NeatGuy

Kris ketchum makes an anvil with a hexagonal hardy hole specifically for holding jackhammer bits. It is not obvious from the picture but it is there. brad

I have a hammer identical to one of his and he actually offered to buy it. He has a very nice 2 1/2 lb sawyers hammer that I was going to photograph so I can copy it. When I pick up the anvils I will get some photos to post. brad

I have a chance to purchace some large sawyers anvils and was wondering how easy they would be to resell if I was unhappy with them. They do not look like the cuttoff pyramid design that I am use too but rather large hardened ground slabs. The longest is 20" x 48" x 4" and the other is 16" x 36" x 6". The are resonably priced and I think they would be handy in the shop for straitening, etc. brad

Ohhh the velcro ... sounds good ! I could cut up some other anvils and velcro the parts together to mix and match. But I alslo like the cone idea It should be in decent shape it was new. It was cheaper to cut up a small anvil then to have a pattern made, cast, machined, and heat treated. It was also instructive to see how nice the grain structure was in the heel, which took some serious blows with a ten lb sledge to snap off even after cutting 2/3 of the way through with a zip disk. So I can rest easy knowing that my 600 lb anvil will never break. brad

I cut the horn and heel off of a 120 lb anvil to make a cuttlers anvil . I was wondering if I could reattach them some how ... I was thinking maybe some wood screws so I won't have to get it reheat treated. brad

I have used a jig (see image) that can be used to upset without having to worry about exceeding your hammers stroke. The top of the jig is the same height as the die in the sow block. Removing the sow block and replacing it with the jig will not let the tup travel any further than it would with the die and sow block attached. That said I feel that a press, if available, is still a better option. http://www.iforgeiron.com/gallery/data/500/medium/upsetjig.jpg brad

Does your hammer have a sow block? if so remove it, it will give a little extra space ... how much extra space do you need ?? A friend of mine uses a press for upsetting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yQZgB5axWY&feature=related brad

An annular cutter is a type of corring drill used mostly but not exclusively in a magnetic drill press. To make a tennon the cutter would remove the outer part of the material and leave a core which would be the tennon. They offer many advantages cut much faster than a regular twist drill and make much rounder holes, and seem to be able to make tennons. I will try to make a jig to hold a mag drill and a piece of stock over the holiday and report back the results. http://mager.win.mofcom.gov.cn/www/4%5Cmager%5Cimg%5C2007422195934.jpg brad

Has anyone tried using an annular cutter to cut a tenon. I saw this on a website that I can not seem to find again. Using an annular cutter seems like the way to go for round tennons. brad

The different COE (coeffiecent of expansion) between different glasses and steels will make your results difficult to predict. You may have better luck using glass rods for bead making and lamp work. Wrap the finished item in KAO wool if the glass object is not too large and you do not have a kiln this MAY allow the glass to cool at a slow enough rate. Forges tend to be on the rich side as steel does not like oxygen, glass likes oxygen. If there is not enough oxygen you glass will devitrify and become cloudy or have faded colours. Buy some kiln wash from a pottery supply. Coat your steel item with the kiln was an let it dry. This way you can remove the glass part and allow it to cool in a controlled envrioment or KAO wool ... if you can. The glass can be epoxied back into the recess later. This method will also help prevent the different COEs of glass and steel from cracking the glass. To start and crawl before you run ... If you use bead making rods heat your steel item in the opening of the forge. do not get it too hot you will know a good temperature when the molten glass sticks to the steel. Use a oxy fuel torch to heat the glass rods when the are a nice orange colour touch the rod to the coated end of the steel if it sticks you can carefully wind it on the steel. Once you have some success use the same process to fill a cavity you can add miliflori ( tiny sections of extruded patterned glass rods) to embelish your insets. Take a fusing/slumping or bead/marble making class ... Glass is great fun. brad

there is a set of plans for a DIY self-contained air hammer, it is actualy simpler to build than one would think. The NWBA library has a copy. I will ask around ... I know some one with a copy of these plans and will get some contact information asap. brad

Dies are very easy to make. They are MS fuller dies with a bit piece cut out with a hole saw. The recess is to keep the tubing aligned within the dies. The tool is advanced, raised, (or lower in the case of the trumpf) with each pass. The tube is rotated as it is fed into the dies. There is a spiral in the tube but it is not actually twisted ... if that make sense. I believe that the process could be emulated with a c-frame guiliteene with a fuller or with a power hammer although it would be much slower and harder to control than with a nibbler. I will see if i can make a video of the process. brad

square hole drills were invented and sold by "Watts Brothers Tool Works" of Wilmerding, Pennsylvania. USPTO link for those who are interested Publication Images They are still in business and still make drills that can drill polygon holes. Here is a scanned catalouge http://metalworking.com/dropbox/Watts_Bros_manual.pdf Contact information is included in the catalouge. brad

I twist tubing with a "twist" ... pun intended. I use a large stationary mechanical nibbler either a Pullmax or a Trumpf (currently a Trumpf cn900). Nibbler I usualy make the twist cold but have also made it hot from 5" tube. The nibbler is a very safe, easy to use, and very versitile machine that seems to under utilized within the Blacksmith comunity. In many cases they can be had for a song. brad

That is metric tonnes so it is about 220 tons. The foundation is 8.5 meters deep that is alot of concrete ! brad

A friend sent me this link ... The work piece is almost as tall as the workmen. Le Creusot - France - Le Pilon

I looked on the British Patent office website but I can not find the patent for this hammer. The patent number on the side of the hammer appears to be 13849. Maybe some one else might have some luck as patents can supply a lot of useful information. brad

Both 420 and 440 are heat treatable steels so they have the potential to be used as an anvil. I have some experence with 420 it can be hardened to rc50 so it may not be a good candidate for an anvil. brad

I have two anvils made by Renato. A 375lb and a 633lb. I like them very much and would recomend them. Renato also makes a wonderful set of anvil hardies and stakes all in 4340 rather than ductile cast iron. There are photographs of both anvils in my gallery. Renato is a very knowlegable and a pleasant sort who would be happy to answer any questions you have about his anvils or stakes. I belive that they are competatively priced. His phone number is (604) 888-9388 brad

find someone with a pyramid roll and pay them to do it then get on with the job.

I weld mesh into frames at work for architectual purposes. I use a "hair pin", a piece of 12ga sheet metal folded into a "U" shape. The edge of the mesh is inserted into the hairpin and pressed closed onto the mesh in a press break. You could also hammer the hairpin closed. The mitered corners of the hairpin are welded off, ground, and the whole assembly is welded into the frame.

My gallery contains a couple of photos of the first version. NeatGuy Gallery - Blacksmith Photo Gallery The attached file contains the latest version for my design. I will post some photos of an actual burner. brad Ribbon Burner.pdf