Curly

I've attached drip trays in the past by simple drilling and tapping a threaded hole then just using a countersunk bolt to attach the tray. Also has the advantage that you can easily remove the drip tray if needed to clean up any spilt wax. Might not be classed as truly traditional though!

Haha that was some Old Man's Beard moss from Muir Woods from when I used to live in San Fancisco. Thought I'd change it to something a bit more topical!

Well got around to making my first tools for the fly press today. Managed to get some bolts at a cost of $1 per kg so walked away with 24kgs which was all they had. Should keep me well stocked for a bit! They are also self coloured as well meaning I don't have to worry about removing any coatings. Made up a butcher and some flat dies for making up tenons. Both made using an old tractor tine from a front loader then made use of an old tractor weight to set the bottom tools in with a holding screw. So far extremely impressed with the whole set up. There is something extremely satisfying in squishing hot metal with relatively low amount of input. Tomorrow I will hopefully make up some punches and slitters.

Good point Thomas, I've already got enough places in the workshop that are very capable of hiding tools as soon as I turn my back. although at least for now both ends are open! Will cap them off and give it all a lick of paint at some point.

Had a spare vice so made this vice/tool stand the other day. Will put two wheels on the back so I can tilt it and wheel it around more easily. Nice to finally have tools to hand rather than trying to find the last place you laid them as your work piece cools down!

I agree GNJC, I think blank firing trip wires were originally make to alert farmers to poaches in open areas. Where I have seen them used on doors they have always been well positioned away from the entrance. In all honestly I think I'd prefer to pay my excess on my insurance than risk being taken through the courts.

Something that is legal here are the blank 12 gauge trip wires. Know a few farmers around here that use them. You can tie the trip wire to a door or something that a thief might move. Makes one hell of a bang and alerts anyone near by plus scare the poop out of the intruder! Just make you remember they are set before you go running to get that item from the workshop :p

Was thinking of just using the screw stop on the press to stop the blade going down too much. Not sure how precise you can be with that? Also having trouble trying to get hold of 1" bolts over here, I'm sure it's much easier over in the states. I'm probably not looking in the right places either but nothing has come up trumps online yet. Any suggestions anyone?

As she grows up I'll have to add to it :) I already need to re-grind the face of the anvil due to bad hammer technique... Will have to also make up some wooden tongs as well!

My daughter loves this set I made her. Constant tapping away at the moment Or, how about 12 little forged picture frames, or 12 openinings in one large picture frame. Then a photo of the little'un can be added each month until they reach 1. Amazing how quick they grow so always nice to have a set of photos throughout that first year.

Thanks chaps for the suggestions and ideas! Think I will go down the route of having a hole in the fixed face and either have a flat or concave edge on the cutter. Will certainly be having a stop to set the length. As for bolt cutters, I'm trying to find ways to justify this new press so don't go giving me simple solutions like that :) In all seriousness that would be a good option but I currently don't have any and I guess it would still require measuring out. Basically I need to chop lots of 6" and 8" lengths. Will try and track down some 1" bolts as that seems like a good way to go. Or maybe I'll just invest in a lathe... Caotropheus, I'll find out that info for you.

Thanks Jim for the idea, I can see how that would work better however being two closed holes would there be enough movement to allow the fly press to create enough momentum to give the required force?

If I remember correctly the bar is around 55" long and each ball has 21 stamped on them, so I guessing that must be in lbs? Nuge, at the moment I do it all via hand held grinders with abrasive wheels. Marking, cutting, moving in a vise and so on. Was thinking about getting a fixed chop saw but thought if spent the morning making up this little tool it would save me the cost of buying one. Will also add an adjustable stop to the design so I can just feed in the bar and chop! Will also add some sort of hold down, probably a tunnel before the shear point.

Well after a two minute job of loading it into my trailer with a forklift and half a day getting it out again without one, I now have a new 8 ton deep throat fly press in my workshop. Excuse my rather messy workshop, things were chucked around a bit to make room for her! I already have a long list of jobs for her, just need to make up some tooling now. On that note, what would one recommend for the 1" shank to hold the tooling. Would mild steel be ok? My thinking is it can easily be welded or replaced. I like t One of the tools I am looking to build is a little cropper/shear for cutting 1/4" round. I use a lot of this at set lengths so want to be able to rattle through a length without much thought. Ive attached a drawing of the sort of idea I have in mind. Black bits being just mild steel and the red some sort of hardened steel. What do you think? Firstly any flaws in my design, and secondly will an 8 ton press handle that sort of task? Never used a fly press before so not sure at the moment what to expect from one. It did make light work of crushing a coke can mind :)

Thanks John, confirmed what I thought. If I'm going to buy something I want to make sure I can get the most use out of it. So l've just managed to source this Norton No.8A which has the deep throat at a bit of a bargain price. Will be using it for a mixture of forging and sheet metal work so hopefully it will will be up to the job. Should be picking it early next week. now just got to work out how to get it into place in my tiny workshop without a forklift! Might also be worth mentioning, the seller also has a Denbigh No. 5 for sale for £175 or £150 if these two are brought at the same time. Can either be collected from Bracknell or I might be able to collect it and bring it down to Dorset.

Think they are normally 8 inches, so I guess you would be looking at about 32 high for the press. So just not sure wether that would be considered a small or medium press?

Looking at buying this fly press, however it's too far away to justify a visit without committing to buying and the seller can't see any numbers that might relate to its size. So what do think? Looks a bit small to me after looking at some 8 ton Nortons and so on.

Thanks for this, might be interested in the ring roller and hand hoist so will send him an email.

Not the best photo but you can just about see the feet, or at least one foot. Then there is a U shape bracket welded to the feet which is driven into the ground.

Well spent some time today stripping it all down. Thankfully it looks like the gasket which was some silicon between the fan and tank had failed. Probably due to moving the forge around. The tue iron looks in good conditon so might either try some more silicon or give the leather and grease a go!

Just before Christmas I was commissioned to make up a Heron as a gift. The customer has just sent me some in-situ shots. Glad to see it still upright with all the horrendous weather we have had over the last couple of months. It is all based around a 6mm steel frame with hand cut feathers which have been heated and dipped in oil to give them some contrasting colours and protection from the elements.

The lady next to my workshop is a saddler so I'll see if I can get some leather off cuts from her. Thanks for the suggestion, seems like a great traditional way of doing it without the need of chemicals and other sealants!

Thanks John, might try the radiator sealant. Of course I installed the forge and sealed in the flue before I tested the bosh! Will chuck in an egg for good measure as well. Think the leak is between where the fan and tue iron connect. Might also try loosening that and putting a load of sealant in there and tightening it back up.

Got a side blast forge which I have finally got around to installing. Filled up the water bosh on the back, came back the next day, turned on the fan and got a load of water coming out of the tue iron. So any tips on sealing a tank that will be constantly submerged in hot water? Was thinking of coating the whole inside with waxoyl which is a waterproof sealant for treating underside of cars but not sure how it would hold up to hot water. Could pull it all apart but think it would be cause more problems.

And yep, hammer has all the edges rounded, mostly to protect nearby furniture than the anvil!