Ten Hammers

I have a 30 # Kerrihard that gets used when needed. Absolutely handy tool. I have used an 85# Stryker (Chinese copy) and IT was a treat to use. I don't do a lotta big stuff here now but that may change.

OK, here goes. Got the Miller back from repair shop today. Close to $200 but glad to have it back ($ 65 bucks an hour for labor BTW). the 175 Hobart Handler worked really nice (it is pretty much brand new). Tyler, you asked for an informed opinion so here goes. I got a lotta splatter with the Hobart (same regulator setting. I just unhooked the Miller and hooked up the Hobart. Roughly 22 lbs ). My supplier tells me this is due to electronics. The Hobart has a little coarser arc. Absolutely good bead (.030 ) and good welds. Looking inside the door, the roller assy ain't the same ( I may have already covered this in previous post). The gun on the Hobart is a Miller. Miller 172 (now 175) weighs a lot more. My money, glad got the Miller but ain't had 8 years experience with a Hobart in the shop either. Woody's word is good nuff for me (he owns one). Mebbe we'll find somebody else with the years on the tool to give you a comparison. Everything breaks. Miller service center fixed mine. They ever want my shop work they pay the labor price too. :)

THANKS !

Bryan, may the Good Lord hold the rest of the family in the palm of His Hand. Your brother is already there waiting. Ten

Folks, I've been asked to build railing for the local library (exterior and interior). I've been to the site and taken measurements. We (Council member, Librarian and myself ) have agreed on material and what we think is height and construction friendly. If any of you have experience with the Americans with Disabilities Act, please tell me where I may access information regarding codes pertaining to it. All it takes is one idiot visiting for a weekend to ruin my day. I build strong and faithful. This is a simple pipe rail with 2 posts and one top rail/one center rail. the unit is then installed with 1/2" drop in cement anchors. 1 1/4" sch 40 pipe will be bent for the rail/legs and the center rail will be welded in. Height requirements are my concern. Thanks folks.

Mr. Smith, I will assume for the sake of arguement that you are the instructor. As has been noted, there are more projects on this website and Anvilfire than can be done in one school year. A common " S " hook or a " J " hook is pretty fast and requires a small amount of stock. The skills involved to forge these items are basic learning skills and they will put the students on the path of learning. These items can be made from common hot rolled steel and require no heat treat. One piece of stock ( 20') of your choice of size rod (1/4, 5/16, 3/8") can be cut into 4 pieces and then these pieces can be bundle cut into 10" long pieces for the hooks (power hack saw or chop saw). The last bundle will be a little short but no big deal. Not much time invested to make the stock for the students and if they burn a piece up you have some spares. This of course isn't too pricey and is condusive to cheap stock for learning. My nickels worth.

My 8 year old Miller 172 lost the drive roller. Possibly a relay (points stuck ). I live in the stumps and service center is in Des Moines Iowa. Supplier (from Ottumwa) goes there once weekly so it is a 3 week turnaround. Future son-in-law has a Hobard 175 (Christmas gift last year). He has no bottle so been usin FCAW. He brought it to the shop couple days ago and I hooked it up. Seems to run fine. THis welder was bought from Tractor Supply in a package deal (all but the bottle) for around $400.- I think. Looking inside the door I can see that the drive assy is not what the Miller is (plastic stuff instead of metal). the drive roller itself is steel though and the bearing for the feed. The controls are about the same in looks and heat ranges/wire feed capacity. We'll see how it works. So far, so good.

Some folks think a Forgery is a fake but we of course know different. Forged (especially hand forged ) makes for strong, elegant , superior merchandise.

I keep two 10# ABC extinguishers in the shop and a small abc in the trailer. The Fire Chief and crew have been to the shop for an evening of forge demo and talk about whats what and where's where inside. We're a small community and I know most of these fellas (some since diapers). In the days I was a medic I responded to many accidents and fires with these folks. They should all know what to look for inside my shop ( Good Lord forbid) if an unplanned fire happens. I've got a firefighter on my street. The community is so accustomed to seeing forge smoke that I really hope someone notices an unplanned fire and reports it. Fire safety is of course the most important thing. Bottles are close to the door, etc and hope I've got things proper before shutdown (which I have a strict list of things to do before shutdown). Extinguisher at a demo is of course good idea. Be well folks and be safe.

clearin rocks from his south pasture (down by the mill). Fortunately, being close to the mill he got his load dumped before the axle was broke plumb through. We've got the wagon rear on blocks ( I loaned my good wagon jack to Smith's brother ). I seldom loan tools but the Smith boys are good friends and good customers. Now, if I could just find my.....

