henerythe8th

A word or three should be mentioned regarding the choice of the handle as well. A quality handle will have tight grain that runs in the direction of the strike, especially important for long handled tools eg. shovels, axes, sledges. It seems that the "manufacturers" of wooden handles have strayed from quality for a while... Take a look at the handles that you find in the store and you'll see what I mean. Henry

ksb, I'd sure like to join you in FL, but I'm almost as far away as I could get and still be in the states. I am in WA... Henry

Check out Ron Reils page(s) regarding aspirated propane forges. I think that they are now being managed by ABANA, due to some health prob's that Ron is facing. There is a lot of good info there. I recently built a small propane forge with a single burner, but I need to decrease the volume or increase the number of burners to be able to get to forge heat. I believe (don't quote me) that Ron's guideline is something like 1 "normal size" burner for every 300 cubic inches of space inside the forge, that would be the open space. He also recommends using plenty of insulation ie. kaowool and the use of ITC 100 which is a refractory coating product that you can put on your kaowool. The propane forge that I am working on is made from a discarded propane bottle that I picked up from the scrapyard. I hesitate in even mentioning that because of the inherent DANGER in cutting one up/open. This one had the valve removed for a loooong time and was filled with water for quite a long time, too. I then left it full and cut it open with the plasma torch, though it still made me nervous... There were no flames, or poofs, but DO NOT try to cut open containers which previously held flammables without thoroughly weighing your options! Anyway, this propane cylinder was the next bigger one up from the standard BBQ sized bottle. It has one TRex hybrid burner installed. See http://www.hybridburners.com/ Currently has a single layer of "normal" fire brick in the bottom with another layer of "half brick" on top of that, as well as a single layer of kaowool. I was getting ready to coat with ITC 100, but I think that I am going to reduce the volume of the forge and better the insulation with another layer of kawool, first. Once I get it "tuned in" a bit better, I'll send some photos. Henry

Hey Tom, Do you have any more info or links, etc. I went to the MEN web site and tried to search for it, but found a lot of info on solar cookers, etc. which are all VERY COOL (or hot) depending on how you want to look at it... ...but I couldn't find anything regarding a solar forge, etc. Henry

Howdy Will, I had never heard of one, nor seen one, before I got a mailer from the New England School of Metalwork. See http://www.newenglandschoolofmetalwork.com/workshopguest.htm There is a single good picture of one there. A web search turned up several other photos, but no plans or much other info. I did find some other info related to other types of mechanical hammers. This tire hammer sure looks like a pretty good way to go. I especially like the simplicity of the drive mechanism (a pivoting motor with a pulley that direct drives the tire). Most of this looks like it could be "duplicated" pretty easily from the photo(s), the details of the portion of the mechanism with the spring are the part that concerns me the most. I suppose that with a bit of study of one of the Little Giant mechanisms, that it could be accomplished. I am very interested in building one of these, if you find more info, pass it on! I'll do the same. Henry

Hey Bill, That sounds like a grand idea, I have a post vice that needs mounting and would like to see what folks have to offer, too. Hthe8th

Dennis, Those both look like fine knives, I particularly like the second one with the curved blade, nice proportions. The rounded handle looks like it would fit the hand. What are the dimensions? Hthe8th

Good Morning Strine, I also like the fact that there is a lot to learn from the folks that post here. It appears that I may have offended you, that was definitely KNOT my intent! The real point of my post was that sometimes there's more than one way to tie a knot, and that it might be easier to do with one of the alternate techniques. For instance, I rarely ever tie a bowline with the "rabbit went around the tree" method, I almost always pass the running end of the line through a slip loop and pull it over... Have a wonerful day, Henry

Strine, I have no idea, and you apparently don't want to divulge, what your purpose for this knot is. If you want to make this know because you like the look of it great, many times there are several different knots available that are capable of the same purpose (if you are purpose driven and NOT driven by THAT knot). Did you know how to tie that knot before this quest? Do you know someone else that knew how to tie the knot in a rope without looking at the diagram? Here's where I am going... I used to be a Survival Instructor and we like knots. However, a diagram is not the best way to learn to tie a knot. If the resource is availabe have someone show you how to tie it. For instance, it appears that your lanyard knot is a more complex version of the butterfly knot. See http://www.iland.net/~jbritton/butterflyknot.htm I could show you a much easier way to tie the butterfly knot than this by wrapping the line around your hand and performing a "pinch, tuck, and dress" to finish it up...

