Bryce Masuk

The true beauty of blacksmithing is the fact everything is open nothing is set,

your grasp of design or personal set way's are the only limit in what can be made and how it can be made

some dislike welding others use it as a method and not an overwhelming and as the only method of joining metals

in the end accuracy is accuracy your ability to produce what you desire on paper in reality.

this a very important aspect of building anything someone on here had a signature that said "there can be no art without craftmanship"

Things that interest me greatly are nature, the human figure, and the abstract which is always based on nature or man made objects in a natural way.


The human mind can find a link between anything, it doesnt matter what it is it never ceases to amaze me, the golden ratio is probley the most overrated number in reality, using it in perfect form does not entirely please me or suit all situations

art is one thing that is very distorted in many ways most people seem to think that being an artist is some innate god given gift, I dont think this can be true.

art is about KNOWING and making what you know into reality anyone can throw a curve or sketch,
being to see it clearly is a matter of understanding and determination.

What do you think, how do you design things, where do you draw your resources from?

in this modern age we have the internet which like television can be used as an amazing tool, or a it can produce a useless drooling blob at the helm of clicking buttons.


How many hours per day do you sketch? many times i have dissatifying results on paper in details but the forms come easier and easier,

but its ok because I can make 30 drawings after work and not be entirely happy with them but the next time pen hits paper it seems they remind my hand what it truly desires,

you could make many different designs in a similar way i can see,

your drawing of the tool set is excellent very beautiful,

using flat bar as a spring seems like it would center the dies better than round bar.

Sweet deal she still looks like new

if sure you will get your money worth of out that puppy (if you already havent)


you do some nice work mr dave browne my uncle lives in the san diego area I can picture the kinds of jobs you get down there the houses are pretty amazing before the iron is on them... lol

A few years ago there were more conversations about "shop rate". People couldn't understand why some shops had such high rates. They thought they could do fine on $35.00 or 50.00. That's only true if you got a steady business. And of course now they're charging even less just hoping to bring in a little work. Well, this downturn is a deep one, but there has always been boom times and bust. Now you can understand a little more about why the "big boys" charge what they do. It helps to get them through the hard times. And they can even cut their prices and still make money. Ya gotta make fat money in fat times, 'cause lean times always come.

No doubt dont forget about minor fixes that typically get added on to things,

a average small metal shop has 3-4 guys working in it

that means if each guy works 40 hours a week x 4 you have 160 x employees or 480 hours per month with 3 guys if shop rate is 100 per hour you "could" make 48 000 per month minus all your expenses which is probley in the range of at least 12 000 per month in "things" like rent and consumables, gasoline, power

and another 12 000 at least to employees and insuring them


minus another 4800 bucks to typical mistakes/pleasing the customer this also covers to a certain extent "shop time" like swapping blades and finding missing pieces of steel

you might be able to make 20 k per month if you keep the train on the rails and really know your work

Honestly most failures have to do with personality's than with reality


People lose faith in themselves and stop trying because they find they are unsuccessful

if work doesnt come to you, you must go to it

sometimes when you fail ten times in row you figure its just not going to happen, you can never look at it that way

a problem I find is I want more tools but I dont NEED them I can work with a hacksaw and file and still make money if required

if your overly focused on capabiltys that you cant utilize then you are living in a fantasy world

people who fail to back themselves with money, are similar to people who dont have a stockpile of food or water.

and the reality is few people ever think about saving money unless its for retirement or a home, people never save because they might be out of a job at some point.

Question from a newbie.

Can someone explain how this hammer works, ie;, how power is transmitted from motor to ram and how stroke, etc. is controlled?
Have decent understanding of Little Giant style hamers and steam hammers.

Really enjoyed the way the Nazel worked.
Hammer just went from "nice to have" to "Must have".

Thanks

Marshall

do a simple search on "self contained pneumatic hammer"

the hammer is actually a very simple device if this is a square...

it makes any automobile engine look like a spiders web

I will describe this in the simplest way i can because my own knowledge is limited

a low rpm motor turns a large pulley (in some cases its a series of arms much like a train this is less effective because of the fact you lose centrifugal motion from the pulley

the beats per min are determined by the rpm at the crankshaft

a large piston pumps on the first side this is the compressor

on second side (called the tup) the anvil is below and the dies lock into the tup and the sow block below

a valve is in between the two cylinders and is actuated by a foot treadle or in some cases a pull down by hand

the beauty of a pneumatic hammer is the fact you should be able to hit lighter than with your hand and at a pace faster and with a harder push of the treadle you should be able to hit harder than you can with a sledgehammer and faster then a human can do it

all without adjusting the machine you can also have the hammerhead move thoughout its range without it contacting at all

typically these hammers last forever as long as the frame isnt cracked it can be fixed, a small unit 40kg tup typically weights 2000lb's + and the hammer will take up about 18 inches wide and 35 inches long for a anyang unit without a base

a large hammer can weight an incredible amount

a self contained hammer must have air pressure on both sides of the tup always so it can cushion itself before it would over extend and bottom out so there is always power lost to this