Same way I've made them in the past. The collar is 1/4 deep so 2 pieces of 1/4 welded to a piece of scrap, the distance between them about 5/8 or little more (would first wrap a piece of 1/8 around a piece of 1/2 and then weld the 2 pieces of quarter using this distance roughly). I don't have a treadle or a press so I just whack the collar when it's HOT with a piece of tooling made for this purpose and then whack the edges down somewhat afterward (but not a whole lot). I draw the collar ends somewhat to help in closing it fully. Heat the collar Hot, slip it over the place to wrap and then use tongs or channellocks to close. Worked like a charm the only time I've used them. Sorry, tard and my writing may not be the best.

I've been usin the same anvil and tooling stand for 5-6 years I guess. The tooling stand is what I call a steel stump (cast base, pipe upright and a piece of 1" plate on top to clamp tooling down on). With tooling installed, it kinda works on my arm (height). I had a brain fart and placed a piece of bridge plank on the floor (I guess it's 2" thick, couple feet long and about a foot wide). This xtra height makes a WORLD of difference. Never needed it on the anvil but guaranteed it helps on the stand. Old guys need all the help they can get.......

OK, I'm the one that lives in a cave and don't get out much.. (lmao) Here's the deal. I spent about 10 years or so trying to develop the skills of old and feel I have somewhat of a grasp on them (no danger to anybody yet ). the joinery skills of forge welding, rivets, tenons and collars are more than useful in business. they are more expensive than electric or gas welded joints in my opinion. they are just not quite as convienient sometimes. I share the same feelings as you Strine but the Dutch/Irish in me makes for wanting to make money at the same time. I too give things away ( because I want to and no other reason ). Modern techniques are there to be used. I do repair work in my shop from time to time and production work as well. My time spent in self training on old ways has paid off well enough for me to demo without anything but forge/anvil/vise and a few pieces of tooling. I take the gas welding rig because it is period for the timeframe I demo at (one demo a year at Midwest Old theshers). Otherwise, I don't take it. If someone has a project, I ask them if it is to be finished using traditional methods (read no modern welding or plasma etc). WE agree on the setup and THEY are happy. Some folks don't care and that ain't no big deal to me. I have no particular need to exsist on old time traditional ways alone (although I will say that most people that know me will say that I try and be as traditional as I can). I can chisel out a piece from sheet that I normally use the plasma to cut and I try and stay well within the peramiters of being traditional methods. NO mis-representation of methods. People often mistake my gas welding for TIG and comment on it being not traditional. I say just how far back you wanna go ? I can do that way too. Forging skills and joinery skills should by all means be (not only ) used but practiced and though about. sometimes a quick punch/drift on a piece of bar and a rivet is the quickest way. Rivets are honest (thank you Bill Printy). There is absolutely no shame in forge brazing either. Besides, livin in a cave has benefits (not much traffic and all the coffee to yourself.). Have fun. BTW i make ALL my own parts (exception of commercial rivets sometimes).

With a smaller lock screw, it could be a windage adjustment for a gunsight. I will say it is for machining tool of some sort but not my area of knowledge.

When I demo, I try to find the period of which I am working and go to the limits of that period. the shop at Midwest Old Threshers is period 1900-1910. Electricity in the shop. I set up behind the shop in the open air. No electricity. Leg vise, forge, crank blower and a breast drill. some of the stuff has mig welding on it (vise stand). I use traditional joinery. This includes acetelyne welding if necessary. You will occasionally get the " back then " comments about acetelyne (which was discovered in 1856 or thereabouts) and was in use in industry after the turn of the century (period 1900-1910 ). Did they have a Henrob torch back then ? Nope. Did they have modern regulators back then ? Nope. Did they have modern bottles back then ? Nope. Do I care ? Nope. I'm not rude about it, just factual. I had one (apparently possessed) horseshoe during the show that would not cooperate in becoming a rose. I gas welded the rose back to the shoe twice and eventually to a piece of 3/8 rod (which took and the rose was finished). Thank the Lord for Jens Butler. He bailed me out from a place that wasn't too pleasing to be in (call it what you will but I call it hammer block for the sake of arguement). I weld daily in the shop for production work. From time to time I may hide a mig weld but I tell the customer in advance. If the customer wants " traditional " joinery, they get it. No problem. We are putting a smithy in a museum here in town. Period 1929 and beyond. We WILL have an arc welder (probobly a modern one buried under a table) for repairs. Acetelyne too of course. Electricity, crank blower forge and hopefully a power hammer. This shop will be tuned towards the end of the buggy and the start of the cars and tractors. FUN and education is the object. Education is the key to becoming literate in the field of choice. Have fun folks.

