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Bruce Beamish

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Everything posted by Bruce Beamish

  1. Just buy a burner from Rex Price at Hybridburners.com or another reputable manufacturer and use a rated lpg variable regulator , gas rated fittings and hoses and use the forge in a well ventilated area. I do understand doing it yourself can be fun from an experimental point of view and you might save yourself some money. It can also be very dangerous. I know the other forum users are well meaning and plenty have built their own but that doesn't mean their set up as safe as it should be. What does the local fire code say on this type of gear? Where do you stand from an insurance perspective if something goes bang? Would you build your own oxy torch and try to run it off any old regulator and fittings? Be safe, keep your family safe. Cheers, Bruce.
  2. Hello Phil, I hope to make it again this year if I can escape from work. Good fun and looking forward to catching up with everyone Cheers, Bruce
  3. To follow on from Darren70 regarding the CIG toolcraft electrode, I have successfully repaired anvils with edge chipping and face repairs using toolcraft with 312 ss electrode as a bufferring layer. Preheating and post weld heat treatment were as per the manufacturers instructions. These anvils have held up well. Neither of these electrodes are cheap and I suspect it is similar for these types of electrodes no matter where you are in the world. Manufacturers like Eutectic and Bohler made similar electrodes to the toolcraft that I know of. Bohler also made a mig wire (skwamig, I think it was called or skw1 mig) that was a very good allround hardfacing material without the brittleness or checking problems of the more common types of hardfacing electrodes. Personally I think after having repaired a few anvils , it might be just as well to leave well enough alone. I was fortunate at the time to have full workshop (including heat treatment and metallurgical facilities) available to me. Good edges and a flat face all round are very nice on an anvil but if you have a old used anvil one that is not to bad in these areas learn to work around it. The majority of used anvils I have seen in the 35 years I have been involved in the Blacksmithing game have had some form of hollowing in the face in the area where they get used most and some edge chipping. Over time and as your skill level improves as a Blacksmith these imperfections won't bother you as much. This is of course even less of an issue on larger anvil as you have more areas to work with. As you continue in your learning and travels as a Blacksmith a better anvil will turn up, so trade up! If you feel the need to, move on "Old Faithful" to some one else or you may have got to like the old girls' quirks. Alternatively, you may find yourself in the position of buying a brand new anvil (see Frank Turley's posts). You know, the family has grown up and moved on and you've got some spare cash, treat your self! Cheers, Bruce
  4. I'm with the Peter Wright camp. It doesn't look like a John Brooks anvil to me. You can see the welded waist on this anvil and the step as mentioned in previous posts, signs of a Peter Wright anvil. The John Brooks double bick anvils that I have seen have the Hardie hole at the end of the face with the square horn and the pritchel hole at the end of the face with the round horn and also they step down to the square horn. I am talking only of the forged John Brooks anvils here not the modern cast steel ones sold by Vaughans. I use a small John Brooks double bick anvil as my demo anvil and I find it extremely versatile and I prefer the shape to the London Pattern. I have recently purchased three full sized double bick anvils, I've already on sold one and the others are in my shed having some TLC and none of them were like this one. When I work out how to post images I'll upload some of my double bick anvils, the largest of the three is really unusual with two different sized pritchel holes and two different sized Hardie holes (one in the face and one in the square horn). Enough of my rambling, you've got yourself one very fine anvil that looks in great condition, be happy and enjoy it.
  5. Rich and I have tried to help you but it seems you already have your mind made up. I see a home made burner and some water pipe fittings. Be safe and good luck.
  6. Not quite on the topic but I was interested in the comment about Chrysler parts. Even here in Australia the torsion bars of local Chryslers were (and are) sought after by Blacksmiths and others "in the know" for use as pry bars jemmy bars and the like. I can still spot one a mile off! I've got a few stashed away for special projects. Mind you they stopped building Chryslers here years ago so the source has just about dried up in the scrap line although the restorers still use them.
  7. Is there a reason you require a blown burner? I use a venturi burner and forge welding is not a problem. By all means anybody with reasonable skills can build a forge enclosure. The burner is a different thing though. Rich makes a very good point above. Have you had a look at Rex Price's site? http://www.hybridburners.com/ Rex makes a fine venturi burner and you could do a lot worse. Jesus Hernadez a knife maker uses one of Rex's burners in a vertical forge for forge welding damascus blades and is very happy with it (there is a link to his site from Hybridburners) Here a some videos of buildng a gas forge from Australia, http://www.youtube.com/user/corinkayaker/videos?view=0 I use one of these burners and a forge very much like this. My advice if you don't want to buy an off the shelf forge is at least buy a good quality burner that suits your size of forge enclosure and the work you want to do, buy good quality gas rated fittings and hoses.Check your local fire and gas regulations/codes and your insurance does, it cover the use of this type of appliance at home? Use the forge in a well ventilated area and check for leaks every time you use the forge before firing up and any time you smell gas, shut the forge down and check for leaks. Never leave the forge unattended whilst it is working and shut everything off when shut down, by this I mean shut off the valve at the cylinder, close the burner choke, back off the regulator, shut the idle valve (if fitted) Above all be safe and safety aware. Gas like electricity doesn't take prisoners it plays for keeps!
