steponmebbbboom

just got the updated price list, mixed tin is up to 260 from 115, and heavy melt steel is 290 from 155, $/ton. wow.

welcome aboard Erik, dont be afraid to speak up. were a friendly bunch. we smiths gotta stick together, theres not many of us around!

sweeet. well neal, in my experience backfires are most common on startup, when im really pouring the air to it and the smoke is barking out the top, it tends to backfire if i let off and go back on again. what i do to prevent this is ease down on the air until the smoke ignites. if you have some coke in the firebox and you see a lot of smoke, it doesnt hurt to cut back on the air feed and let the fire build.

my tuyere is designed with a counterweighted ash dump, that is to say it has no latch but rather a weighted handle and a pivot that allows you to dump ash by raising the handle. the advantage to having no latch is that in the event of a backfire, the easiest path for the expanding gases is through the ash dump. it simply forces the dump open and blows downward, that way the fire doesnt explode upward.

these horns are cut off? perhaps they were owned by a bladesmith who got tagged in the jewels one too many times?

i have caught wind of a story that any traces of copper in a fire will make forge welding difficult if not impossible. is there any truth to this? Or can copper and iron be forged in the same fire without problems?

Say it with me... MUSHROOMED CHISEL AND PUNCH HANDLES! I'm the only one i know that keeps them clean! When they go, they GO!

agh! this is killing me! i would love to put my name down but i just dont know if i will have the money by then. i certainly cant come up with it soon. So i will stay off the pot and wish your students the best of luck this august. Thank you for making this course available, and so affordable. D

ok tom, not sure if we are entirely clear on terminology, when referring to the "heel" of a fork this area is the part that is in contact with the ground when the mast is fully collapsed and tilted slightly back towards the truck. a properly adjusted chain will hold the fork approximately 1/2" above the ground with the mast at rest and perfectly vertical; however as the chains wear and stretch, the forks tend to lower to the ground and drag along the floor, which wears the heel down. this is the most common reason for scrapping a fork as wear beyond 10% in this area begins to have a severe effect on its carrying capacity. if one wishes to cut a hardie hole this would be the place to do it, but as the rest of the work surface cantilevers beyond this point, it is potentially a weak area and cold cutting the hole with a water jet will create the strongest work surface. you are absolutely correct about ring; even a class IV fork like the one you have, if inverted, would IMO only have a practical maximum work surface of about a linear foot, with maybe another six inches for a horn, beyond that it will create a LOT of noise. im sure there are some who would scoff at the methods i am describing, choosing instead to pick up a torch, but i am confident that for those with access to the proper equipment the extra effort will result in a better anvil. Forks are made from heat treated 5160 steel and are VERY tough, using a water jet will give you full advantage of this strength. cheers

Thomas this needs to be said, i think you did a brilliant job on that fork, and in no way intended to down talk it. my comments are solely based on the typical supply of forks most smiths will encounter, and how they can get similar results with forks inferior to yours. i hope that buries the hatchet on that one. a hardie hole could be cut with a water jet to the correct taper, but using a laser cutter on that area of the fork will disrupt the temper and make it susceptible to bending. this holds true for cutting the horn as well, but disrupting the temper here will allow you to shape the horn more easily and make it bend from abuse rather than snap. the heel needs to be as strong as possible especially since a scrapped fork will be worn thin in this area. D

dan, what do you suppose the fifth foot was for?

holy SMOKES that is a tempting offer. Great price! those seats wont last long, unfortunately i cannot plan this early. Keep us all updated, i will be watching with interest.

as a forklift mechanic i can tell you that is a very unusual eye design for a fork. since the heel is still nice and thick i am assuming that it was scrapped due to being seized to the crossbar... but most eye type forks are rounded at the top and the eye itself is offset rearwards and welded to the fork before heat treating. preparing a fork in a similar manner and inverting it before welding to the tie plate will still give you plenty of flat surface to work, and if you have access to a laser cutter you can cut the heel with a large tooth that you can shape into a decent horn, but most forks will not have enough thickness to safely allow you to include a step. others have made anvil stands and such from forks, rthibeau's gallery shows an amusing variation. for a post anvil i would suggest using a class IV or higher fork; the typical class II/III do not have enough thickness in my opinion to take any serious pounding.

bill and valentin - outstanding. the following four pictures are the current sign i have, shaped like a thought bubble and salvaged from some old signalling equipment; a shot of the front of my building before i moved in, and some shots of the old galt knife plant. i intend to paint my signage on the front above the door in this style, extending all the way across, saying HOPE FORGE, HAMILTON, ONT. so take a look note: the bulk uploader rearranged the order of these pictures, not sure why. my shop is on the far right. great thread topic Glenn!

i wonder if such regulations are in place in canada. id better look!