as the hammer runs it continually gets hotter (until you turn it off) The hammer itself has absolutely no cooling system other than the metal disapating the heat and the movement of air,

meaning the air it draws in on the compressor side will expand more and more the hammer will then compress this air in the same volume of chamber generating more force on the tup side

why? because the air its drawing in is colder than inside the hammer the air must expand as it is compressed because of the heat

now if the hammer was run hard continually we must also think of what is happening to this tup side it is also warming up but not only that that its generating its own backpressure because when the tup hits the metal in the die the air that cushions it therefore must be compressed again,

this air must run though the system again because if it exited the system quickly the hammer would surely bottom out

essentially pneumatic hammers are farily simple but they require complex calculations and very specific setup in order to control them


(correct me if i am wrong on any of this, because its quite possible I made a mistake)




here is a few of my personal idea's from what I have seen in industry as well as my own experimentation with linear motors

hopefully in the future if the demand is there we will see a fully electronic hammer in the future

I know for a fact in the plastic molding industry they have massive electromagnetic molding machines capable of 500 tons of pressure at incredible rates of speed though the range of motion

adaption of a linear motor to a powerhammer could easily be done by a knowledgable and practical engineer
it would be simpler to build than a self contained pneumatic hammer and more controlable, it should also be able to offer a few things a self contained pnematic hammer cant do at all, adjustable BPM, much greater bpm, as well as flawless single blows even clamping blows

a smaller hammer could do more work because using this method the tup should be able to accelerate much quicker
but the hammer would require a much greater height in order to be effective because of the nature of the system

even a twin hammer could prove to be the best solution

ultimately though, once would be starting from scratch and applying it to this application

you fixed her up right it looks great now

the 1b is a good size it can still be moved without a crane lol

seems like the 1b cycles slower than the saymak or anyang

I have been meaning to ask how was the outer frame made?

it almost looks like it was welded in one of the pictures

do you forge these then weld them together?

or are they cut on a plasma table for convinence?

it must be heavy lol

I reread my post jed hopefully you didnt take that as me calling you uninformed, I concider myself to be the uninformed

Well here is an update

I have began building a www.gottrikes.com style bender

I have several concepts for the bike figured out but i almost want to make it into a trike lol

Im just kidding but its going to really low slung the back bone is going to have a big curve to it in fact I am figuring that I can probley bend it so that its also the downtube and the backbone

I have many more hours of figuring before I start cutting into dom

The main thing is I have a concept defined, now i need to put it into scale and make the drivetrain fit

I need to decide on forks though because if i dont i may end up regretting it


the bonus side is the power hammer base is pretty much done its all tacked up and about 1/4 welded if that...

the only problem i had was running out of welding wire and then the nozzle was too tight on the diffuser on my welder
so when i unscrewed the nozzle the diffuser came out of the conductor tube. the threads were shot in the conductor tube i loctited them awhile ago but i guess the heat melted that.

eventually i just cut though the liner im going to buy some parts tomorrow
on ebay I found a wicked deal on a bernard q400 gun for 65 bucks brand new I couldnt turn that down lol
i figure I will fix the crappy magnum torch and put it on the shelf because as i have found a 400 amp gun wont fit in everywhere

tomorrow will be a even better day

Rory,

The copper is a nice touch, great tip on the plunger. I'm sure they will be very pleased.

Looks great may I ask how did you get the worn/scale peened type look on the large parts of the frame?
its very consistant and I like the look

do you allow the material to naturally rust or apply an acid?

I have admired your family work in the past

dad has taught you well :)

I like it you did a good job on the pipe and cover.

wow that is heavy duty!

I am interested to see how the rams and arms will move about

you could probley bend anything on that with the right attachments

plus to boot you could jig a trophy truck tube chassis on it as it sits


been saving steel for this one for awhile I bet

Hey Im no slugging advocate,

if you think nothing dodgey happens in shipyards or anywhere anything is made than your fooling yourself


Does anyone rember where most ships in the world are built isnt it that country close to china?
KOREA I think is the name of it.

they treat all their workers fairly right? they would never try and cover up a mistake before someone noticed it!

You should make a pipe for it hehe


its a robin engine I have heard they are pretty decent

either way its all about the fun

I have seen guys holding extra rods in hand but usually its because they are in confined spaces and cant reach more rods,

some guys have them so they can weld nearly without stopping with a stick

this stig trick sounds about as intelligent as loading numerous rods into the stinger and welding with all of them at once you might as well use a bigger rod and its probley cheaper that way too

and slugging is common place in the shipyards

the fitters dont weld they just fit and the welder has to weld it they could careless about a I 1/2 inch gap GOOD LUCK filling that with a stick

imagine the stress on the boat after you welded a 1/2 inch gap once it shrink's there will be hell to pay but like I said its common place engineers must account for this somehow otherwise nearly every large boat would be at the bottom of the ocean

Great lesson for folks who can't afford to buy things. There was a time when crafty people could or would make anything they needed. It actually does appear to be a cutting torch, it has a mixer at the bottom and an oxy control further up.

