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jmccustomknives

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Everything posted by jmccustomknives

  1. If your doing the same thing everyone else does then that's going to happen. Pricing, style and market all have effects. Etsy isn't as bad as ebay about penny pinching but your not going to hit the home run either. Art pieces have the hardest time standing out, even if it's very nice. Your always going to get the most from commissioned pieces. That's my goal, to get the commissioned work. That stems from the "Hey, I saw you made that, can you do this for me?" yes sir, $
  2. $65 is about average to have a regulator rebuilt. We don't even keep the parts anymore for liabilty reasons. All it takes is some goober to use some of that n o oil and blow himself up. Yes, I actually had a guy as for some N O oil. 'cause the regulator says "USE NO OIL" on it. Some mom and pop supplies might rebuild in house, but most are outsourcing due to liability reasons.
  3. Idk about that. In my experience weld temps, hardening, temper and final polish have much to say about how cable turns out. If a cable is welded at the upper end of the temps you'll get a larger decarb zone. If the blade isn't properly hardened or over tempered the pattern will "muddy" up. The temperature of the ferric chloride and etch time also have a big effect. I'll see the best etching done when the FC is over 90 deg, or basically a normal day in 'bama. Generally, if the blade is properly hardened the lines will usually black out. Like I said before, there's a lot of other variables that effect the final outcome. I haven't tried the coffee grounds yet though.
  4. Coke? Get a bag of "lump" charcoal and start it like you would bbq. Once it establishes then start the blower and pile on the coke. Mix some charcoal in if you plan on turning things on and off. It will help keep the fire going. Coke is hard to start and needs constant airflow, and a lot of it, to keep going.
  5. Stay far away from that cable. That's a sure sign of galvanization. Not only is it toxic to breath but your welds won't take with it present. Probably why you've had problems.
  6. There's a guy who comes to the Alabama Forge meetings, he's a friend of Aldo ( New Jersey Steel Barron). He's a bit of an expert on Nicholson files. If he's not a member here and nobody can tell I'll try to remember to ask him.
  7. I don't know where in Miss you are, but Sept 8-11 is the Alabama Forge Councils meeting outside Birmingham at Tannehill Park.
  8. The next thing I'd suggest is plugging it in on another circuit.
  9. I ask because those machines come set up for hard wire. There's a diagram on the door for the wiring. Check and see if your set up right. I had a guy send a brand new Miller 140 in because it wouldn't weld. The repair shop sent it back with the polarity reversed and an $80 bill, because it's not the repairman's job to reverse the polarity. lol.
  10. Was there possibly a cavity in the ingot?
  11. Any dewar found in a scrap yard is most likely ruined. A Dewar has an inner and outer shell with a vacuum pulled along with some insulation. Once the vacuum is lost the containers ability to hold the liquid is less than a styrofoam cooler. Not that it's legal to transport and carry liquid nitrogen in a cooler, but that's between you and your supplier. I haven't put the stuff in a cooler for a customer in 20 years, lol. Any used dewar from a doctors office or semen tank can sometimes be found, but keep in mind that vacuum. If the tank is mishandles or transported to much it can be lost. These tanks are repairable, but that cost money.
  12. You'll keep both. Money aside, having 2 anvils allows you to have one set up for a hardie tool and you can bounce between them as you work.
  13. Yeah, probably some version of 52100. It's tough under the hammer and will test your will to smith. Forge welding it is another story. These medium chromium steels don't exactly like to weld to themselves so you want to buffer or weld with a simple carbon steel.
  14. One of my saleman told me about an anvil setting in someones yard in Fayette. He said he'd stop in and inquire about it. I'm trying to get the Tuscaloosa Forge meetings started again as it hasn't met in years and is all but dead. The Alabama Forge Council meets this September, there's always tailgating. Usually you'll find them raffling off a blacksmiths kit too. They had 2 last year, the same guy won both.
  15. I happen to like the anthracite for some things. You might put on your schedual to come to the Alabama Forge Councilmeeting this fall. Not 100% sure, but there will be tailgating going on and more than likely there will be some coal available. I do know a guy north of B'ham that sells it too. I believe in your neck of the woods the Wiregrass chapter meets. Good luck.
  16. Really you want the billet to not show any signs it was a piece of cable unless you want a live edge spine. Welding cable does take practice but it isn't hard. You'll know how well you did when you grind the edge in and heat treat it.
  17. I've used some of those springs, they aren't exactly the best steels. My thought is you are either working it to hot or to cold. Get a magnet and test it as you heat it, when the magnet stops sticking that is the lower forging heat. Don't let it spark, that's too hot. The spring I have I'd guess was no more that 1045 carbon steel.
  18. First, make sure it isn't galvanized. Any zinc present will not only keep it from welding up but is toxic to breath. I make knives from that sized cable all the time. Forge it up into a square bar then fold it back on itself. That will give you enough mass to draw it out properly without ruining the patterning.
  19. What happens? You'll start seeing the flame have white streaks in it. The acetone then gets in the regulator, hose and torch. That stuff turns into a black gunk and clogs things up causing backfires and flame outs. It will also ruin the equipment. I've had full #4 tanks that have thrown acetone on a small heating tip, those tanks are borderline to small. It's good to see someone paying attention to the 1/7 rule. That rules slides, if you have a 100cf cylinder you can only use 1/7 of it per hour. If you've used half of the tank and now have 50 cf in it, you can only use 1/7 of the current content.
  20. Good machines, everyone I've sold one to has loved it.
  21. Jackson is now owned by Kimberly Clark and has went through some changes in their offerings. They still offer the mesh face shields though, the pn is 29055
  22. Ok, up to 1/2". That's getting on up there. My preference would be the Miller Matic 252 or the Lincoln 255. Those are large machines and really for the more serious users. They are similar in price range. You'll need a bottle of gas to go along with it. When it comes to machines they are only as good as the availiability of the consumables. Take a Fronius, a very good mig welder but most in the states have never heard of them. (ok, they will set you back about 7 g's) The Miller and Lincoln will only be about half that.
  23. You can go to millers website under support and look up a miller machine and download the manual and parts books for them. Lincoln has the same set up.
  24. Every wood is treated different. Cocobolo is a very oily wood, in my experience it smokes a belt and just wants to shine on its own. While a wood like Osage Orange will smoke a saw blade but sands easily. Generally, for me the only woods I'll use polishing compounds on are some stabilized woods. Most woods like Cocobolo respond well to hand sanding and steel wool. A little tung oil and some paste wax on the buffer to get it to shine.
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