Marc1

It makes sense to have a smaller anvil for a smaller person. A kid wouldn't be able to swing a 4 pounder and will probably use hammers well under 2 Lbs and for that a smaller anvil is adequate and cheaper. There is nothing stopping a kid from using a 500 Lb anvil, however it would be intimidating and wasteful, not to mention the need for a lower stand. A small anvil used with a small hammer can stand on a low bench, table, on the ground or anywhere else the kid can work, and packed away later. When my 5 yo grandson wants to hammer on something I give him a small round peen hammer and a 20 Lbs anvil and he is plenty happy with that. Kids identify with smaller versions of adult tools as their tools very easily. I have smaller tools for them and that is their choice every time. As for the question ...does one have to hammer less on a big anvil ... the short answer is yes ... and no. Yes if you are using a larger hammer on a larger job, and no if you are using a small hammer on a small job

It is an art to reproduce the genuine antique patina colours. All our shop production was coated to either look rusty or shiny metal and still being protected from real rust. of course if it is done to deceive, then it is a despicable act. I remember a flea market I used to attend. There was this guy ho had a real talent in making reproductions in wood carvings that passed for antique. He would go to the extent of making holes in the base resembling drill holes from borers. i was there once when a lady wanted to buy his hand carved "antique" chest. She was about to buy it when she turned it around and saw the borers marks. No assurance from the stall owner that he had treated the borers convinced her to buy it. Next week all the 'borer' holes were putty shut

Wonderful tool. Don't forget that it is a parallel vice and not a post vice. If you want to forge on it, it will take some hammering due to it's size but i wouldn't feel right to go troppo on it.

Next, the pitch of the fire alarm will need to be changed to a more all inclusive mellow tone ...

Thank you for your replies. Yes, those a very nice hands, and I am in no way taking away from their value, but both have no prominent knuckles and that is my problem. Lee Sauder does come up but no hand.

Yes, something like that, but I can't get the knuckles right. Remember seeing a wonderful example of a hand here somewhere but good luck finding it again. Steve, which section should i search?

i would like to know if someone here has experience in forging a hand. Specifically how to get the knuckles to stand out. i want to make a hinge for a gate where the hand holds the top pin of the gate hinge. So it will be more a fist than an open hand. The gate is a bit of a Adams Family gate Searching for "forging a hand" will invariably lead to "hand forging" and a million hits

It has been clear for a while now that insurance companies and banks decisions are more political then they have ever been. Insurance companies not only assess risk but also polish their percieved moral status ... look at me, I am soo proper and PC. You can figure out who to thank for that development. It is rather pathetic.

Give it a miss, it looks as worn out and beaten up as it can be. Surely you can find a better one.

Yes, I can still buy coal, in fact I use it to start the fire by mixing a hand full with the coke. Makes it easier to get it going. I could buy more coal and mix it with my dodgy coke I suppose. That, or mix it with charcoal.

I see a nice big gas forge in my future. I like the one Alec Steele made with two nice big openings and two burners. Seems to work well ... at least in his videos. Having said that, I couldn't use a gas forge to heat up the bits of the gate I am working on. Too big and twisted for a gas forge. How do you mean water? Wash it?

I run out of Coke and my usual supplier does not sell it anymore. Australia is exporting all coal to China and the only place that makes coke does not want to sell retail anymore. Or so I am told. So bought from a new supplier who believe it or not, imports coke from China. (oh my) This is what happens: At starting time all is normal, fires up, plenty hot, not problems. After a few hours of working, the hot coals and replenishing with more, I can tell the air is not coming through the heart of the fire and all efforts to unblock the airflow down the grate are fruitless. The fire slowly turns into a gooey mass and all the coals stick together by a myriad of little bits of clinker. Rather than forming big chunks of clinker I can fish out of the fire and keep on going, it seems to develop very small bits of clinker that eventually block the air flow through the fire so the air blows between the fire and the firepot melting the edges of the fire pot. At that point I must stop and let the coals cool down. By then I am usually done anyway. Next day i put the left over coals in a seeve and the little bit of clinker not bigger than 1/4" fall out and I can use what is left of the coals. Unfortunately I bought 500 pounds of this stuff so I am stuck with it for a while. Not that I know what to buy next time. I may have to switch to coal. What do you think?