Local scrap dealer price list (name withheld) eff. date Oct 29, 2007, cents/lb: Millberry copper, 293 (290-306) #1 copper wire/pipe, 268 (262-281) #2 copper, 255 (247-265) #3 copper, 240 (235-253) red brass, 200 (192-204) C metal, 185 (178-187) yellow brass, 175 (169-187) radiators, 160 (157-167) heater cores, 133 (128-136) batteries, 400 piecemeal or 012 lead, 50 (47-51) wheel weights, 30 (28-32) stainless, 95 (77-115) tungsten carbide, 350 die cast, 35 (23-30) irony die cast, 20 irony aluminum, 18 (5-25) old sheet aluminum, 47 (43-54) painted aluminum, 57 (53-64) cast aluminum, 54 (50-59) low copper (new) alum, 61 (55-67) extruded alum, 69 (61-75) extruded alum w/plas, 55 (50-59) alum turnings, 33 (21-41) copper alum rads, 137 (132-144) car rims, 69 (57-73) alum cans, 40 (28-45) aluminum rads, 55 (43-60) $/ton: 2' plate & structural, 175 (170-180) 3-4' plate & structural, 170 (165-175) o/s plate & structural, 115 (110-125) heavy melt steel, 155 (150-160) o/s steel (4' & over), 115 (110-120) o/s torching, 105 (95-110) cast iron (car), 165 (155-175) cast iron (4' & truck hubs), 155 (150-185) engine blocks, 125 (115-125) cars, complete (-$3 per tire left), 80 (75-85) prepared cars (remove tires, batt, gastank), 130 black tin, 135 white tin, 75 mixed tin, 115 old bushelling, 145 new bushelling (5' & under), 165 (155-185) new bushelling (5' & over), 155 rims, 155 turnings/tailings, 70 mix #1 (o/s mixed steel w/ e.m. & shocks), 85 mix #2 (o/s & short steel-no e.m. & shocks), 120 mix #3 (all short steel & engine blocks), 130 mix #4 (all short mixed w/cast), 155 all prices are in canadian funds. this dealer will not sell any scrap from their yard, you are not even allowed to pick something off the pile and weigh-out with it.

I did find a clip, i'll put it back on top of the pile. thanks frosty!

yes, the slim waist was what drew me to that conclusion, i missed the step. disregard please.

i guess us frenchies are out of luck!

ive already got a few forge pictures in the gallery, here's a good one of my work triangle, and the attached two are a couple i took last week for a curious lady friend things are spread out while i finish stripping the orange bus to tow it out to the scrapyard, thatll open up some more workspace for me! ive also got a great view of manhattan, and nice crossventilation in the summer when both overhead doors are open. this spring ill be tearing the plywood off the transom windows and repointing the panes for even more light. i love this place.

radioactive anvils! sounds collectible, do they glow in the dark? that could be useful...

Now I know this came up a few months ago somewhere but ive searched for 20 mins to no avail. I walked the railroad and picked up a bucketful of spikes and a tie plate i found off to the side, and im wondering what i can use this tie plate for? it's ridged on one side of the rail only with a raised crosshatch on the back and four spike holes. What could i do with this thing?

it appears to be a farriers pattern anvil. with a 2# hammer you should be fine on it, just dont wail too hard on the ends.

could you try again, bill? it appears you loaded a shortcut file, i cant open the picture itself. thanks

i dont see a NASH in there... matter of fact i have no idea how rare mine is or when it was made, what i do know is there is virtually no wear on it at all and below the nash logo there is three numbers, 1 1 9 and no other markings of any kind. ive looked up and down that thing for a serial number. if somebody knows more about it id love to hear about it, NASH sounds english to me... great site and thanks for sharing!