Everything Mac

Yeah, it's just a temporary pin in there just now. When I get round to fixing the, together properly I'll sort them out. The grip isn't actually that wide. Cheers Andy

Well I have been trying to identify my own anvil and this looks very similar. http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/29603-possible-mousehole-anvil/ So mine could well be a wilkinsons. But who knows. All the best Andy

Sorry to butt in, but does that anvil have a square hole on the bottom? Cheers

I did wonder about doing that - but I was concerned that if I didn't have a regular thickness in the socket then it might not bite as well. Cheers

Thanks for taking the time to make that video. I really enjoyed it. Very helpful! Andy

Hi guys, I needed a decent set of tongs to hold some arrow heads while I forge the points. I came up with these They are a bit offset but the work very well. I've not done any forging for ages and I was knackered after drawing them out. They hold well What do you guys think? Many thanks Andy

Very nice.

Hi guys - I had the afternoon to play around with the blower today, I managed to rivet on a new blade - it works but it is far from pretty. I cleaned up the inside with wd40 and rags. put it all back together with some olive oil in there as that's all I had. It does about 2 revolutions now when the power is stopped. Much better than before. Had to build a ghetto forge today too. Just something to get me going at the new place and tide me over until I find a better alternative. Cheers guys Andy

Hadn't thought of riveting it. Worth a go. Cheers

Hi guys, I'm finally back home after a long stretch away and today I got round to opening up the alcosa blower I got earlier in the year. It wasn't turning very far after I finished applying the power so I decided it needed a clean up. I was surprised how much junk was on the inside of the blower. It took quite a while to clean up the inside with WD40 and a few rags. The fan is not the original on but more on that in a minute. (excuse the mess - lot of stuff in a small man shed) Notice the grease on the right hand side: The gears were actually in pretty good nick. Once I cleaned them up and scraped off a bit of rust they were good as new. I did notice one issue. The spindle the fan attaches to is ever so slightly bent. and at some point it has been attacked by rust. Not enough to effect its connection to the gears fortunately. I attempted to straighten this out a bit without much luck. I'm going to have another go tomorrow in daylight. I'll get some pictures of the cleaned up blower too. Back to the impeller fan. As you can tell - it's not original. And I wonder if this is adding to the issues it was having? I do have the original impeller fan though - BUT, one of the blades has broken off. What do you guys think I should do? I can continue with the plastic fan which seems to work fine. Or should I try the broken impeller? I can't braze on a new blade as I have no kit to do so. A new one is available online but cash does not permit the purchase this month. Any thoughts? Cheers Andy

Jeez, that's looking good. Massive but good!

http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?10065-Making-a-small-anvil-(Lots-of-pictures)&highlight=Rail+anvil Best thread online. Nice easy to follow steps. Cheers Andy

Cheers for the clarification. It just occurred to me I could just have googled it. Lol. I'm at a training course for work at the moment. Itching to get back home to the forge. All the best

Cheers guys. Daft question I know. I always assumed that was hollow. I'll have to keep an eye out when I go to the scrap yard. I wouldn't have known they just pull out either. Much appreciated guys. Andy

Daft question here guys, Can some one please show me a picture of a truck axle, specifically which part to use for making hammers. I keep imagining the drive shaft whenever I see people talking about truck axles, and having never had anything to do with trucks I'm a bit unsure where to look. Much appreciated Regards Andy

I never used to do it when I started smithing because I thought it was a bit daft. But then I got told that it was done to give you a rest. Think about it, you can let the hammer fall to your side, then pull it all the way back up. Or you can tap the anvil, then you only have to draw it up half the distance. That's what I've always thought anyway.

Good score mate! :) You got pretty lucky there. Scrap diving is a seriously hit and miss affair. I scored a two foot length of decent rail track a while back, but not seen any since. Let us know how you mount them up. Cheers

Cheers Thomas, I'll have a look at the blower when I get home.

Still looks to be in ver good condition though. How much is the asking price?

Hope that was you who won it gundog.

Wayne / Chris, Cheers for the posts guys. Chris, yeah that's the way I was thinking of making them. Either punch a slit or just get out the grinder and use a cutting disc to make the hole. Shouldn't be too difficult I don't think. Wayne, thanks. The picture I tried to upload for my design was almost exactly as you described bit with a fat blunt nub in place of the hollow bit. I figured this would be quicker to make and might provide a better grip. I'll post pictures of the tongs when I finish them. I get back to shore in about a week so hopefully I can get in the forge next weekend. Many thanks guys Andy

I just spoke to a very helpful gentleman over the pond at matchless antiques, he agrees that it looks like a hole has been filled up and suggests that it might be an Attwood or Nash. Doesn't seem to fit with the letters on the side but who knows. It's nice to have some vague idea. Cheers Andy

What might be the cause of a blower not working properly Thomas? I recently got one for my new forge that seems to make about one turn after I stop cranking. But it isn't mounted up properly yet so that might be why? A thorough clean with a degreaser and wire brush? Cheers Andy

Very nice. Well done mate. Andy

Cheers for all the replies gents. I'm still considering buying a swage block when I can find one relatively close by at a reasonable price.