Post a picture

What a disappointment, I was going to wear them at the town hall ball ... From your comments and other reviews, I think they will be a bit too hot for our climate. Will follow the suggestion of BDU's ... they make some real good one right here in Australia. And they cost half what the Filson do.

Therapy is good ... but therapist tend to want to pigeonhole or label their patient and that may not be so good. Remember you are unique. There is only one Michael Cochran and that you are the product of ... Michael Cochran. Just like you made you how you are, you can undo what does not serve you.

When you check it, check if it is centred. Make a fixed point with a wire wrapped around one of the screws and bent close to the edge of the fan and turn slowly. I prefer to use chainsaw chain oil because it sticks more, but wouldn't help to keep the thing turning more freely.

The fan is touching somewhere. Are the gears in an oil bath?

I am confused ... how do Grizzly hang from grass blades?

Mine keeps on turning for almost a full turn, depending how hard you turn of course. The inertia of the whole assembly is what makes it continue turning, especially the fan. If the fan does not turn freely it makes it heavy to turn fast and stop as soon as you stop turning. How is the fan bush? How do you lubricate it? Are the gear immersed in oil or just oiled from time to time? An oil bath would stop the gears quick smart too.

The intention of the OP is clear in his first post. He needs a blacksmith familiar with early methods and materials willing to be filmed and also to let him do something in the process. No mention to wanting to become a traditional blacksmith in a month. To appear in the video smiling with a hammer in hand or striking a few times may be just what is needed. Seems like a feasible idea to me. Just needs to find someone with that particular expertise that is close enough.

The only way to stop noise is to build a shed around your forge. A gas forge in the open in a suburban backyard if you are close to the fence is a recipe for conflict. And if you go coal, they will complain about the smoke, hammer noise, and then the grinder noise and the rattling of the steel stock when you look for something. If you had neighbours that work during the day you wouldn't have problems. Another consideration is ... what are the local council rules. is your workshop considered a hobby? What is the level of noise in decibels measured from your neighbours nearest window? You'll find that councils have a window like 7am to 7pm for building noise and no one can say a thing about it. Same for pool pumps and aircon. Similar rules for a hobby workshop may be the case. Find out everything you know, including the real noise impact to you neighbours. Once you know where you stand, you can reason with your neighbour on the lines of ... I have the right to do what I do (If you actually do) but ... etc... and here you are the good guy. Best of luck

Wow, Direwolf, those are some big trees you have there. I have only occasionally seen gumtrees getting to that size. Stihl 090, made in Germany not Brazil or China are not longer made, still some nice one available down here at premium prices. I once had this thing with Homelite and knocked together a nice little collection of vintage Homelites. The biggest is a 1050, XP or XL not sure. 100 cc cuts almost anything you can put in front of it. So the pants are bulletproof but a tad heavy. May be I can go for the single layer instead of the double layer. Was reading on the history of this pants and how they came to be to supply the gold rush workers. Both Filson and Levi started that way. the Filson are supposed to use the canvas they made the tents back in those days. May be I get a set of single layer pants, a jacket and a hat just for laughs. Only for winter I guess. No good for Australian summer ... and no need for washing? Ripper!

All I can see is a number 7 in the centre of this picture.

Yes, it is tempting to think that dings can be simply filled in with a bit of weld and ground flat. The reality is that you risk damaging the temper for no gain but for the looks. Anvils are a solid base to hammer hot steel on them. Dings, depressions, deformations, mushrooming edges and even broken edges from misuse, don't take away much from their intended purpose. To try to fix them is as useful as ironing your bed sheets or your hat. Use it as it is and when you need something better, save some money for a 300 or 400 lb Refflinghaus of Kohlswa in Southern German pattern.

Hi there. Considering this are traditional in the US, I thought you guys would be the best to answer this. Does anyone of you use the "Double Tin Pants" by a company named Filson? I like the reviews and was thinking in getting a pair. At $200 they are not cheap jeans, and hope they perform better than. Do you use them? Since these are not being sold by IFI, they do not belong in the IforgeIron Store, they are being relocated