Jim Coke

Greetings JRM,

Thats a lot of SS iron on top .  I think it would be best if you put some round 3 in pads on your legs.  You will also find that you pile stuff on the surface and will need to go to outbound legs for more support on all 4 corners...

Good luck on FIRST FIRE...    and your new PW      

Jim

Greetings Fatfudd,

I don't think Fisher drilled that anvil... I looks to me like it was drilled as locator holes and set on pins so it would not slide off rather than hold down..  Thats no way to treat a baby....

Jim

Greetings X,

Most of the professional blacksmiths that I know could do the same work that the do on a daily basis on a old railroad track....  Granted they all have big anvils but that comes with time...  I have several and just purchased an Wilkenson 138 lb for 125.00  Take your time and you will find a nice 100lber for reasonable money.  Ask the good old boys on this forum before you purchase they are more than willing to help..

Jim

PATIENCE...

Greetings H & H ,

Most events like this do not carry insurance so you must protect yourself by keeping the forge and anvil in the background...  I put my post vice towards the front because a simple twist is allways fun to demo....  Be prepaired to answer all the stupid questions... Is that hot ... My grandpa was a blacksmith ect.ect.

Keep your knives and wepons out of kids reach and your product out front...  To impress some of the  people that ask is that hot.. I take a 1/2 board put it in the vise .... Forge out a taper on a 1/2/x1/2  get it hot and pierce a hole through the board... smoke and a perfect square hole in the board is the results..  How did early settlers drill holes??    You will find that you will do more talking than forgeing.  Nails and leaf hooks are fun but you will not have a lot of time.  You can pre forge some products and than do the finish at the demo...

Good Luck   Jim

Greetings Andy,

I'm with Cross Pien,   NEVER NEVER LEAVE THE CUT OFF IN THE HARDIE HOLE WHEN FORGING... IT HURTS.....    I suggest you fasten your anvil down better . You are trying to hit a moving target...   I got quite a kick out of you ... I never seen a smith hold the stock with tongs and move the vise...  You are doing just fine and will make progress very rapidly.   Next time try to form the eye and wrap around on the anvil .. Its easer and good practice...

You should be proud and keep a nockin

Jim

Greetings FE,

Your pulley is a common line shaft pulley design...  I have a line shaft shop and have several but larger diameter..  Most of the time they have a split locking hub inside...  I suggest you take it apart and look and measure....    You can try looking on ebay under line shaft or flat belt or hit and miss engine...   Try your local early engine clubs for a sorce...

Good luck

Jim

Greetings Curley,

Nice find...   The Pexto sheet metal anvil alone is worth   150.00 American..   A man can never have too many vises...

Jim

Greetings Wesley,

Tit for Tat..... I made 2 of your pritchel hole nail headers today...  They work super..... Thanx   one square and one round

Jim

Greetings Wes,

I guess the best compliment I could make is ..  I could work next to him...     On the resizing jig I mentioned.... A fixed round on a  plate.. with a hole drilled in the plate to match your chain link oval....  forge a  taper round the same diameter..   put your link on the fixed round and use the taper as a lever to form your link...  Works for me...

Keep a knockin....

Jim

Ya got a whole lot of blacksmiths backing you up...  You will do well...   Prayers from Michigan....  

Jim

Greetings Westley,

You are indeed a skilled blacksmith...   And you look good on camera....    I have done a  few links myself on this scale...  What I did was to simply scarf the ends of the straight stock...  than turn into a circle on the horn.. ...  forge weld on the horn   easier to do with a  larger ID...   THAN  ,,  with a  small lever jig that is just one fixed round bar  and another used as a lever to make them oval..   You can make 3 oval in one heat..  It also test your welds...

Good luck with the house  and roadshow...

Jim

Greetings,

Take a close look and it looks like a casting seam...  I feel if you try to reforge this it will crumble...   Tap the head with a ball pien and if it sinks and pock marks it is probably cast....   You can also spark test the stem...  You don't get  much for 5 bucks.... 

Good luck    Jim

Greetings Ox,

If you look at the picture that John was nice enough to put up..   Your blower has a wishbone strap and the counterweight that returns the arm.  I have the earlier model that the rachet is a grab and release on the outside hub...

Jim

Greetings Pulse,,

Keep them both... You never know when you shop grows and you want more than one location...   Or you may want to swap one for that other piece of blacksmith stuff....  swedge blocks... flypress...ect....

Daaa I got 20      Jim

If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck its a duck.   Its a farriers anvil by Trenton....  Flip her over and look for a dish....

Jim

Greetings ,,  Mo  and Bog,

I only have a few flics of my flypress available at this time....   I have alot of tooliing for special operations and it would take all day send pictures to you...  All it would accomplish is questions on how I use them...

Jim

Greetings Bog,

Sure you can draw on your flypress...  It depends on the weight and style... Flywheel   ball  weight.....  First make some offset dies..  about  3in w  2in deep

and 2 1/2 high..  with about a 4in radius top...    Off set so you can get long stock through the throat...   You can make combo dies with a flat...   One trick is to limit your travel to about 2in above your dies..  If you have to spin the flywheel more than one foot it becomes work... Your arm will tell you . Keep it short.. You will find a less hard blow and more frequent will serve you better .

I hope this helps                    A picture of your press would be nice...

Jim

Too old for you...  Ya better sell it to me...  

Jim

Greetings,

Neat look....  I have made large handle pulls much like yours for refrigerator doors...  I think if it was my commission I would consider a two point mount ..  The leverage on a single point is greater than you think...  Over time even if you square tennioned the base you will find they will loosen..

Jim

Greetings,

Got a Syncrowave 250..  250 wire welder.... and My wife just bought me a 211 ..   All great preformers....  Its Miller time..

Jim

Oh and a bobcat too..

Greetings Pat,

If something falls from heaven on me I sure don't want it to be a Parker....    You must have moved just in time.... Your a very lucky boy

Jim

Greetings Frank,

Just think of the thousands and thousands of blacksmiths that proudly wear your TOUCHMARK...   

Congrats..   Jim

Greetings HS,

Like Harold said it's possable between 2  2in angles to bend 1/16 stainless....  What I've done is weld a 1/2 in round on the top of the leg of one angle ...  space the angles about 1/2 apart and proceed like Harold says..   Slow but it works....    Another thought is to make a 11 inch box and weld a 10 in round flange to it...   

lots of grunt work     Good luck      Jim

Greetings Ken / Chuck

I have always known this Champion forge as to be a millitary unit... I dont know the year or when it was made.  I think why I disliked them the most is that they are very short and you have to bend over to crank them... The gearing and blower operation does not build inertia...   No flywheel...    I have never seen to my knowlege a Empire forge ... Buffalo made a millitary of sheet metal with every thing in a box..  I had one and I know where one is for sale...

Thats what I got,

Jim

Pictures of a Empire might refresh the old boys memory

Greetings guys,

I still think it was named after Wiley E. Hardie...the Roadrunners buddy     BEEEP    BEEEEP