dablacksmith

i carry a leaf key fob i made about 15-20 years ago i use it as a example of small stuff i make.

power hammers are nothing but a bigger mussle that dosnt wear out... if you cant forge a power hammer just proves it and can hurt you... but if you like working in bigger stock (anything bigger than 1/2 inch) they are almost mandatory . Ive been forgeing for 25 years and havnt always had a hammer... most of what i make i dont need one but .. it limits what i can economically make . I will have one running soon and am looking fowards to it. As far ans beginners useing um i can understand it . I have a couple of friends that have a fairly weak arm ...And some of them will never be able to swing a hammer like i do but they can still work bigger iron with a trip hammer . as far as "tradition" ive heard this argument many times but ... hammers are traditional! trip hammers go back in history in the americas to the 17th century ! and much earlier in europe! and all ironwork was at one time or another "industrial" if you read the book "pounding out the profits" you will see that power hammers were used for many things some of them fairly small (knife blades). so i figure when i hear the argument about tradition that the person dosnt really know history .. the first mechanical hammer built similar to a little giant was patented in 1866. prior to that trip hammers and steam hammers were in abundance ! now your village blacksmith might no have had a hammer... he had 3 aprentices in stead ! also he was not doing a lot of makeing he was more a repair man..

nice work ! have you tried the forge welded style yet? Ive been makeing tommahawks and axes for years and that is a good drifted eye! you might try (on the next one) to pull some metal down on the eye to form "ears".. it isnt easy but it really looks good and adds a bit to the stability of the axe head into the handle . have fun!

i make forks, spoons and knifes for the mountian mes as well as earlier reinactments . this is a area you can defenetly youse your emagination ! the styles and types of period forks and spoons is spectacular and while irln spoons arnt as common ive seen enough of them to make the available .. the nicer ones were highly forged and filed bright ! you could put rams head or dragons or ..... on the end .I currently make mine from 1/4 square but it takes a bit of work to get that forged out wide enuf for a spoon . for starters you might try 1/4 x1/2 flat bar . you can decorate the handles with punches chizles or filework.. you will need some type of depression to forge the spoon into .. i have made one to fit hardy hole .I used a chunk of 2 in sq forged it to fit hearty cut it off so 3/4 of a inch was sticking above . Used a ball piene as a set tool to make a ball shaped depression forge it to one side to give the spoon shape . Finished with a die grinder (or dremell) . These items sell to the public also! i also make a spork (spoon on one end fork on other) and its a big hit ! good luck

I have to agree after takeing one apart completely and looking at it closely they were never meant to seal... they are a lot like other tools of theyre time and work on the total loss system your were supposed to oil them daily. the grease would be good but might slow the cranking a bit .. have fun

that is a great first rr spike tommahawk! if i can make a suggestion you might want to use a hot chizel to start the hole then use a drift to finish it... you end up with more meat around where the handle is going thru also you can use drift left in hole to draw down more of the side to give the eye area more "height" . good luck!

atmosferic do not require power for a blower ... but run higher pressures and seem to be harder to get running "just right" blower type forges are simpler to setup and run and dont require as high a pressure to work .ive played with bolth and if you have electricity to your shop i would go with blower .. but that is my opinion and i am sure others will have other opinions..

the most comon sword steel is 5160 . in america you can purchase it at a lot of places amrality steel is one that is on the web . heat treating is kinda tough for swords as they are a long heat ... you might check with your local industry car and spring manafacturers .they will usually harden and temper for a fee and have the heating and qunching tanks to do the job right . Make sure you let them know that the blades have been forged and need to be anealed or at least normalized before hardening .they can probably provide a suplyier for the the spring steel also ... good luck!

i like donald streeters book called professional blacksmithing for a how to. for early lighting colonial and early american lighting.will list others soon

and the speed control from a sewing machine wont handle the power needed for a power hammer...that is why a lot of rigs use slack belt or clutch...anything that can control the speed on a 1/2 hp or bigger electric motor is gona be costly..not sure the shock is gona work but it can be done without a big cost so try it !if you dont like the dampening action later try drilling a hole is the shock oil resevor and draining it... you would then have the spring without shock absorber .basic dezigh looks good tho.... good luck!