  8. Hello Matt, Selectron Idustries made a good fabricated press as did Accro (both Australian Manufacturers) of the cast iron body presses I have seen (I own both) are the John Heine and AP Lever (Australian Made) are good machines too. All utilise the twin bolt clamp for holding the die shank unlike the english presses I have seen which use a grub screw through the press head to hold the shank of the tool which can lead to problems. In fact I picked up a Norton No.6 deep back press for a friend of mine recently and the grub screw had been replaced with a bolt and the bolt was burred over on the shank of the tool. After finally managing to extract the damaged bolt, the press head now needs drilling and tapping oversize. So I speak from first hand experience of this problem. Another thing I noticed was that the Norton is a three start thread whereas both my John Heine and AP Lever are four start threads. The Norton is a double flyweight machine and the Australian presses are single flyweight, perhaps the idea is the extra weight increses the oomph (technical term) as opposed to the mechanical advantage of the four start thread? I did succumb whilst I was buying for my mate, a Norton No.4 deep throat press had to come home to stay at my place, yes I know my reservations as I have mentioned about the die clamping but it is the size I needed and I will use a tool holder and it will get looked after. Another thing that surprised me about this press (the No.4) was the poor quality of the casting, missmatch casting and a the odd bit of porosity! None of it is major but I thought it was unusual given the reputation that Norton presses have. Having said that, the quality of the casting on the No.6 is good.
  9. What an absolute beauty. Thanks for showing us.
  10. I was taught to calculate the volume of the forging divide it by the cross sectional area of the bar being used and add 5 % for wastage (scaling etc) Over the years I have found this to be a good method. It certainly gives you a good starting point.
  11. When I served my apprenticeship a fair while ago I was lucky to be mentored by some good Blacksmiths. The leading hand issued the jobs and would give directions on what to do, he was highly skilled himself but not the best man manager. If you got stuck or had questions he could be a bit brusque to say the least, so you tended to ask one of the other tradesmen, they would rarely give you direct solution, they would ask questions to see what you had tried and make a few suggestions. The idea was that you would go away and try some of these suggestions and they'd keep a bit of an eye on you to see if you were having a genuine go. If you were they'd maybe give a few more hints if needed and let you know what they though of how you went. This was encouraging and you learnt as you went along. Once you were accepted as not being a ratbag (fool) they would help out quite willingly but they never did the job for you and they quite often offered advice in lifeskillls and attitude to a youngster growing up and working with hardworking men in a Blacksmith's Shop. Better for them to set you straight than the Leading Hand or the Foreman to find out you needed to be pulled back into line. I remember these lessons well, I developed a great deal of respect for these mentors and in turn as I learnt and grew, earnt theirs. Not everybody was friendly, there were a few old Curmudgeons who would grudgingly acknowledge you with a grunt or a nod but that was about it. Occasionaly though after you had been there some time they might suddenly decide that you weren't a total ratbag and there might be some hope for you, they might give you a tip or two. I have taught Blacksmithing and other subjects to people of all ages and backgrounds and I turn I have learnt from them, by them asking questions which makes me look at the way I do things too. I have never held back in answering a question or showing anybody anything about the trade, If I can help out I will as I remember what it was like when I started. I don't hold their hand and a bit like the way I learnt if they go away and have a go then come back and show me what they've done and a few more questions at least I know their thinking about the job at hand and having a go. So much of this job is thinking about where you're going and about three steps ahead when you come out of the fire. Getting people to think like a Blacksmith is probably the biggest thing, or trade secret if you like. A good method for teaching and in life is as Ian from South Africa said "Do unto others"
  12. Thanks fellas, I guessed for a 6 ton press with two balls they'd be about 20 lbs each, so I might be on the right track. WOW ! Dale 33 Kgs If you get in the way of that with a bit of oopmh behind it you'll know all about it! I got myself with the handle of my AP Lever press (7 - 8 ton, single ball) a nasty bruise on the ribs and made me cought a bit! I reckon it could've been even worse for someone with less padding! Cheers, Bruce.
