a62rambler

Phil, As to the new handles. The Nordic handle feels fine in my hand. Maybe after some use, I'll change it. The Hofi style/Czech I've sanded the sharp edges of the bottom angles. I've melted the edges as we say in the gun world. It feels good now but could be a little wider. The larger two ball peins have barely large enough handles and all are actually 5 years old or so and well used. The three smaller ball peins have too small of handles and I'd like to replace them but I don't have any hickory now and red oak is just too hard on sandpaper for me to work with. The cherry I have is entirely too nice for hammer handle material. I can't seem to find a source for cheap handles or suitable wood for making my own. That's why the handles still have the labels. They are too small to sand unless somebody knows a way to sand them larger. Those stupid safety lables are on there to stay. For cheap hammers they must have used an expensive glue to afix those ugly labels. I hate those idiot safety labels. If you need to be told to wear safety glasses and that hammers can cause injury, you shouldn't be allowed out without supervision! :rolleyes:

Check yardsales for old tents. Most are fire retardent material. Also, check out army surplus stores for old tents or shelter halfs. You might ask as they could have some with rips or holes they'd sell real cheap since you just need the material. I was going to make a great bellows until I lucked into a blower and that was my plan.

That is one of the funnier things I've read. :D

I haven't had TV in my home for many years and seeing commercials reminds me why. That and "reality TV" which has to be the ultimate oxymoron which many people think is reality. Macbruce makes a good point though so perhaps all is not lost. I joined the Army not because of ads but because I met and got to know Veterans. I became faithful not because of a commercial but because I met people who had faith. I want to learn to forge iron not because of this site but because I enjoy working with steel and have met through this site some good people who have encouraged me.

Your welcome. There's enough info on this site to keep you reading for months. I let you know how many months when I finish reading all the information. :D

Funny we are all sitting at computers, on the internet, talking about how expensive a hobby is. My computer cost me $1200 to build and I've had to rebuild it a couple times so you can add about the same amount again. The internet service costs about $50 a month and then there's the electricity costs. Plus I bet nobody is standing while typing so there's the cost of the chair and the desk the computer sits on. Yeah, forging metal costs money but what doesn't? I haven't yet invested as much in forging as I have invested to be able to learn about it on the net and I bought a new anvil that I'm waiting for. :D

I'm not yet started but I did remember a post in the solid fuel forge section. See the fourth response from someone who knows more than you or me. http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/26659-blower-recommendation-for-55-forge/ Hope that helps!

I'm really bored waiting for my anvil and I kept looking at my hammers and thinking... They could look better. So... I cleaned them up and threw a little bluing on the ones that needed it.

I thought it was a four pounder but it has a 3 on the underside and is slightly smaller than the 3.3 lb Nordic. So, I guess I'm going to have to weigh it. My memory says I bought a four pound sledge. Of course, my memory also says I used to be handsome, faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive and able to leap tall buildings with a single bound. I guess I've become so skeptical of late that I don't even trust my memory. :D

Brian and Dan, If you can't agree on this I would be happy to assist. Brian, you can send me a 2 lb rounding hammer and Dan you can send me a 2 lb cats head and I'll test both and send them back after I finish a thorough test of them. ;)

It's back. He didn't get any bids so he raised the price. http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-59LB-ANVIL-/261005892083?_trksid=p4340.m444&_trkparms=algo%3DCRX%26its%3DC%252BS%26itu%3DSI%252BUA%252BLM%252BLA%26otn%3D5%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D7811384973563851006

A quick bit of research and it does all seem legit to me. http://www.christs-hospital.org.uk/school-department-archaeology.php You can always make a new email addy at one of the free email sites such as gmail for when you are in doubt. I use one for all forums for protection and never give out my primary email address. Catherine, Sorry I can't help. You already know more than I. Good luck and let us know what you learn from this. Many of us in the US have become quite cynical due to all the scams on the net. I hope you can understand that and will not hold it against us. We really don't deserve the "ugly American" title you may learn about. I visited Aldershot and Hythe-Lydd long before you were born and found the country quite beautiful. I hope others can help you!

I had a really embarrassing thought. If he can hold small things up to 1", then why not simply weld a piece of mild onto whatever he needs to work on. Start small. Then he only has to grasp the suitably sized mild to turn whatever piece he is working on. He can either use a welder or become adept at forge welding. Maybe I should have considered Occums Razor as the guiding principle and suggested this simple solution first. Then, it can be tweaked with any of the excellent suggestions that others more experienced and intelligent than I have suggested. I hope you keep us informed as to what occurs. Having spent the last two years having people tell me I couldn't ride a bicycle and couldn't ride a motorcycle without adaptation and then having to prove those people wrong, I am determined to assist this gentelman if he has a desire. I would also suggest tough love. Tell him if he wants to learn to forge steel to get over his limitations and learn to forge! He has to adapt to forging. Forging isn't going to adapt to him. Two months after getting my temporary leg, I took work doing roofing and siding. When I went to see my surgeon at six months he said I could go back to light work as a correctional officer. When I told him I had been working for 4 months in roofing, he said that he didn't tell me I could start working. I replied that he also didn't tell me I couldn't! Life isn't safe and it isn't fair! The only regrets in life are from the chances we didn't take! If he is willing to take a chance and you are willing to assist, he will either succeed or fail on his own courage and desire. Who knows I might end up taking a class from him someday!

