HWooldridge

Old hitch balls - read 1960's or before were sometimes drop forged from medium carbon steel and left unhardened. I have one that is two piece, shank thru the middle of an outer shell - very old, was on an old Jeep. It sparks like carbon steel. That was when you often saw small hitch sizes - 1-1/2, 1-3/4, etc. I think Irnsrgn is right about modern manufacture - CNC chucking lathe (big screw machine) is fast and almost hands free using bar stock. Everyone's advice on trying to harden one is probably the best way to check whether you can use one as a hardy. A very good hardy can be made from those big air hammer, pavement breaker bits. I think they are S series steel or something similar. They are hexagonal stock and have integral collars that make nice shoulders to sit in the hardy hole. You can find them in junkyards or at paving contractors.

Thanks to all who responded. I decided to try Daryl's suggestion with the Dremel tool and it worked well. Went thru two of those little cutoff blades but it cleaned it up enough to get the snap ring back in. There is a series of gunsmith books from Brownell's called Gunsmith Kinks - we should assemble our tips into "Blacksmith Kinks". It would be priceless information. Later, Hollis

A treadle can "help" with drawing but it is not the right tool as the others have said. Clay Spencer shows how to do so with his demo - spring fullers that draw down the stock. Something you can do to help is weld a loop on top of the hammer head so you grab it with your off hand and assist your leg. The stock is slid between the fullers and you bang away with your whole body... :wink: I also started like you with no power tools and wanted to make all my own blacksmith tools. I had a bunch of square 1-1/2 agricultural work bar and it was a real b*&^h to forge by hand! I wound up calling a friend over and we did a lot with a sledge. You might want to consider enlisting a victim...uh...partner.

Francis Whitaker had a 150 lb anvil and stated on several occasions that others could not do better work just because they owned a 400 lb one. Like Rich said, skill is more important than a bigger power hammer. In addition, some specialty tools help with certain sizes and volumes of work but a lot can be done with basic tools. Although I have four now-grown sons, none ever showed any inclination to work with me so I had a one-man shop all my life. One of my most treasured and used tools is a treadle hammer that I built from the ABANA plans - it gets daily use. I also use a drill press a lot because I like to rivet stuff and never cared for hot punching. I use my power hammer frequently but not as much as you might think. The lathe and mill are seldom used but are convenient to make tooling. The MIG and TIG get equal time depending on the job. A brief anecdote: I know a fellow who cashed out of another business with a lot of money and decided to become an artist-blacksmith. He bought a 15,000 sf building and stocked it with every tool you can imagine. He was pretty handy so learned to use all of them but the last time I talked to him, he was primarily making furniture by buying prefab Italian elements and welding them together. He had about 10 guys working for him who were all doing the same thing. His three power hammers sat silent for the most part and he finally sold the big ones. That vast collection of tools did not gift the world with a brilliantly talented, creative ironsmith but he did stick with the trade and now uses the right tools he needs to do the work that he has chosen.

Modern chain links are induction welded (I think that's the right term) so you see the little lump where the two surfaces meet and the excess flowed out to the sides. I think Bruce is saying that welding by hand is also easier on the side because the swage can be used under the power hammer. I've heard that the weld on the end is supposedly stronger because in order to fail, the link must be bent and the weld broken, whereas on the side welded link, the weld is in direct line of pull. From a practical standpoint, the link will probably stretch first and either one will fail about the same time.

