J W Bennett

Some days I really hate dial up! John

The vast majority of the time I work in the shop by myself. I did run a phone line to the shop last year and have a portable handset I can lay on the bench or somewhere out of the way. We don't get a cell phone signal out here and I don't have one anyway. Like Thomas I also have a bell mounted on a post outside the shop. Mostly I use it to call the dog. My wife and the Devil Child have grown accustomed to my "racket" so I would have to bang for a long time to get their attention. Be better off catching their attention waving a $100 bill in the air. Even out of line of sight I'm sure they'd sense it and come a runnin:p Seriously though I have a phone and a dinner bell which is alot more than I have had most of my working life so I feel fairly secure. The most dangerous part about it is that I am working with ME . John

There's another for the "Wish I'd thought of that" File. Great idea! John

The Blacksmith's Craft Charles McRaven ISBN-13:978-1-58017-593-7;ISBN-10:1-58017-593-7(pbk. :alk. paper) 247 Pages Good book Full of information with some good stories and plenty of pictures and drawings. I've used it as a reference several times. Worth the price and the reading time. It was originaly written before bicycle helmets and child proof caps. Not alot of pictures of safety equipment and don't mind the little one on page 170 eye level with the anvil holding the iron down, As the song says those were different days and a different world. Good book John

I use O/A for welding,spot heating and heavy cutting. I bought a plasma cutter early last year and cut my O/A bill down by almost 1/2 what it was. I use the plasma for anything under 3/8" and have cut 1/2" with it. It has almost paid for itself already. The gasoline torches were popular around here among junkers about 15 years ago but don't hear much about them anymore. It all boils down to what your application is, how oftenyou will use it, Fuel consumption vs time and what is readily available. John

I use a mixed bag of techniques and the best part is everyday I work in the smithy I redifine and modify those techniques a I learn. If I am doing production work I use the mig alot. If it's a single piece or if it really shows (basket twists for example) I will forge weld. The forge weld takes more time one reason being I average about a 75% success rate. I practice and I see improvement but there are days that I'd have more success snipe hunting. I use Mig,O/A, Stick, Benders, Power hammer, Grinders (Belt,Wheel and Side arm), Drills, Blasting Cabinet, etc...... I strive to turn out a quality product and I enjoy my approach. I enjoy Demo's where I am limited to hand tools and I beleive that demo's make me a better smith. But day to day I use the means available to me and I keep an eye out for tools(hand and power) that will help me do the job better and often faster. As I have often stated on this forum I am not a fast smith. If I go too fast I make mistakes and also it becomes a job. I use a mixed bag and thats my approach. It doesn't matter if I forge weld or mig, at the end of the day I can sit in the shop and feel pride in my work. Time to hop of this soap box, Lunch is ready. John

She should enjoy using it and get alot of use out of it also. Good job! John

Was plasma cutting rose petals yesterday and couldn't see the tracings well through my old O/A glasses. Couldn't find the other glasses But I wanted to get them done so I took the O/A's off and cut with out them. No sleep last night and still alot of pain today. It's been a few years since I have burn't my eyes. It's as miserable now as it was then. Not something you want to take a refresher in. If I saw somebody else doing that I would tell them not to. Yet I still did it. And yes I fell real STUPID. Lost all day today and will probably be squinting alot tomorrow. So much for being in a hurry. John

Pictures we must have pictures John

Never was much on rebar, to much quess work. I forged mine out of 3/8 hot rolled and have never had a problem. John

Very rarely do I wear them in the shop. I have to wear them at work all day but I don't continue the practice at home. Using a hand air hammer to cut barrels and such is about it. John

Finnr, Nice shroom:) Did a demo over the weekend and played with a couple of rail spikes. Been wanting to try Ducks heads. These are the first ones I've made, Flattened the middle to make incense cone burners. Made quite an attention getter. People kept coming back to see how they were coming along. John

This is the first forum group I ever joined. And still the one I use most. My initials are JWB and IRONWORKS is self explainitory. If I can change it to John Bennett now let me know how. But my profile doesn't leave much to guess at. John

Hand or power hammer? Is the end of the round stock folding over as you point it? You may have to round the edges first before you do the point. Just a thought. John

Leah has some good ideas there. And some sound advise on the hammer. John

Eagle, How much time do you have to accomplish the project? The more time you have the more you can learn:) That will greatly effect the composition of the end result. Flowers of some sort with a wood base are well within reach with a modest amount of time to learn basics. John

Paul17, Heres some pictures of the whole thing. The roses aren't part of the this piece I made them awhile back to cheer my bride up.The camera doesn't show the colors and texture real well with the white back ground so I'm also attaching a few close ups from when I first made it. Rusty, The horns are made from 1/4" square stocktapered folded in half and then forge welded to the 1/2" square stock head. The hummingbird wasn't to bad. Slitting the wings is the hardest part for me. Both the hummingbird and the rams came from Bill Epps, I could work up blueprints if anyone is interested. John

Jeep, The left wing is tack welded to the back edge of the leaf beside it. Frosty, The last time I looked I believe I had a forge ;)but then again that chimanea might do in a pinch.(where's spell check when ya need it) John