Jens, thanks for the help and the kind words bud. I had a blast.

Ignatius, My opinion is that the first folks you got to please is your insurance company. You have an unplanned fire and who pays ? Blacksmithing is something everyone has to start at some point in their life if they wish to learn the trade (even Junior.. . Even at an established business (smithy) someone has worried about things like zoning (and hopefully fire protection). My ins company covers me for a fireplace on my house. They (agent) tell me that I'm covered for a woodstove as well (even in an outbuilding). I have not had an unplanned fire in my shop for the past 15 years of it's exsistance and for that I am extremely greatful. I take fire seriously and manage my shop accordingly. This includes the forge and all applications (torch, grinding, wiring, plasma etc ). I like happy neighbors. The place accross the street is a rental and folks have come and went over the years. The place to the south is not. These 2 places are my main concern for noise. Chopsaws, die grinders and any hammering noise may happen at all hours in my shop. I have kept a constant vigil of asking neighbors over the years about any noise problems. I have kept happy neighbors. I must admit however that my main concern is to keep the insurance folks happy by paying the premium. My stuff burns, I'm outta business till I get more stuff. Neighborhood burns due to fire on my place somebody is gonna eventually look into who and where the fire started. I have a lifetime of training in bottle safety, electricity and other things like fire management and prevention. This does not insulate me from SSGT Murphy acts of God or brain farts. I've always used coal. I live in a small town in Iowa. I'm friends with the Fire Chief. I would wade softly when I searched for laws and ordinances. There are issues. Some fire folks don't either understand or appreciate the brimstone like violence we as smiths practice. Some council members are the same. You should see first if you are covered on your home policy. Make friends with your fire boys (even if some of them are girls. ). Firefighters and medics go where the devil himself fears to tread. For the very large part they are not foolish people. Show them that you are a responsable individual. Have a portable fire extinguisher (ABC rated). You yourself should have fire prevention training and shop safety training. This all sounds like I'm a zealot but I will just say that I am a man that takes things seriously in life (just ask the wife and kids). When problems arise someone will be held accountable and that will be the person starting the chain of events into motion. HAVE FUN ! Artist Blacksmiths create many things. Urban neighborhoods are a mixture of folks. Make friends. Keep friends. Get trained. Ask all the questions you want in places like this (thank you Glenn) but CYOA because it will eventually come down to your descions made when the fat lady sings.

Demos are fun. I will be at Midwest Old threshers in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa on Labor day weekend. For the new guy, Glenn has pretty well covered it. Most importantly, listen to your mentor. ask HIM what you wish and make him feel important. He is ( I assume ) providing you with equipment and consumables to learn from. Hooks are fast and if you have skills making them this might be good idea. Old horseshoes make good pot hooks for lifting stuff from open fires or steak turners. Horseshoes also make lotta other stuff (if you have some take-off's hanging around). I suspect that your mentor will have something for you to do. Celtic crosses ( pre-cut ready to forge) are pretty fast too. Have fun and be safe.

Coal is what I use. I also use a lotta acetelyne to weld with and for some finish work. I sometimes use a weed burner for finish but not too much. a Brenzomatic torch gets used sometimes to cook oil onto utensils. My shop is small but I do plan to build a gasser on wheels so I can use it half in the door. Good coal is hard to find around here. Glad I got what I got.

Archie, I built my belt grinder. http://www.iforgeiron.com/images/Tools%20pix/Grinders/g001Belt%20Grinder2.jpg Not that bigga deal I guess but lotta machine work to get the wheels (scrap 6061 aluminium) the way I wanted. I have not done a blueprint on this but would be happy to walk you through the process. 2 x 48 belt. Ten

the original posting on this thread was about ringing (?) the anvil. This is a balance step for me sometimes. I just relax the arm and let the hammer go to the side to look at the forging and see how I like it. you take a look at a drywall guy and his mud tray in his right hand, taping knife in the other. Watch 2 guys at the same time. They'll be the same but different in the way they scrape their knife on the mortar tray. It's balance. Watch a mason laying brick and buttering each brick (or block). they all the same but they all different. This is some ways makes a comparison to forging steel on an anvil. you can talk till you blue in the face about it. I let the hammer arm rest a bit and relax the grip a bit and the hammer taps the anvil between forging blows sometimes. this ain't something I really practiced or prayed for. I noticed it happening in other smiths over the years. One day it just happened to me. It is an unconcious thing I think. Tapping lightly on the anvil hurts neither the anvil nor the hammer. I have virtually no experience in striker duty so no comment there. Regards