I had a Homer Simpson "Doh!" moment today that I'd thought to share with people that might appreciate it. For you folks with mechanical power hammers, the ones with factory brakes often work on a camming action. I have owned a Beaudry Champion 100 lb for a number of years and always thought the brake did not stop the flywheel as fast as it should. The hammer ran hard but would coast to a stop in three, four or more cycles. I tried every adjustment I could see but without success, so I changed brake pads every six months or whenever the flywheel got to the point where it just kept cycling slowly. This didn't seem particularly dangerous but I didn't like it turning while I waited between heats. So...today was my turn to change pads again. As I worked on it, I noticed the camming lever bolt was binding as I unscrewed it, so I stepped on the treadle to give it some slack. I then had an "Ah-hah!" moment when I noticed that the camming lever slot had been hitting the bolt all along because it was out of travel. Some past owner made a treadle linkage modification that put the slot so close to the bolt that a little bit of brake pad wear caused interference. I pulled the cam lever, cut out an inch and rewelded the ends back together, which put the bolt back into the middle of the slot. I was then able to easily adjust the cam adjusting screw so I can now remove my foot from the treadle and the flywheel stops within a single revolution while running at full speed. Another side benefit of this is that I can run a looser flat belt adjustment because the cam action is so much more positive - the treadle can move farther and take up more travel. The thing that "P's" me off is that I have been using this hammer almost daily for more than 15 years and studied at length on the problem - why did I see it TODAY?!? (I know, better late than never). At any rate, I can only recommend to look at ALL the adjustments when you have an issue.

I make my handles from ash then sand and whisker until they are smooth as a baby's posterior. I use Birchwood Casey's Tru-Oil for the final finish and steel wool between coats. If you haven't used it, y'all really should try the GOOP suggestion - it's pretty good stuff for this application.

G, I'll email one to you.

OT but there is a bunch of knowledge on this board so here's one for you machine repair guys. I have a hay rake that had a bad bearing on one of the rake beams so I pulled it off and disassembled it. There is a grease seal, snap ring and the two bearings that support the shaft. The problem is that the retaining ring broke so the bearing got to wobbling and smeared over the snap ring groove for about 30% of its circumference. Therefore, I cannot get a new ring back into place without recutting part of the groove, which is about .050 wide and the same deep. I don't want to take the time to put it in the mill and do all the setup to cut it plus there is the possibility of making the situation much worse if I screw it up. I think a little bitty cape chisel might work but I have to make one. Anybody ever had to repair internal grooves or have other thoughts on how to fix it?

Plain household GOOP is great for securing hammer heads. With good initial fit, they won't need wedges.

It's funny how violently opinionated people can be when it comes to tools - I knew a commercial art-smith in Houston some years ago who swore it was always better to buy rather than make hand tools. We argued about this for some time and I finally told him to go buy a pair of tongs and I'd have a pair made when he got back. This was a good bet because there was a BS supply place about 3 hours round trip from his shop. He cheated and bought two pair of tongs but I also cheated and made four pair while he was gone, so the pizza was on him. :mrgreen: IMHO, it's always better to make your own tools unless it's something that is so complex that your time in production makes up for the cost. Making tools is one of the most valued items in the blacksmith's heritage - no other craft is as versatile.

I make a few things that start out with 6 feet of stock. I put material stands on either side of the anvil and work as best I can with the hammer. I also use the gas forge so I can take 18" of heat at a time.

A tripod out of heavy angle iron works well in a portable application. You make a truncated cone (top is flat) and put a plate there to attach the vise. It would be even better if you could also drill some holes in the slab and epoxy in some threaded sockets to match feet on the tripod. That way, it can be bolted down for really heavy twisting or bending but still moved when need be.

Back in the 70's, I had a 100% wool dress suit that was a lot better in hot weather than anything synthetic. It was tolerable in summer and comfortable in winter. That was back before "business casual" came along and put the suit makers out on the street.

You can buy it new from England but you'll have to decide if it's worth it. :shock: Some wagon rims are good material - I have a few. Another source is old bridges - look for those that may be torn down in the future and keep your eye on them. A lot of old farm machinery from the 30's is also mixed WI and steel so a farm junk yard is an option, too.

I have been told by knifemakers that the 2x72 models allow the belt to run cooler so the grit lasts longer. However, it may just be that the belt is almost twice as long as a 1x42 so they last twice as long for any given amount of grinding. I don't know...maybe one of the professional knife guys can comment. I built a 2x72 out of junkyard scrap and it has worked great for the last several years. I'll probably have it until I'm pushing up daisies so long as the motor holds up.

You don't have to weld it if you have a hand drill motor and drill index. With a little planning, you can easily cut the pieces with a hacksaw and bolt it together.