Looks like something you would see in mexico now a days or any 3rd world country

not to knock it if it works use it thats my motto, it must have been tricky to get it working

whoever made it has my respect


I debated making a atomic hydrogen torch, I dont have enough time or the machine for the torch but I still really want an atomic hydrogen welder

I dont really have a use for it but I am sure I can find one like welding 4 inch steel plate or welding tungsten plates which I have never ever seen in person, but i am sure they are around probley in the dumpster at nasa

Now that i think about it you would probley have to have tungsten rollers to roll out tungsten plate.... hmmmm

you shouldnt need a jig

but it wouldnt hurt

check out this guys website he has some decent information for the uninformed on chassis building he also does japanese bikes and shows you how to make a simple tubing bender with the rear drum of a ford festiva

http://www.thefont.info/contents.htm

We will see what it turns out to be when it is done

I will try my best as always to use the best techniques I can

but the reality is I havent done it before which means I will over look something hopefully only one thing,

Either way, the answer is always try again


just like when mcdonalds has monopoly

The only thing I am unsure of is exactly which way I want the thing handling

typically a chopper is amazing for cruising down the highway but crap in a parking lot lol

We will see what it turns out to be when it is done

I will try my best as always to use the best techniques I can

but the reality is I havent done it before which means I will over look something hopefully only one thing,

Either way, the answer is always try again


just like when mcdonalds has monopoly ;)

I would gladly write a letter within the week for you,

I am by no means a good writer but if a little help counts its what i can offer

I managed to get a bike

get the engine running

pulled the motor

the frame has flashing wrapped around a few sections with jb weld underneath

plan is to build the frame

and THEN make all the tin stuff and make it all work

the motor is a honda 750 four I picked up the bike minus numerous parts i didnt need (seat lights gas tank)
cost me 175 bucks with a title so i am set

I ordered tony foale's motorcycle chassis book

waiting for this to come along with bettering my knowledge of physics i am hoping to design a excellent frame or at least a poorly designed frame that is well made will suit my needs,

I am with you.... I basically have to be working on someones stuff 40-50 hours a week to keep the shop afloat. I do lots and lots of things that are not what I would choose to do If I didnt have to pay the bills. I get frustrated that I cant afford my own time anymore, That my projects are always the ones that get set aside and that creative and fun stuff is almost always the least profitable. I do like ironwork enough that I dont see any project as terrible. I usually find something I like about even the worst projects. I do envy those who have a income outside of there metal work and the freedom to do what ever it is they like. Metal is my life... my hobby and my only income source..

What you have to remember is that any job is a job... If you didnt have a forge and have to be forging those things you dont want to forge... You could be building cars you dont want to build and be thinking about forging... Or cooking for people you dont want to cook for and thinking about forging... Or maybe even running some fancy company and dealing with a bunch of people you cant stand while thinking about forging... At least forging things you dont want to forge makes you a better smith

Pretty much

I cant stand having a job that is so boring and you hate it so much 8 hours seems to take a century
doing metalwork is they only thing for me,


Most people on here think they want to be full time blacksmiths, but the reality is it might take all the fun out of it, your not going to get to do whatever you want, your pleasing the customer you make what THEY want for YOUR price
maybe if your good enough people will want everything to your taste

and your arm will be sore either way

It takes Time, Planning and Serious effort continually to make any business run

the effort it takes to become a blacksmith that makes a good stable living with your own show, you could probley become a lawyer or doctor or engineer.

Right now isnt really a very good time to be a metalworker of most trades up here it has been hit the hardest and usually it is

why? because most metalwork is production, building new things and when people arent buying new you have no work

granted there are repair jobs everywhere but they usually arent as substantial and the jobs that are are usually Ironwork type jobs

I resolve to start 500 projects and finish 250

this years goals so far

business
finish aluminum gate project
finish bed project
finish spire table
Convert aluminum truck bed into a dumper

mine personally

build my hammer base and get it fully setup (working 3 jobs killed me for awhile)
Design and Build my chopper
Finish 8 foot tall Vase holders (for mom)
Keep improving my practical math skills
Build a Yoder style powerhammer

come up with some amazing designs for interesting projects
some geometrical type projects based on islamic geometry, art deco,
and alot of free flowing type designs

It looks cool and you got it pretty straight

it should look cool as a downtube but
I wouldnt use anything like that anywhere else that was supposed to be structural
the risk isnt worth your life,

the problem on anything with an engine that moves under power is vibration you would be amazed at what will crack from vibration since those are three separate pieces they will all be vibrating off each other even if you used solid it could still eventually crack or crack the welds because of excessive vibration,

I could be wrong but personally I would be wary of it


for my own project I was thinking if doing a celtic twist on solid it should add a nice blacksmith effect and still be safe

But only if its twisted properly this wouldnt be the time to let hairline cracks go

how about
Mod Block
OC Steel Stump
Die anvil