larrynjr

it's a welding / brazing flux I got from the local Oxarc store. I've been meaning to try some 20 mule team borax but have not yet. With the new regulator I have to have my air door fan all the way open or again I get lots of dragonsbreath.

I ordered a new adjustable regulator for my gas forge and it really makes a huge difference in the heat of the fire. It is a 0-20lb. gauge and I have it down between .5 and 1lb of pressure. Anything higher than that and the dragons breath gets so big that I would not be able to forge at all! I was able to get a white hot heat in the middle of the forge and got my first weld ever. It was not a completely solid weld, I folded the piece over and tried to get it to weld but was only successful in at the bend, then I folded it again and got a little more weld but as you can see in the picture there are some area's with scale that didn't weld. I'm still happy with the progress though. One question regarding the change in regulators, obviously the pressue is about as low as I can get it but the force into the forge and the overall volumne seem to be much higher than what I got from the old regulator. Can anyone explain how that works in small easy to understand words? Also will I use more or less gas than before? If the volumne is indeed higher than I'm guessing more gas will be used.

Great tool Rusty, that is one of the things I like best about smithing is the ability to make the tools we need and not have to buy premade items of questionable quality. I KNOW when I make something that it's quality is mediocre at best but I made it and I'll do it better next time! Also go to the User CP at the top and let us know where you live, maybe we're neighbors!

When I got my new Nimba, I was somewhat surprised and slightly disappointed that the face was not ground smooth but was left with the shot peen finish. After talking with Jim at Nimba, I learned that was standard way (for them) to leave the anvil and left it to the smith to decide if they wanted to polish it or not. He commented that many prefer the shot peen finish because the texture helps to keep the work in place and not skitter around on a shiny polished surface. The shot peen finish does not transfer to the metal as you work it and I'm finding that as I use the anvil, my "regular" areas that I pound on are becoming work polished. So it it very obvious what parts of the anvil I use most! I am still very happy with the Nimba anvil.

Welcome Angus, if you are into knives and swords then you'll find a good deal of info here. Larry

That looks like it was a blast, Frosty. Except the peeing fire part, that was just plain funny!

Those are some great looking items, what are you using for your stock copper pieces? On the Cross, is the cross piece split and the upright driven through or just bumped out at that point?

That was great, thanks A-Man.

Not that I've ever attempted to make armor but why would it take a year? Unless you only work on it a hour a week or something like that?

not sure about current models but the one I had, you could hook a car battery to and run it from that if house electric went out. Don't get me wrong, an open fire is awesome to feel and see but not as efficient as the pellets.

Dave, you might want to look into a pellet stove over wood. They put out a ton of heat and you can run 1000lbs. of pellets through it and have barely a pound of ash afterward. Most come with a glass front door so you still get to see the pretty flames. I don't have one in this house but did in my previous place. We went from $175 a month electric (electric heat) bill down to $40 a month. This was around 1998 or so. Pellets were around $240 a ton and that would last 2-3 months. The newer models might be more efficient. And to come back to topic, as many here know, I have the Nimba Gladiator double horn Italian style and love it.

WD40, axle grease, keep using it so it doesn't have time to get rusty!

that's a great looking gate, pretty good for 15 years between smithing projects!

OK, I won't get to try it till tomorrow but I'm sure it will make a huge difference. Thanks everyone!

I am using flux core, by an inch of stickout do you mean having the wire an inch outside of the nozzle?

Does anyone use this? I got some with my MIG from Northern Tools and have been using it to clean the spatter off my nozzle and tip but have been experiencing a great deal of wire feed trouble. I discovered tonight if I don't use it, I can weld alot more without the any feeding trouble. Why would they sell this stuff if it actually makes things worse?

mine is about 1/3 of a 30x40' 2 car garage / shop. currently I've been keeping my car outside and using the extra space for project but even with it inside I general have "enough" space in the roughly 15x15' area that contains the forge, anvil work table.

looks good James, are you going to put some springs between the dies to keep them open until you need to hammer?

Well, it's not pretty but it looks functional and that's what's important. Once you've earned your first $million or so, then you can worry about looks. Mine isn't any prettier but again it's functional and that's what I like. At the rate I'm going I figure I'll make my first million in about 15 years. Of course that's cumlative and not all at once so I won't be buying everyone here steak and beers! :D

looks like a door pull to me.

As I am still in hobby mode, I haven't been too concerned with a name yet but have kicked around a few idea's. One is "The Forgery" as I make some thing(s) out of nothing. (similar to a forged check) Other options are either Tieton or Highland Forge, Tieton is the town I live in, Highland is the name of the school district I work for, which Tieton is part of that district. I could combined the first option with either of the second ones. Highland Forgery, Tieton Forgery. We'll see how it goes. :)

He actually had a motorcycle accident on his way to Sturgis and Laconia last year. A little old lady pulled out in front of him and he went over the bars. Had some ongoing nerve issues still last fall and couldn't hammer for as long as he used to. He told me some of his Viet Nam stories. Awesome and frightening at the same time!