  13. Does any one know the weight of the Ball weights used on a Norton 6 A (deep throat) Fly Press? A friend is looking at buying one that is missing the weights. Thanks, Bruce
  14. In the situation I described above the twin ram press did have a wide platen with the rams set fairly wide apart and I was led to understand that an off centre load situation developed which led to the damage. It may have been an an unusual or exceptional set of circumstances that let to this accident. I do not know, I wasn't present but I was relaying what I had been told by the Engineer inolved in the repairs.
  15. I have seen what happens to a large twin ram press when the rams get out of synch due to a load imbalance. This was on a 200 ton press (I think) with a wide top platen. The ram connections on the platen got broken and the ends of the rams damaged. Fortunately no one was injured just clean underwear required. The end result was new connections on the platen and the rams shortened by about 5 inches and a mechanism to equalise the pressure between both rams fitted. This was a commercially made press too and It didn't have this arrangement from new! I don't know any more details as It happened before I started in that shop. It was one of the shop engineers that told me about it as he was involved in the repair and modifications. Why they didn't replace the rams with new ones I don't know maybe it cheaper and they reckoned they could live with platen not going all the way down. I never found it a problem I just packed things up if I needed too.
  16. Thomas I agree wholeheartedly with your comments regarding cast steel anvils, I have a 3 cwt (336 lb) cast steel anvil (not a John Brooks) I have used for years at home and in an industrial environment. It was pre loved when I got it and had been weld repaired in spots some time prior to coming my way, the repairs were on the edges. It is a little soft on the face and edges (probably as a result of the welding?) but it is very easy to look after and dress if needed and I have had no problem with edge chipping in the time I have owned it. I don't miss hit it very often either but it does happen. If I don't take preventative measures it has a loud ring and I wear hearing protection as well.
  17. Hello Ian, Do you have the cast steel type or the older forged type? I believe they are good anvils, I like the older ones in particular and that is not to knock the cast steel ones, I just prefer the older forged ones and I would particularly like a bigger double bick one. Altought as I have recently bought three to get one double bick anvil and none of them are readily identifiable as a John Brooks I might have to pull my head in for a while until I can sort out which ones I am selling! I also have a 1890s French Anvil at the machine shop for a skim of the face it is a bit different but has a good solid feel, 106 kg. I have a John Brooks leg vice too about 5 inch, my nephew picked it up for on the specualtion I might be interested. I was surprised to find it branded John Brooks and it was in really good condition, cost me $100 Australian. Who do you follow in Rugby? Cheers, Bruce
  18. I suggest either the make your own copper rivet path as mentioned earlier or silver solder. Going down the tig path is a good option too and does open up other areas but you have the extra expense of gas and other consumables that you may not be prepared for. In fact my choice would be silver solder as with the pre flux coated hobart bronze rods you mentioned, I imagine there are a number of silver solder alloys available in the prefluxed form as they are here. There's sure to be one to suit your application. Silver solder (silver brazing to be correct) is very fine and flows beautifully, surely you've used it with copper tube, pardon my ignorance but I don't know what silphos is but it sounds like its got silver in it. Clean and degrease the surfaces to be bonded, fix together, heat as you do your copper tube, apply the sliver solder to the joint and around she goes. The prefluxed sticks will come with instructions on the packet, I buy them in packets of four or so depending on their size. It is soft if you need to file it and easy to clean up as John from Gearheart Ironworks mentioned.
  19. Thanks for your input Owen. I am aware that the cast Brooks anvils have a sharp edge and prone to chipping and like you if I owned them the first thing I would do is radius the corners. Soderfors also exhibit the same characteristics in my experience, that is the ones I've seen and used, I've never owned one. Do you know anything of the history of John Brooks anvils? I do realise that you're located in London and that is not the Black Country. For those of you who don't know, the Black Country is an area of the West Midlands near Birmingham (Birmingham is not part of the Black Country, make no mistake), the Black Country was so called because of its industrialised nature prior to and during the Industrial Revolution, the smoke,soot and dirt covered everything alledgedly. I'm a fan of the double bick anvil, in fact I recently purchased three. I could only bring one home with me, the others I had to leave to collect at a later date. Two are about 3 cwt and the other about 4 cwt. No names are readily visible and none of them are pristine they are cetainly all usable. I couldn't make up my mind and I didn't like the individual prices, the seller said why don't you make an offer for the lot and I picked a pretty low price as a starter and he bit. When I finally get them all together, I'll make a final decision on which one to keep and sell the other two to hopefully finance the purchase of the one I decide on. A friend of mine recently purchased a 5 1/4 cwt anvil and a 3 cwt from a dealer he knows, the dealer had recently sold an 8 1/4 cwt and prior to that a 20 cwt with a 10 cwt cast iron stand, ex Railways evidently. I'd really like to find out where that got to. Not that I would want it, a Photo would and a bit of background would satisfy me. Owen, I see from your other posts you like an anvil with a bit of weight to them too. I find that even when using a hand hammer I get a better return for my effort with a the mass of a bigger anvil. They can be a nuisance to shift sometimes but I can out up with that. Cheers, Bruce.
