Jim Coke

Greetings All, Time for my 2c . Through the years I have watched many great company's consumed by foreign interest.. They import a competitive product at a low price at a loss and soon have all the business.. Soon after they purchase the original company and the price of the product goes back up.. In effect they are controlling our economy. The result is lower paying jobs and more taxes on lower salerys to support unemployment and health care for those out of work. Not to mention our prison system.. I don't personally care for Trump but at least he xxxx put the issue on the table. Enough said.. What is the FIX? Jim

Not made for forging... It will break if you use it for hot work.. Best sell it and put the cash away for that just right anvil that will come along when you least expect it..! Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Redwood, What you have is a stove pipe anvil used in sheet metal work .. Cast iron .. It bolts onto a bench or a stake plate with a special bolt ., Mostly used for seam locking. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings 07, Why not just start with 2 punched holes . Form the "A" than a cross part with a tenon joint.. Easy and it would look traditional .. Just my 2c.. Have fun., Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Das, Thought I would pass on to you an idea for the base. A chunk of pipe and a large ball bearing welded to a handle makes a nice bubble to mount your crosses on. Easy to make tools that adds a little extra eye appeal .. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Ivan, Yep I'm spoiled ... A little class is good.. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Good Thing, Look up drive rivet on EB or the net . I am sure it will solve your problem. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings All, In my 40 plus years I have made, modified , repurposed many hammers.. BUTTTT Pictured below a birthday gift from Aaron and the brass blower handle from Black Frog.. SUPER GUYS I have other hammers from Arron and they are worth every penny., Is a Fender just a guitar? Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Olfart. Do yourself a favor and take the struts to a mechanic with the proper tools to remove the springs. You can hurt yourself big time .. Is it worth it? Hydraulics enclosed in a shock will explode with heat not to mention the spring when removed. Forge inand make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Joel, First of all I want to thank you for sharing pictures and explanation of your equipment and wonderful shop. Most have no idea what it takes to acquire the equipment , design and build with what is available let alone make a fully functional shop that will support an income., There is no going to Home Depot or Tractor supply for a part . You are a true master craftsman in a multitude of areas and are willing to share your knowledge.. My hat is off to you sir.. I have enjoyed this thread and the comments . Thank you is in order by many who have logged on and learned from your expertise . Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Frosty.. Come on Frosty ... NOPE NOT HIM..

Greetings Bandit, looks to me like a tractor add on weight. I do not see any surface that was used fo hammering. Just my 2c .. Ya still got a good buy .. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

You are in my thoughts and prayers. I wish you a speedy recovery. Jim

Greetings Dave, LOL... You must be getting good at modifying springs. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Ethan, There are lots of factors but I will pass on what I do... Wet only the spare coal for replenishing . Only sprinkle water on your banked stack to control spreading.. When you feed fresh Coke push it from the side of the fire pot down . Open the center area often and swirl around and rotate your clinker breaker to remove spent fuel. That's what I got I hope it helps .. Your a fine smith with a great future. I wish you well . Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Dan, Ahhh the quest to build a better mouse trap.. I have three treadle hammers and have many years experience using them . I would suggest that you find someone in your area that has one and spend some time on it .. Theory is one thing but when it is all said and done you are still limited to about 60 BPM and what you had for breakfast. Welcome to IFI and I wish you well on your build. Should change your name to Blister Foot... LOL Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings, Some view a Stradivarius violin as a wood box. In the right hands it can make beautiful music.. The same thing goes for what some view as obsolete machines. The fly press AKA a coining screw press /screw press in use in the 1400s for striking coins. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Joel, Mine is just the common motor driven Oliver. No pictures but next time out to the farm I will snap some. OBSOLETE .. What's that.. You should see the reaction of people in my shop when I dig out a tool that they have cast off years ago and show them a new found function ., Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings all, I was fortunate a few years ago and found quit a few NOS die filler files . The triangle ones work very well for clean up on outside edges of elements and allow you to get into sharp areas.. Saw blades can be used but because of the saw set your parts will bounce on the table and make your fingers go to sleep. Round files can add interesting accents also. A real time saver and you can sit down to do your work.. That's what I got.. Have fun. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Burnt, It all depends on the application.. Repousse and chasing for high relief . What metal are you going to work with ? Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Ace.. That would be a die filer..Probably a Oliver.. A great tool if you know how to use it.. Comes in real handy for making square holes. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Greetings Dave, The garage door spring company's make a insertable hoop that locks into the spring with an eye bolt that would work. Easy to make.. You would not have to heat treat. Jim

Greetings Dave, Sounds like a garage door spring. Just a 41/2 grinder with a cut off disk will work . Forge on and make beautiful things Jim

Long winter... Your getting grumpy.. LOL

Greetings Frosty, We all watch and chuckle about some of the things we see on Forged in Fire.. I too was very skeptical about the selection of the candidates until I was aproched to help one that has yet to be aired. I spent the day coaching and working with him on procedures and advised him on gas forges and power hammers and some time at the forge. He reported back to me with some results but being under contract he could not reveal the final results. What impressed me the most of what I have seen so far is the honor of the smiths when eliminated . They all in true blacksmith form congratulate and shake the hands of the continuing contestants and wish them well .. No sour grapes. I guess that just shows what we all know about our trade and fellow smiths. Forge on and make beautiful things Jim