...soon, then this dirt floor is going to be a mud floor and I'll be wishin' that I had put gravel or concrete on it. I don't like workin' in waders, so I'd better stop bein' sidetracked for a spell and get this job done, cuz there's other work to do. I really have to get that...

...froe, seein's mine can't be located and that darned hole in the roofs lettin' the rain right in...

I need to work on the "third hand" that I have in my head, clean it up, fill it with sand and get busy!

Got a drill press? You can "turn" yourself a simple handle for now using it like a vertical lathe, I made a handle for my Champion blower that way. Granted it's not as smooth as one turned on a lathe, but it provides good grip!

Sorry about the lost image ^^^^ up there. I organized my photobucket accound and it broke the link... Here is that image again. I finally got a chance to work on my anvil stand last night and made pretty good progress. My anvil is just sitting on the top of it at the moment, I'll get sand today and shake it in tonight. If my calculations are correct it will take about 250# of sand to fill it up. I'll post more photos as it progresses... Henerythe8th

Here is the bit that I know, if what I remember is accurate, regarding glass (for use in a woodstove). "Normal" heat resistant glass is tempered. Once the glass is tempered it can NOT be cut. The glass must be tempered in its final size. Which means that you should probably build the screen once you have the glass "in hand". There is another product which is not really glass, if memory serves correctly it is called neoceram (which may be a trade name and there may OR may not be other similar products). Most any glass shop can get you tempered glass in whatever size you want, but you'll have to wait for it, probably not very long though. I found several glass outfits that also sold the "neoceram" and many keep it in stock because it can be cut, ground, shaped, etc. and doesn't require tempering. It was several times the cost of glass, but the glass was cheap so the neo ceram wasn't too bad. A side note-- --you should probably take into account in your design the thermal expansion differences in the steel (I assume) and the "glass" and make some means for the glass to "float" in the frame. my two cents, Henerythe8th

A bit late for the first load, but you'll dirty them all up again... One of the probs with the bucket idea will likely be getting the soap rinsed out well enough. Where do the local mechanics get their shop towels laundered? Their "guy" would likely be happy to take a 5 spot, and/or perhaps, a half rack of their fave beverage off your hands in trade! How about a dedicated washing machine? I don't know about your area, but where I am at you can find a "non-working" machine for free on a regular basis. Usually, what makes these machines non-working is a bad timer, which may actually be better for washing rags. You could then manually advance the timer and therefore leave them in the wash and rinse cycles a good long time... If these rags are really greasy then it would probably be best to discharge the water through a bucket of fine sand to be disposed of appropriately... Henry

To begin with, I am a lot farther away than 100 miles... Are you looking for someone to cut out a rooster or to build a weathervane? If you need a rooster silhouette to attach to a weathervane of your creation, I could probably plasma cut one and ship it if that helps... Let me know... Henerythe8th

Actually... I am talking about something like this... I figured that I could easily weld tool holders to the steel box, and maybe even a simple "third hand" that I have an idea for... Yes, Nolano, I bought a Nimba they are impressive...

I've been working on getting some tools and a forge together for, well, too long now. Trying to get a respectable spot in the shop set up for doing some work. Ended up buying a new anvil because the search for a used one was taking too much time... I was thinking about welding up a rectangular box with a bottom and tamping full of sand, placing a piece of plate directly on the sand with the base of the anvil slightly below the tops of the box walls. Has anyone used this method before, does it sound like "a worker"? Any better suggestions? BTW--I am on a concrete floor, so it is with difficulty that I bury the end of anything in my workspace... henerythe8th

Actually, after searching for months for a decent used anvil in the 200# range in my area (they're scarce out here) I bought a new Nimba forge Gladiator (260# & $$$) so I think that I won't be parting with this anvil til after they haul my carcass off to the incinerator--hopefully a long time from now. Hopefully, I won't be the one selling this anvil....

HWool, Apparently, there are MANY people (if dirtbags qualify as people) that are attempting to pose both as ebay and paypal. I have never rec'd a legitimate email from either of them that asks for any type of information. Both paypal and ebay request that you forward those messages to spoof@ebay.com or spoof@paypal.com, respectively. Whether or not they actually do anything with them is another story...

This may sound like a dumb question, but I'd hate to do something stupid and have not asked the question... I want to make some hardie tools, one of the first I'd like to make is a fork for holding hot, thin stock. If I take some, say 1/2 inch round bar, heat, double over, beat to remove space between u-bend, reheat and get a good start on the square (on the anvil face), can I drive the reheated tool into the hardie hole to get it to fit "just right" without fear of harming the anvil?