  20. Just to clarify the comment by Sask Mark there were John Brooks anvils made before WW2 that were Forged Wrought Iron with a Steel face. I'm not sure when the cast steel variety were introduced. My research has uncovered a John Brooks Anvil Maker in Lye, Stourbridge in the 1820s, mention is made of a brief peiod of bankruptcy in the 1860's. A John Brooks anvil maker died in the same area around the turn of the 20th Century (I can get the correct date). I've read of the recollections of a Real Estate agent from the area in the early 1950's I think and he mentions a customer called Squire Brooks. Vaughns the current day manufacturer of Brooks anvils used to be in Dudley (only about 5 miles from Stourbridge) interestingly they moved to Stourbridge. It maybe purely coincidence but it adds to the interest factor. My romantic idea is that all the Brookses were of the same family and Squire Brooks (I think in this case it was his name not a title) was the last of them and probably sold out to Vaughns. I have written to Vaughns asking about the history of Brooks anvils in the hope that some one would take kindly to the enquiry of a Blacksmith and Blacksmithing tragic but no luck no even a "sorry we no nothing of what you're asking". Perhaps I need to try again in the new year. I've seen the cast steel ones with the name stamped in, fairly small lettering (smaller than the forged ones) some had JB cast in the mould (proud of the surface) the later ones have Brooks cast on them from what I have seen in the photos. The early ones seem good quality, like a Wilkinson, Attwood, Peter Wright. The latter cast steel ones seem to be very common in the UK but they may be the last maufacturer, I did see a post they are in the Blacksmithing schools there so people will be used ot them and if they're ok they buy them. They also seem good anvils to me of the few I've used, I personally don't like the thick heel but that's just my preference. How did I become interested? I have a small double bick John Brooks 64 lb which I use as a demo anvil (it is an absolute beauty and it raises lots of questions). John Brooks anvils are not uncommon here but I think their distribution is related to the port of arrival. My friend in NSW an avid tool colector and fine smith had read about the cast steel Brooks anvils in Anvils in America and thought all the Brooks anvils were cast, he had not come across the earlier type, this added to the mystery for me, hence my thoughts on distribution . We had a few discussions (just that,not arguments) and I thought I'd try to find out what I can. This is where I've got too so far. I think Anvils in America is a great book but I think the author would agree with me that it doesn't cover everything and if my feeble attempts are anything to go by its hard to get a definitive answer sometimes.
  21. Frosty, you've had a bad run! All the best on your recovery and a Merry Christmas from Australia. I've always enjoyed your thoughts and contributions to this site, a real team player. Cheers, Bruce.
  22. Well said Dale, Thank you Ted for your thoughts and background on Richard. I am aware of his contributions to our campaign and like Dale I won't mention a figure but I would also like to acknowledge his selfless generosity and to say thank you. Amanda did a Radio interview this afternoon and she told me that she has had some great feedback from people affected by the fires and other wishing to contribute as a result of the interview. Ted, well said about sending leaves forged with love, what a wonderful sentiment, if only it could come true! As I've said in the forum it is an honour to be involved in a project such as the Tree Project and our sister project the Roses for Norway memorial but I certainly don't do it for personal glorification or publicity, to me it is about helping others in a time of need and to put into the community as an individual. I've stuck my head above the parapet (so to speak) lately to help Amanda promote the project at this pinch point as she was in danger of getting snowed under, otherwise I would have been very happy in the background forging leaves as needed and branches and whatever else I can help with.
  23. Hello Andrew, I'm looking at the Selectron as it would fit in nicely with my others, I am leaving my AP Lever at my mates for him to use. The bloke that is selling the Selectron sold me my John Heine, I think the company he works for is Power Machinery. Thanks for the consideration mate.
  24. Very true Thomas, I do have a tool holder as you describe and I have gone down the 1" bolt route even though my existing presses are 1 1/2" shank. The 1 " bolts have a decent sized head and remove the need for a collar a lot of the time, therefore tooling manufacture is quicker than cutting the 1 1/2" stock and welding a collar to it and then the tool. Cheers, Bruce
  25. Yes, the pozible campaign is rolling along now. From what I understand it is not uncommon for the pledges to come through in a rush towards the end of the timeframe. If you can help out every bit counts. Thanks Jeremy for posting the update. Here's that all important link again http://www.pozible.com/index.php/archive/index/4997/description/0/0 Cheers, Bruce.
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