George Geist

Is a great specimen. Might it be for sale? George

There were a variety to choose from depending on conditions and use. Some were sharp for ice, others were blunt for softer ground. Funny thing is modern shoeing makes use of studs and such whether they be screw in or drive in and here's you're example of it being at least 100 years old. Nothing new under the sun. George Holes won't be tapered. The stud shanks would be. Unless they chose instead to tap them and use the screw in kind. George

May not be any formula carved in stone but a good rule of thumb is your anvil ought to be at least about 10x heavier than your heaviest hammer. George

Unfortunately wasn't able to get there. How did it go? Any pictures? George

Nothing to criticize here. Is beautiful work George

Actually, that did in fact cross my mind but I figured most places outside the State of New Jersey were pretty easy about civilian ownership of muzzleloading blackpowder muskets. If that's not the case, its at least comforting to know that what one builds themselves without serial numbers or paperwork doesn't really exist.

For those unfamiliar with the best of British gunmaking here are a few vids folks might find interesting: http://horseshoersforum.invisionzone.com/index.php?/topic/488-british-best/

Sounds great! Question I have is why not go ahead and make one that functions? Seems to me something non-firing is every bit as much work. You might find this stuff interesting: http://horseshoersforum.invisionzone.com/index.php?/forum/60-firearms/ Amen to that

That being said how does one tell? Sure some things appear hand forged but how does anyone know if the screw threads were cut by machine or hand done with a tap and die set?

No lol! It's a bit of overkill for horseshoeing. It required the winch and boom from a tow truck to get it loaded into the back of my pickup. Offloading was a little easier with the help of gravity. Definitely one for a fixed location.

Nice job on the stand. I like it.. Use your vise. Hardies may not always fit your anvil but they ALWAYS fit your vise. George

One of mine was welded to an I beam at some point in it's life. I bought a very big Peter Wright about 30 years ago from a mechanic that had it for years in his junkyard. Supposedy it was used on a ship or barge before he got it . Being as it makes it hard to steal and sets it at not a bad height I never tried to detach it.

I'm inclined to believe many of them can be found in London hand engraving some of the worlds best firearms. Firms such as Purdey, Holland and Holland, Boss etc employ some of the worlds best belonging to British Jewelers Guilds. When not working on guns these guys also engrave watches and other fine jewelry. George

Guys this is from the perspective of a guy who started out running from place to place shoeing horses out of a pickup truck for $25 a head when gas was about 0.50 a gallon. I'm fully aware of gas used in shops but portable propane forges didn't come around till the late '70s in the world I came up in. As to my being an old guy, yeah......Somewhere I have a picture of me at about 6 or 7 years old forging in the Williamsburg shop myself flanked by two guys all of us wearing tricorn hats and colonial clothing. Although I wasn't really raised in the 18th century sometimes I feel about that old. Now, for the $100,000 question. Do any of you guys know why it took so long for modern gas forges to become available???? The answer is really cool so let's see if anybody knows

Is historical accuracy an issue? Pennsylvania type longrifles had a lot of brass trimmings but the OP is talking about a musket. I'd assume like a British Brown Bess or a French Charleville? Those firearms were very plain and utilitarian primarily intended for military issue. All trigger guards, buttplates and such were just wrought iron. Mild steel would make a good modern reproduction. George

I've never seriously looked into this but when I first came around coal forges were pretty much standard equipment for everybody. Gas forges were just being introduced in fact I believe I had one of the first Mankel models. Back then it was pretty common belief that coal fires added carbon to the steel whereas gas either didn't or some folks said removed some. Have no idea as to these claims but that's what was thought at the time. Coal definitely better for welding IMO anyway. George

Price of steel per pound is about minimum price of any anvil. Folks I just have to say it after seeing stuff like this too many times....Bringing welding equipment, especially cutting torches anywhere near anvils really ought to carry the death penalty George

Dittos to what the other guys said. That thing is an ASO not worth the time or effort. Obviously wasnt a very good vise either. Get better equipment. The stuff is out there. George

Mr Powers is correct as usual.a hook type device was inserted into the hole to assist in forging chains. I have a vid over on the horseshoers forum from you tube of the device in use by chainmakers. May post it on here later if isnt too much work for me to find. George

Both good companies. Which is better is kind of a Ford vs Chevy type argument. Will both do the job. Thing I find concerning is on jobs I work at chain falls need to be inspected and certified as safe and usable by a competent individual. Is really taking a big chance buying stuff like that on Craig's List. Be careful. Hope they work out ok. George

Without a doubt some of the best examples of winter shoeing can be found at the famous White Turf in St Moritz Switzerland where horses are raced over a frozen lake. They also have polo matches on the ice as well. Is a real interesting but very expensive deal.

There have been many variations over the years. What most of us are doing currently is using the rim pads as Mr Turley described in conjunction with drive in studs as mentioned by Mr Stevens. Other methods are sometimes employed but this has proven to be the best. Shoe pictured at the top left is an example of what I'm talking about: https://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images;_ylt=AwrBT8bL7GFYTXsAmRxXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEyNm5xcjJ1BGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjMyNDZfMQRzZWMDc2M-?p=Ice+Shoeing+Horses&fr=chrf-yff17 George

Last I heard the City of Montreal was trying to shut down Les Forges de Montreal. Anybody know if they were able to stay open or not? Would like to go up and visit for Nuit Blanche but not going if that shop isn't open. Can anybody give me an update? George

Certainly no surprise this guy is planning to make knives Some people should not be allowed near tools. There really ought to be a law

Good score, enjoy it George