Doug C

I make a beehive fire and poke a hole in the front. put the stock in and bring to an orange heat. Pull out, brush, apply borax. Put stock back in the fire. When you are looking at the fire in the beehive you will see three shades of yellow. Heat the iron, using a low air flow, until it is the same as the of the three colors you see in the fire. The surface of the steel also looks oily. When you pull the stock out it should be smoking pretty well (that's the Borax burning off). Use lights hits down the center of the area to weld. Brush at orange, apply more flux, repeat process for entire surface to weld. I also find I get a stronger weld if I work the welded area at a near welding heat. Working it cooler than that seems to cause the welds to fail for me.

From a safety perspective I think standing is better. If he needs to move quickly it is easier to do when your already on your feet. Ear protection is something to think about. Tent pegs are a good, simple starting project, s hook, drive-hook. STart working the skills that will get him towards a toasting fork or better yest make a steak turner. Lot's of drawing out, bending and twisting. give him a piece of stock and see how far he can draw out the last three inches. I bet by Christmas he'll be making all the gifts he needs to give.

Welcome to IFI. There is lots to 'listen' to on this site and the chat as well. Lot's of smart people, lots of good people.

Reel - a type of dance

Feel........

Welcome aboard. Almost too much info to absorb. How good is that. I have a son going to Syracuse. Doesn't look that far away on the map.

Nice pattern on the blade. Never seen one like that.

Cooper, What tools are you looking for. I have some old coopering tools I mean to use again someday that I could photograph and get dimensional data for you. They are all from the period your interested in, give or take a decade or two.

Hey Atomic, You and your dad are on my list. Keep thinking good thoughts.

Have you got a picture of one? I would be interested in trying to make a few.

Frosty, Thanks for the pics. That helps explain things a bit more. I really like the extension on your forge that holds the ready tongs. I like that rack / work space. Maybe having something like that the right of the anvils heel will keep the hammers close enough to suit me. Time to move tweak the triangle again and update the plans for the forge to include a removable tong / hammer rack.

Frosty and everyone else, Do you park your hammers at the end of the forge? I have mine on the anvil stand but I am not sure I like them there. I hate having to hang over the anvil to get the right one if I change my mind while the iron is hot and I don;t like them knocking my knees on the near side.

m_brothers, This looks super. The pictures are great and are a help for me figuring out what I am going to do for mine. By the way, you practicing to be a farrier on that horse!

Welcome. It is nice to see folks from the world over coming here. You might want to click on the UserCP link and update your location information. That seems to help a lot around here especially in finding local folk who can help with equipment or technique or just finding other local smiths.

There is a 150# Peter Wright for sale in Southern New Hampshire (chester) for $300. The heal has a big gouge on it and some of the typical chipping found on older anvils. The rest of the face is in reasonable shape. I have pictures if anyone is interested. The owner may be willing to go a little lower in price. Anvil 150# Peter Wright

Thanks for all the info on this. I have some good ideas on how to get started now. where the pipe passes through the exterior wall what is the best way to safely do this to avoid fire? Is there a preferred method? I am not sure I want to let the town in on my little secret. I live 1/4 mile out of the town center and zoning law in town are a bit stricter. They may frown on a coal forge more than my neighbors.

After digging through all the posts here there seems to be a consensus about using at least 10 inch pipe for the chimney of a forge. All the stove shops around here have 8 inch or less. Where would I find the 10 or 12 inch pipe every one feels is best? Should I use insulated, galvanized versus stainless? My budget is limited. Also I was thinking of doing the chimney in the fashion done by Uri Hofi at his school with the square side draft chimney with the round pipe going up off of that. Anyone got a good design they want to share?

James, Thanks for that bit of info. This will be my first winter forging. It is a 20 X 20 unheated shed so any way to get some extra radiant heat will be good I am sure. Probably will stick with coal because I do not have the time to make my own charcoal and the coal is more economical around here.

I know that Strawberry Bank in Portsmouth, NH has a cooper named Ron Raiselis. I spent a weekend working with him using his grandfathers tools. He said that his grandfather used bought rivets and they were forged cold as were the hoops. That is how we did it that weekend. He is a good guy and would probably be willing to answer questions. strawbery banke

Welcome Kris. Lots to learn and lots of experienced hands here. I get something from this site every day.

Howdy Rhyfelwr , Welcome aboard. If you go to the User CP link at the top of the page and fill in your location info it may help others when answering your questions. May be someone nearby that could come over and help with a problem or vise a versa.

I don't intentionally tap the anvil though I have caught myself doing it if I am hammering rhythmically. One smith I worked with gave me the dickens for rhythmic hammering. Said that it caused you to hammer more than you needed or not where needed because you naturally want to keep the rhythm instead of turning the piece.

This really is nice. I agree with Justin the transition from the blade to the handle is elegant.

Maybe I should break my shoulder to if it would help me do work that nice!

beer..................