MOblacksmith0530

4dead If you can get an old transmission internal ring gear they make great bark texture tools. cut a couple pieces about 3 inches long from the gear and open the up to about a 14 inch radius, Take a file and change the profile of some of the teeth unevenly across the gear and then weld it to a piece of 14 by 1-1.4 and bend into the shape of a "U". Heat your piece and as your running it through the tool while turning strike the top and viola you have bark pattern.

Yup you did good. Looks like new. My 125 lb farrier anvil was 400 new. Looks to be about the same size.

I find that cold rolled is a little more difficult to work until you have heated it enough to take out the work hardening from the cold rolling process. This can take more than one heat. I have also found it to be difficult to forge weld due to the refined grain from the cold rolling process. This seems to go away after normalizing for the most part. And with the cost being significantly higher I try to use it as little as possible.

If I remember correctly the rods I used over here are Stoody 1105 and 2110. One was te buildup and one the hardface. The buildup checks a bit but works fine when welded over with the hard face. I did a few anvils with it before it was used up. A couple were pretty extensive and some only spot fixes. Always pre-heat and post heat.

99 Ihave made quite a few brooch's myself over the years. It will work better with the ends cosed as you said, I make my fancy ones with a leaf on one end folded back and a little scrol like yours on the other end. As to the corkscrew i wrap it around a taper about 19mm log that is about 2mm on the small end and 6 or 7mm on the large end. Then I use my scrolling tongs to pull it out to the length I need, and turn the end to point almost straight out for a couple mm. I have been making them out of coil springs and use them as forged.

Nice looking tools Stewart. I have to ask where you get the handles for the draw knives. I can make them but if I could find a source it would make them cheaper

I like the bottle opener and will be making a version of it. I also like the penanular brooch.

I use pencil and paper, I start with concept rough sketches for ideas for the client. That may even be after the first meeting when I see the site and see what their interests are. Then scale drawings with the detail and discuss with the client again. If we have a meeting of the minds (and pocket books) then we go, I have offered to do full size drawings a couple of times when I was sure they would bite but it was never necessary. Then I go to the shop and make full size drawings. Often on the work table or floor. I seldom have more than one large(ish) item in the shop at a time. I have bought a cad program or two but found them too difficult to use, hand drawing was much faster for me.

Nice, looks to be about 10 feet long from the pics:) The pics were large Seriously though I like the look of the item looks like a branch and has real clean lines. The candle drip cups have a curious shape that I like. Did you cut the edges to that shape? I also like the fuller work to give them shape and more depth.

Good steel. It depends on how hard you want to work to trade sell them I guess. That big breaker bit at the top can be used to make a wicked raising/ planishing hammer. Cut it off right to the left of that shoulder, slit and drift a hole for a handle and then radius the shoulder end for a planishing face and put whatever size/shape raising end you want and there you go. I made one about 10 years ago and used it as forged and normalized and it has held up amazingly well.

Any time. I enjoyed it too.

I thank you Brian, I have forged many pairs of tongs over the years and I learned a couple of new things watching your video. I like the way you forge down the reins and the octagon sides. I will be adding that to my repertoire. I also like the way you squared the boss area I have been working too hard on that and your method is easier.

Thanks Slowpoke, Too late, spent the day at 01Tundra's place we had a good time.

Yup I agree where's the rest of it?

Bigger is better, for the reasons stated above and as long as the face isn't delaminating (doesn't look like it is from the pics) then get the bigger one.

Francis, I guess it is what you like. And what works for you.

Ha whats a Kodak hahahaha..... grumble grumble danged punks don't know nothin........

Haven't tried it with 15n20 but have welded it to mild and tool steels many times. take care to follow the leads above in managing your fire and heat they are dead on.

For me I like wood. The fiberglass feels wrong to me and I don't like the way it feels on rebound. Hickory or ash is what I use and I buy my handles locally and haven't really had any issue finding them. I live in Missouri which is known for its hardwood so it is not a fair comparison for other areas of the country. I have had some hammers over the years that have had either metal of fiberglass and I still have a couple of framing hammers that have metal with rubber grips. I find I get tired faster using them than I do using wood, not sure why though. It is surely a preference thing. Maybe if you start off using fiberglass you will always like it.

I like the grub screw idea. I will start doing that on all my punches. hack most are round so I will just chuck in in the lathe and turn a groove. As to the s7. I forge it close and grind it to finished size. WARNING s7 will crack if not annealed after forging. Forge it to shape and reheat and put in wood ash or vermiculite overnight. grind it to shape and weld it an re anneal it. Once you get it annealed use a torch to heat the working end up to critical and let air cool. I only use s7 for tools that are going to take a lot of abuse on hot metal and will be in hot metal long enough to ruin the heat treat on regular steel. I use sucker rod for a lot of tools and heat threat as medium carbon steels and they hold up well. I have welded some ball bearings onto some tool holders for decorative effect, and have used them as welded on cold mild steel with no detrimental effects.

That is a horribly ugly anvil and you shouldn't have it in your shop ship it to me and I will hide it for you..... Seriously though I don't know what it is but it resembles english pattern anvils and I know that is no help.

Those are way to purty, They need use! Nice stands though. I do mine out of 2" square tube or 2 by 4 square tube cause I got a bunch in scrap a few years ago. The good heavy bases are a delight to use as I am sure you are aware.

I have found myself with a day to kill north of Nashville near the KY border on interstate 24 on the Sunday 30th of this month. Any smiths out there going to be around Sunday afternoon who wouldn't mind a little company? PM me with an address if you want some company.

Ha! Francis I had to laugh, I use mine that way all the time and it hadn't even occurred to me that I did. I also use it to hold pieces when I am forging a bunch of the same thing I can lay them on it and keep count. O have one that basically sits dead center in front of the forge evenly spaced between the two shop anvils.

I like the hammer and I have several punches I used origionally under a tire hamer and how have a 50 lb little giant in the same place. If I could make one critique of your punch I would say to make it larger so that the cutting edge is not wider than the stock behind it. I made one like that a few yeas ago and all was going well until I gave it a hit while it was not straight in the hole I was making and the metal closed up behind the cutting edge and I almost didn't get it back out. That was under the power hammer and one hit can really get it stuck. If it is wider behind the cutting edge the metal can't close up behind it.