1. I think you'll find that your legs will end up burning before you develop too many rpms and again it wont be from heat. :D I would suggest you convince your significant other it would be a great way for them to get exercise. When you recover from the inuries from suggesting your sig. other needs to lose weight call that friend that will do anything for a beer or two and use him instead. 2. Buy more beer and get that friend to cutting wood and teach him how to make it into charcoal. Total cost of a forging session - a twelve pack. Getting to forge iron - priceless. :D

I've worked out how to do it using standard tongs and using only my palm and the web of my hand between the base of my thumb and palm. It will require slightly longer tongs and may require adjustment to the ends for square stock but allows a quick twist of 90 degrees. I'm simply bracing one side of the tong against my hip and using my palm to hold pressure. I hold the tongs at a 45 degree angle instead of 90 degree. Harder to explain than to do. If I had a video camera I'd make a video and show you. Right hand brings tongs and metal to anvil then I switch and pound away. I release the metal and switch the tongs back to right hand to return it to the fire. No big deal and no alteration except for changing the tongs slitghtly for holding square stock. Much ado about nothing! Get him forging metal! Note too that I'm not even forging myself as I haven't gotten my anvil, so if a newbie can figure out how to do it... You better report back that you can teach him!(just a friendly jab to get you motivated) Oh and John McP, too funny. I'm going to have to get somebody to take a picture of me standing on one leg and pounding on my peg leg! LOL More sick humor... As you age you get shorter. It's true! Two years ago I lost a foot. I was going to sue the army for losing my leg but the judge threw the case out. He said I didn't have a leg to stand on! I tried out for the NBA but didn't make it. They said I was a foot short.

Thanks HW, that answers my question. So obvious I should have figured that out just looking at the various blowers.

Thanks Phil! I should have thought of that.

Is he by chance a veteran. If he is he can get a prosthetic built specifically for blacksmithing from the VA. If not he can purchase a prosthetic. A good prosthetist is second only to a blacksmith in their resourcefulness in building items to suit the task. I am a right BK (below knee) amputee myself. Also, let him decide how to adapt. Most people don't know I even have a prosthetic leg until I tell them. I ride a motorcycle as my only source of transportation and have no special adaptation to the bike. I don't let a little thing like a missing foot and ankle slow me down at all! Edited to add this: Contact a prosthetist and get suggestions from him. You might find them willing to work with you to assist your student. They can also do a much better job of suggesting a solution to the problem. No offense but often well meaning people put more limitations on us amputees than actually exist!

I know that a 12" round pipe or a 10" square pipe is what I need. If I put two 6" round would it work as well as a single 12"? That would be easier for me to do since 6" and 8" pipe is available locally but 12" non galvanized would have to be ordered.

Thanks, I was way off then. Next question. Does it matter which way the blower is turned?

I bought a Champion No. 4 blower. It is powered by a belt. I am curious as to what ratio I should have between my turning pulley and the one on the blower. I'm guessing 10 to 1 so that one turn of the crank gets 10 turns of the blower. Can anyone tell me if that is correct based on other champion blowers?

I made one out of a rubbermaid tub that was 40" x 24" x 30". I planned to just use it for a couple of quick jobs as I knew it wouldn't last. Turns out the thin walled plastic has held up to repeated use. It gives with the blast and hasn't abraided at all. I use aluminum oxide blasting medea in the 100 grit range. Bought a Harbor Freight blaster that had been returned. Total investment is less than $50.

Just for the record, my comment was regarding picture 13 where that very large sledge does seem to have a short handle. I was simply joking that it was used one handed to forge. Hence the smiley. How much does that one weigh anyway? I thought the joke would be obvious because of the size of the sledge. I guess I should have clarified that I was talking about that and not the video. Being new I don't know which is of Lyle and which is of Daniel. I do know Mr. Brazeal by sight and would love to actually get a chance to take several classes or better yet spend a couple of years learning from him. Hope I did not offend anyone!

Well, Mr. Powers, you obviously are out of touch with today's world. Everyone knows that in todays modern society it is never the student's lack of experience it is always the lack of a fancy hammer. ;) So I guess by saying that you can't just buy a master hammer and instantly become a master, you don't understand advertising. :D Matto, What I call a German short is actually a nodic hammer and the most expensive I bought. I knew I'd at least not hate it since I've used that style for other things in the past. In the picture that hammer weighs slightly more than the yellow handled sledge. But when you pick them up the sledge feels heavier and awkward. The head dimensions are very close to the same and the only thing I can figure is that the handle makes it feel awkward even when you grip them at the same length from the head. I'm going to try a wooden handle I can shape and see if that fixes it. If not it will be going into the box of hammers to be used for non forge work.

I needed a job and took a job installing satellite. I had to use my own truck and needed a ladder rack. A ladder rack cost more than I had left on my credit card. A mig welder and the steel left me about a dollar left on the card. The welder came with a book on welding. I cut out the pieces needed for the rack and had enough left to build a welding cart. I read the book and built the welding cart so I could make a ladder rack. This was all done in one weekend. I still don't claim to know how to weld but I've been doing it for 4 years and actually manage to make a few pretty welds sometimes. My welds hold they just don't always look very nice. Some day I want to take a class. A desire to eat taught me to weld and I think that is sometimes the best teacher. I have to say though that I enjoy welding even though I don't know what I'm doing. It's nice to be able to fix or build what I need instead of having to buy whatever is available.