Frozenforge

I thought about that right after I put the 2nd one on! I must admit I am a slave to making things symetrical or if there are multiples of an item I have to force myself to stop trying to make them identical to each other. When I first finished the ear ring things I didnt like the fact that they were not the same size. After letting them sit for a few months when I looked at them again it didnt bother me at all! It does seem to be a common theme in the forum that alot of us are very critical of ourselves and what we make but everyone seems to turn that into motivation to learn and practice. Sadly a characteristic that seems to be slowly disappearing:(

Here are a couple of pictures "Clamping Tongs" Whatchamathingamabob earings? I keep meaning to try this again but.................

On my first try I used 12 quarters and made a set of "clamping tongs" 3/8 thick plates 3x3 with 5/16 stainless bolts in each corner to squeeze the stack together while heating and 1/4 round rod welded to 1 for a handle. A piece of paper at each end to keep the stack from sticking to the plates. I just washed the quarters with dawn then soaked them in vinegar and into the propane forge it went. I was watching it waiting to see the stack look "wet". I was just starting to pull it out when the stack kind of squished a little and the copper started to ooze out, oops maybe a little too long! I took it straight over to the press and while still in the clamp put a little more pressure on the stack. When I removed the clamp I was surprised that it had all stayed together. I started to work it into a small billet and let it get too cold and got some cracking on the edges but not too bad. Being my first attempt I played around with it trying some different things and in end I just formed what was left into a couple scroll shaped ear rings. I will try and get some posted. Are the old Eisenhower dollar coins the same cupro nickle composition? I havn't been to Vegas for 20 years do they still use them for the dollar slots?

I totally agree on the organized shop! When I was younger and my friends and I were always working on our cars I really disliked working over at my buddies house. Between his dad, brother and himself all working on vehicles and projects trying to find a 1/2 or 9/16 wrench or socket was almost impossible cause nobody cleaned up at the end of the day. When they did spring cleanings and put all the tools away there were 3 or 4 sets of wrenches and sockets available for a few days or weeks. When I start a bigger project I have a folding 3x5 table I set up as a work station to put all the high use tools and keep them next to your work. I really really hate losing, misplacing tools so if I dont use the table I end up wasting time walking back and forth to the tool box. My mig welder I bought in 1991 or 92 and still works flawlessly today has paid for itself tenfold. I have made quite a few trailers for people and had them buy me a specific tool for payment for the labor. The first trailer got me a chopsaw, 2nd a bench grinder ect....ect. It always seems like you can do better when no actual cash changes hands!

Hmmmm, I think being an old sissy is better than a dead macho man!

I've never played with forging cable but have swaged fittings and spliced. If you had two identical cables say 3/4 7x19 one in stainless and one regular you could unwind the two cables and mix the two different alloys. Big question which I have not researched is will stainless forge weld to the other alloy? Might be a simple way of getting some better contrast.

You can also make it with more commonly available hydrochloric acid, steel wool and hydrogen peroxide. The even more common muratic acid and scale sounds the easiest though. Hydrochloric acid is the chemical name of Muriatic acid, they are the same thing.

Nice video, usually the videos I have seen the hot metal is too bright for the camera to compensate for so you cant see the liquidious state. I think the real secret is the way you start the weld using your left hand to hammer then switch to the right hand! Im not even sure if i could hit the anvil with the hammer in my left hand! :)

More that the risk of taking out the temper by repairing the edges wouldnt be worth it with edges that are not that bad. The heel would be worthy of repair. The only reason I recommended possibly waiting was for you to figure out how much you really needed and used that part of the anvil verses the effort and cost of materials to perform the repair. For this repair the buildup of different alloys is very important and finding these for a wirefeed can be difficult and very expensive. The last time I inquired about a spool of hardfacing wire it was only available in 10lb for over $150. You will probably need a minimum 250 amp welder for this as well. If you put your location in your profile you might find someone close by that could provide assistance. We always love pictures so if you do the repair take pictures!

I wouldnt try to repair the edges. Obviously they are not like new but are in far better than average condition for an old anvil and now you will start to effect the hardness in the main body of the anvil where the heavy work is done. Search in the forum regarding edge repairs and you will find that the general concensus is to work with what you have. Radius the worst area for a nice rounded working edge and if you need the sharp 90 edge make a hardie tool for it. Its your anvil you can repair and use it anyway you want and your doing the right thing by researching and asking questions.I think most on the forum just dont want to see a nice PW get messed up from lack of knowledge or skill

The article you are looking at regarding anvil repairs pretty much sums up the repair process. The big question is how much do you actually use the hardie and pritchel holes and would it be too inconvenient to use the Vulcan vs the risk of causing damage to the PW. I would work with the PW as it is cause it looks to be in great shape other than the missing section of plate.

When using structural adhesives between 2 smooth surfaces you need to prep both surfaces but also use a scrim cloth between the surfaces. The scrim cloth is basically there to keep the 2 surfaces slightly apart when clamped so that all of the epoxy isnt squeezed out.

Most modern aircraft built within last 40 years or so use aluminum alloy 2024T3 for most areas and 7075 for areas where higher strength is needed. This is the modern version of Duralumin. Parts with compound curves and complicated shapes are initially shaped in 2024-O which is very soft and formable. It is then heat treated to 2024T42. I always laugh when the ads on tv brag about something being made of Aircraft Grade Aluminum! All I can think is "Oh great it will crack and corrode". One of the biggest concerns in the aviation industry is aging aircraft due to the limitations of aluminum.

Glad to see your keeping busy, take some pictures of this build! If you have time!!

Look into anodizing as Frosty said. It can be done on a small scale in a garage or shop. Different chemicals used in the process result in different colors.

With the price of gold these days I dont go near any gold mine without being invited or knowing the owner!

I wonder if there are even 200 anvils in the whole state of Ak? Let alone being for sale.

According to the Alaska Earthquake Center in the past 22 hrs we have had 61 earthquakes that were registered on seismic transducers! They were all probably not felt by anyone. It would be interesting to know how many of these very small earthquakes happen in a non seismic active area.

We had another little rumble last night 4.9 they refered to it as a readjustment. Its that time of year where everyone is busy winterizing their stuff and getting ready for the possibility of snow. Its also hunting season so lots of moose being processed. We get more upset about traffic jams on the hiway! It is all relative to what your accustomed to in your daily life.

Nothing other than a few things fell over in the medicine cabinet and a few pictures on the dresser. It got everyones attention but wasn't as dramatic as the news makes it out to be.

Could be a Wilkinson maybe. The shape of the bottom of the horn is similiar. Do mouseholes have that same shape as well. Never personally seen a mousehole anvil yet up here in AK. Clean off the sides and look for writing or numbers. There are lots of threads regarding cleaning anvils.

Way cool, I sent you a PM

I made my scleroscope using a 1/2" ball bearing and some 1" rigid clear plastic aquarium tubing. I made it 20in long and marked it every 2". Make sure the bottom cut is perpendicular. You just hold the bottom against the anvil face drop the bearing into the top and see how high it bounces, each mark is 10% With this your not chasing the bearing across the floor and can examine specific areas on the face. I can usually see a change in rebound from the center vs the edges and vs the heel. I know its total overkill but gotta do something over the long winter when its too cold outside. Everybody always says a 1" ball bearing but I dont know any reason why a smaller one wouldn't work

A good example of make it work attitude in blacksmithing! If the straps were heated with the rivets the shrinkage when everything cooled would make it very tight. The look is really cool, A steampunk anvil!

Oops long day. Try 1894 for either of those s/n. should still be constructed the same way. We all like pictures!