A sheet of 4x8 galvanized sheet metal (26 ga?) makes a 12 inch square by 8 feet long. Gives you 22% more air capacity than 12 in round. It's also easy to flash, cut the hole, etc. I used one for many years until a storm wrecked the shop and ripped off the roof. I replaced it with 12 in round because that's what I had. A good chimney will dang near suck the iron right out of your hand... :wink: In addition, I am also not going to recommend galvanized one way or the other BUT I am personally more worried about the other dangerous things in the shop like breathing coal dust, abrasive fines, CO fumes, active carbon from the acetylene torch, etc., etc., rather than whether the galv is cooking off. My stack gets too hot to touch with a bare hand but even in summer, it's never so hot that it sizzles water. Of course, my side draft collector box is out of black iron so the duct doesn't start until about 2 feet up and away from the fire.

SIX PACK ABS! - AH-HA-HA-HA...at least where I'm concerned. I haven't seen my toes in ten years. It's been close to 100 here every day this week with humidity hovering around 60% (and in addition to shop work, I have also been baling hay for two weeks - can you say "crazy"?). Any sort of breeze is welcome. It's getting to where I only want to work from dawn until 11 or so in the morning and stay in the house until sundown then work to midnight. Cotton T-shirts, shorts, lots of ice tea and a big floor fan.

I run on 4 lbs of pressure thru a standard acetylene regulator with no orifice. I dump the gas thru a 3/8 line and meter with a needle valve before it goes into the airstream. I also have a completely enclosed box with a door on the front so the interior can heat up properly. I use a 60 cfm squirrel cage from WW Grainger. This was an old Sandia style, naturally aspirated forge but was subject to performance fluctuations depending on the weather so I added the blower and changed the burners. Although it is still not as hot as the coal forge, it will forge weld with no problem.

Your 1/2 inch round with copper plate is probably ground rod. If you heat it, the copper will burn off but I wouldn't want to breathe the fumes. If I were you, I'd go to a steel distributor who carries shapes and get some 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" round and square. Anything bigger is hard to work by hand. One piece of each should set you back less than $50 total. Go junkyard hunting for high carbon steel for tools and such but buy your new material when you can afford it - that way you know what you are getting.

I'll tell a funny story on myself...I came out of manufacturing so I normally do what Glenn suggests and write work instructions for everything I make, including what jigs I used, photos, stock sizes, etc. I tell people that anyone with mechanical aptitude should be able to take a set of instructions and make the piece. At any rate, I was playing around one weekend and made a nice item that I really did not intend to sell. I took some pics and put it on the website anyway just to add some "fluff". Months went by and I forgot about it. My son came home from college one day and said, "Oooh, that's nice - can I have it", so I said 'sure'. About two weeks later, someone ordered it from the web page. I had no instructions or dimensions recorded so I had to call the boy and have him Fed-X it back to me. I did what I should have done the first time and wrote down how to make it then shipped off to the customer. Now, I have to make another one for the kid. I don't make one of anything (with the above exception :!: ). I make runs of various items and try to always keep some stock on hand.

I can guarantee you that a website is useful but does not work by itself - I have not tried Ebay. I have been doing this part-time for about 22 years and did pretty well years ago just by word of mouth. My regular day job got very busy about 10 years ago so I let the blacksmithing work lapse. The day job went the way of so many other American jobs in December 2003 so I decided to pursue it fulltime...my best month has been June and I made a little over $1000. I don't do big gates and fences so am limiting myself to household hardware like fireplace tools and such so that might be a handicap. However, it seems that the local craft shows are where I need to be and so I am starting to make one or two a month. I think word of mouth is the best advertising for folks like us so make good products and your customers will come back and tell others.

Unless you are just interested in building the bellows for fun, I tend to agree with Glenn and recommend a little electric fan until you can find a real blower. A squirrel cage does not work quite as well as a centrifugal blower on mineral coal but charcoal is easier to push air thru so you'll get a good fire. However, don't be discouraged from building a bellows if you want - it will work quite well.

If you are going to the trouble of making one, go at least 2' wide by 3' long and 3x4 would be better. That way, you can go to a standard firepot or side blast tuyere later and have plenty of air.