close