ya jerry has a wonderful shop and is a good smith ... has taught a lot of smiths in the nw.. I think i will be in wyoming at that time but should be a good time!

ya weather can ruin the best demos.... but they will remember the crazy blacksmith next year!!

this is a interesting thread! i had seen posts on various boards from "paw paw" and knew he had passed but didnt know the contributeing factor! ive known about zinc for a long time ... i worked at a sprinkler fitter shop and had the shop foreman try to tell me zink fumes wernt a problem... then a few weeks later they had a fancy new fume vacume for parts being welded in zinc coated pipe (probably did some research and realized the liability) .. its something that can sneak up on ya ...

well i looked at Uri Hofi blueprints and there are a few things i agree with wholeheartedly his decription of hitting steel with the handle loose in the hand and allowing the rebound bring the hammer back up is dead on! I looked at how he holds the hammer tho and i dont think i could do that ... I think if i had learned that style from the begining it would be good tho..also the pien is a intrigal part of hammering as a blacksmith! you should learn to use it as it allows you to do a lot of things and works steel faster ! ie still a little fuzzy on the balanced thing but to each their own... good luck!

spears are a good forgeing excersize ... they are a bit tougher than they look ... you need yo use your pien on the part that wraps around . Try not to get the edges too thin and you aught to get it .. good luck!

is that anvil close to where you live ? so you dont have to pay shipping? if so then its not to bad... its not pristine but ive used worse ..if you have to pay shipping on top of the price for it then ide pass... find sumthing local .Good luck!

hammer styles are a personal thing .... I like the sweedish pattern but i have big hands.. i see the hofi hammers and i couldnt use it there is not enuf height from hammer face to where the handle is but that is my personal preference and not for everybody .. if you like the looks of the french style hammer get one and try it... ive got a bunch of different hammers (blacksmith tend to accumulate them) and ive tride a few at hammer ins ... if it works for you then enjoy!!!

if i was going to buy a comercial belt sander/ grinder and didnt want to shell out the big bucks i would go with the grizzly ... its not as versatile as some others but the price is much more reasonable and i think you will get your moneys worth out of it ... i built my own belt sander/ grinder but unless you have good tinkering skills it will be cheaper to buy one..the 1 + hp motor and contact wheel will set you back about what the grizzly costs .. but if you have the bucks then go for one of the purpose built knife grinders they are awsome! i got to use one at a friends shop and it was nice! the variable speed is worth the extra if tou go the big bucks route.. good luck!

I believe that the champion 400 does not hold oil .... ive got 2 of them one is working in my shop the other is dissasembled to replace the bearings (they were wiped out bad) as far as i can tell there is no oil seal ... i know some guy posted on ebay blog about haveing seal but i think he was mistaken... if it runs freely i would put oil on the bearings and oil the gears thru the oiler (if its still there)...ive read that the bearings are available for these but i havnt gotten to that point yet .

ide use one larger... ive not seen anyone use 2 tho...i would go 8 in minimum...

here is a picture of the face ...i think i will leave it alone for now it is useable as is...

for some reason there is no thumnail on it.... try clicking on the x... it comes up on my comp on my anvil the face and edges are fine its the body thats really badly pockmarked (its almost a inch deep in places....) Thumbnail repaired and photo included into the post.

i picked this anvil a few years ago with the thought of possably useing it for classes but it is a old pattern and ive been looking at possably fixing it up for my demo anvil..I was told it was used by 3 generations of blacksmith for sharpening picks and the pock marks are where they tested the pick.I was thinking of welding it up with my mig ... just lay weld beads to build it back up then grind it to get it looking better ... any ideas ? by the way the face looks pretty good ... a few small dings but pretty nice considering the age...