More than cool idea. What we need is to get hooked up somehow with a shipping concern and a central assembly area to put the whole thing together. Time is the deal for me and of course anyone else. Historic stuff like this should be correct. Once the size and details of the chain links are known we can proceed. Bait for the shipping concern would of course be promotion of their company with free shipping of the pieces to be assembled at an area to be decided. I can see this evolving into a project and needing a coordinator. Won't be me. I will however help in any way I can including R&D. Somebody has to decide how much chain and somebody has to have a national place to display it. Somehow I'm thinking that this has been done once or mebbe it's just caffene deficiency. I'm sure that if we look deep nuff we can find answers. We also will of course be using steel for the chain ?

OK, 'nother old guy responding (yawn). Dan, Junior (irnsrgn) is right. Saving your money is the gig. THEN you can make informed deciscions as you need things. A good sound business has money in the bank. your Mom and Dad are probobly helping you a lot now (consider that they are probobly paying utilities and your 'net connection fee and leave it at that). I am extremely glad to see that you are already tuned up to the fact that Mickey D's ain't the place to make your fortune. Hard work and persistance are tools but education is a tool as well. Hangin out here is an education. You may (if you wish) save some cash and attend some of the nationally acclaimed schools (and specific names escape me for just the moment). Rob Gunter is a sharp feller I believe. You are going to hear more on this in subsequent posts I'm sure (education). Experience is also a tool. You are gettin some and that's great. You have cars to buy and ladies to buy for in your life. New trucks today cost more than my first house. Your banker will be impressed with the fact that you can save (and earn) money (yawn). This I'm sure seems like boring stuff but it's a fact. If you wish to tread yourself, get a good toolbox to organize your hand tools (wrenches, screwdrivers, air tools etc). I own 2 anvils (115 lb and 150 lb Hay Buddens). Small one is in the trailer shop. The ONLY reason I would want a bigger anvil would be to draw on the horn (and you can make bottom tools for the hardie hole to fix this). I recently pointed tripod legs (at a rondy). 1/2 square stock. 3# hammer. One heat per leg. Bigger anvil would be a little nicer for lotta things. So would other tools. I pretty much budjet tools as I go. Discipline yourself to save money and think about doing that (tough to do I know). As you get older, clothes, place to stay, way to get here and there (including insurance for both) will eat your billfold. A nationally known and accredited school for smithing would be a nice trip for you and an education as well (financed with your own money). Rich is right too. Spend time in the fire because investment in steel, heat source (fill in the blank) and blisters = experience. You are welcome in my shop anytime (just holler b4hand). Most folks here would welcome you. It seems that Francis owning a smaller anvil to me is rock and steel in the cement that binds us. Get hammer control. Impress yourself with a new set of hex keys for your toolbox. Tirade (and lecture) over. Stop by anytime. :)

You need to stop by the shop and look my grinder over bud. 2 x 48" home built. You can acquire some machining skills building one. I grind stuff fresh from the forge (ladle etc) and have gotten 8-9 years service from it. HWoldridge built one too. Time being money, you may be better off just buying a new one (or asking for one as a gift works too !). Give a holler and we'll see about hookin up sometime. Regards, Ten

Ok, here goes. I'll borrow one from Roy D Mercer. " How bigga boy are ya ? " Reason I ask this is simple. Hammer size can or cannot reflect the users physical size. I know virtually nothing of you or your needs, wants desires or education insofar as smithing goes. If you are gonna go the local route, I'd suggest visiting an Ace or True Value (or Menards or whatever) and look their hammers over. Find a cross pien that is about 1000 grams and another that's 1500 grams. This is a place to start. Are you hooked up with any smiths or smithing organizations ? Tongs will be a reflection of what you wish to do (hold). Bar, rod, plate all need different tongs to hold them. A pair of channellocks will get you started. Actually I use a common pair of pliers a lot (just for handling outside the fire). My opinion would be to pick a project to forge and tool up for that (in tongs and hammers). Hot cuts, chisels etc will come as you need them. I would suggest buying a good hacksaw (read Nicholson or Stanley) for cutting for now. Let us know what and where your mind is going and we'll see what you need.