GVR-4579

Looks great, i love it.

While you plan your first pair of tongs, you might benefit by having a pair of tongs to work with. Before I fabricated my first pair of tongs, I made a pair from an old rusty horse hoof trimming/pincher/nipper, or whatever farrier call the tool. I just threw it into the heat and fashioned it into a nice pair of flat tongs. I did the same for a quick pair of bolt tongs.

I've made three pairs from the old nippers over twenty years ago, yet I always have an eye open for another rusty/busted up pair that can be had for a dollar or three. The resulting tongs might be on the short side (14" to 16" or so) but they will serve you well until you make something better.

Just an idea.

I have an old chicken waterer top and just set that right down on the fire and bank up around it. The fire is suffocated in about 1 min. Then wile i am waiting i sweep the whole shop and put everything away.

Looks like a good idea, i have only made the hoof picks out of horseshoes.

I used a chainsaw once to do some large scale woodwork, i also have a special disk for the 4" angle grinder that has a chainsaw blade around it for doing that kind of stuff as well. Sounds like you have something that works good as well.

I feel like I am out of fashion here, I just have a plain old dull black helmet!, LOL
Finnr

This is my welding helmet i stold the picture from the manufacturer's website since my camera batteries are dead.

So how exactly did you bring the hammer back from china after it plowed its way down there? LOL I had to move my whole machine shop a few months ago, the only thing i had to drag was my large lathe but i could still get the light end of it up so it didnt plow in.

Looks like you getting alot better as you go. All you really need for the anvil is a stump and use a few spikes to hold it on if you want, thats what i use!

My grandfather knows people in the RR buisness so they are free for me, see if you can find a RR rep around you they are bound to have scrap you can use.

When I am not banging and welding I like to fly model airplanes which coincidently use alot of balsa tri stock. Too bad we can't buy ready made steel tri stock...

I have a trip hammer, but its not installed yet! LOL

Ive had a piece taken out of my eye as well. I was wearing safety glasses and all as well. The only thing different is that mine was a cold piece, and the eye doctor told me that in her experience, its usually easier for her to get stuff out that has been there a day or two.

Sounds like its working good for you. The only reason i asked about the grate is i didnt know if your coal would fall through it.

That is a great start, I cant tell from the pictures how big those openings are in the bottom of your firepot. They look like they may be a bit large to me. Let us know how it works for you!

you could always make two of the legs a little taller or shorter, kindof like a drafting table:D

I was even thinking about using a piece of steel right on the forge for an anvil if i was loosing too much heat between the forge and the anvil. That would take some small stuff tho.

Hmm havent been looking for a color change in the flame. I just watch for the good yellow color and that i can see the flux nice and liquidized on the surface. Ill have to try observing that as well. The flux i am using is something a friend of my dads brought us back from some blacksmithing school. I dont know exactly what is in it.

Well my last two attempts have been sucessful welds in the forge. they are just a couple chain links, but man is it nice for it to work finally. I think I was not heating enough of the metal so it was trying to spring back some, and also i might have been hitting it too hard trying to smash it together in one heat and make it stick instead of letting it stick on its own over a few heats.

Anyways just wanted to share the sucess so far, hopefully it keeps going in that direction!

Anywho - I'm off to the scrap yard to find more stuff to ruin.

Here are some pictures of the ball joint. You can see how i made it in one of the pictures because i didnt make the socket part large enough to cover the whole ball, it made the joint a little more interesting to play with tho. Anyways that was just a rough attempt to see how it would go.

I also tried making the socket by upsetting the end of a rod and driving a punch in the end. I didnt have much luck with that method altho it would be much stronger if possible to do.

Any ideas on how to make it better or easier are appreciated for future use if i need or want to male one again. It was more of a i wonder if i can create one than an i need one creation.

I live on a farm so as soon as i was somewhat helpful dad gave me some metal, rods, and a few pointers and said have at it. There is never a shortage of scrap to practice welding on around the farm. Then after we got the TIG welder i just did some research and went at it myself.

Looks like a good bunch of tools to start with or to add on.

I was out playing in the forge tonight and made a few things. I made myself a 6" eye on the end of a 1/2" bar with no joint, just split and spread out. I also made a chain link and finally got a forge weld to take!!! Im pretty excited about that one. Finally I decided to challenge myself and make a ball joint. It could have been better than it came out but for a first try it is great. It works and everything. Its quite crude but ill get a picture up tomorrow or so.

So i was wondering has anyone else ever made a ball joint in the forge?

I also made a hardy cone on my lathe from 2" Oil hardening steel that tapers to 1/2"

Neat idea, never saw one of those before. I like it