MooseRidge

---a teapot---

A prayer for all our military, and their families, throughout the world.... Peace and safety, and a swift return home.... MooseRidge Navy - 13 years (gone 8)

Possibly, you can find something on this site.... Free online Mechanical Engineering calculators: Fluid Flow calculators, Hydraulic Calculators, Pressure and stress calculator

Keep one as a learning/teaching tool. Then cut off small pieces as trying-it was explaining.... Or send them to me... ;)

Some of the others will need to chime in on this but..... Much of this is from memory of research but I'd recommend a trip to the library or on-line search for examples for the specific time period and style of the restoration project.... The proportions that I have seen do not vary much by time period. (Colonial vs Craftsman vs Victorian, etc...) The weight and span of the door/shutter determines the stock used, the length, and the number of hinges. The width of the door/shutter x 2/3 should be the length of the hinge from the pin. (Example 2' shutter x 2/3 equals 16 inch hinges). This is functional length with at least 2/3 of the original stock useable for drifted holes for screws/nails. Any ornamentation is extra and may require additional holes for support. An addition way to attach the hinge ornamentation is to bend back sharpened sections to use as anchors. Drive into shutter/door with wood/rawhide mallet once attached. The number of holes per hinge seems to be about 1 per 3 or 4 inches. More for wide hinges, usually staggered. The number of hinges is at least two per side, after 4' or 5', a third is added. If extremely heavy, a 4th might be added. All hinges should be same weight of stock, either identical patterns or grouped (top/bottom with middle different, top/bottom with middle two different). The hinges need to carry the full weight of the door/shutter (Plus any ornamentation, locks, hasps, windows, bars, etc...) Number of hinges and size of stock will vary based on weight of door/shutter. The support side of the hinge is also critical as that is what distributes the weight of the total door/shutter/hardware combination. In most cases, the number of support holes in the strap is equaled by the support holes in the support hinge. The shape and size of the anchor position will determine the shape of the hinge plate. My best recommendation would be to find another historic house (same type, style, time period, etc...) in your area and measure the period hardware. Then verify with the interested parties that that is what they want you to make. Pictures and sketches withe dimensions will probably be required.... Hope this helps!

a baby's diaper

Finally got all the parts and have started building my layout/jig table. Size is 3'x9' made of four .25 inch plates. They'll be bolted to the supports (flat heads), then (as time permits) .5 inch holes on 1.5 inch centers. The whole thing stands on 8 screw scaffold jacks to level the table. Will post pictures soon...

Most children's perceptions (and many adults) of blacksmith's come from movies.... Old movies (Conan the Barbarian) and new movies (Pirates of the Caribbean) show "blacksmiths" making swords or saying they did.....

An excellent dishing tool is a hardwood stump.... Take a hammer and mash out a round depression, then using a ball pein smooth the interior. Once you have heated some sheet metal, place over the depression and hammer in... use small strikes, constantly moving the hammer and metal and you form it. The wood will smoke a bit, but will diminish after several uses. Depending on the size of the stump, you should be able to get 4-10 good shapes....

Regarding a press, you form a positive and negative shape for the form you wish to make and, using a hydraulic jack, "press" the metal to form... VERY useful for adding fluting....

Armor? Having made many elbow and knee cops using only a stump and a wooden mallet, the sound is much less... Depending on the stock used, your machinest tools would make more noise.... When it get to the rivet stage, some of the critical joints were steel, but the straps were held on with Tandy 2 piece rivets.... almost silent... Much of this was done outside (and occasionally inside) barracks around the world.... ;-)

I have a wire crate in one corner of the new shop... slowly filling it up with any scrap I make or can salvage....

One question as regards size of bin is - what type of coal? Soft (bituminous) or hard (anthracite)? Each has a specific density which means 1 ton will take up a different volume of space depebding on the type of coal purchased.... On the average - soft coal is 52 lbs per cubic foot hard coal is 69 lbs per cubic foot so a ton of each will weigh 2000 lbs, but soft coal will take up 38.5 cuft and hard coal will take up 30 cuft. Cubic space is calculated as length x width x height. For the hard coal, 30 cuft could be a container 5'x6'x1' tall, 3'x4'x2.5', or 2.5'x3'x4' tall... My old coal bin is in the gallery was 15'x6'x3.5' tall, or 315 cuft. As it was soft coal, that was about 8 tons. Considering I loaded all the coal in 33 gal plastic garbage cans, slid them up a board into my truck and then dumped in the bin..... burning it in the forge was a LOT more fun! The new bin will be 10'x4'x2.5' (about 2.5 tons) and will be supplied by rail. (Live steam railroad next door, move from truck to hoppers, move by rail, empty, and return for another load.... MUCH EASIER!) Hope this helps....

Was walking by a crew crossing a road with a new drainage pipe. They were cutting through some old trolley tracks buried under the pavement. now I have two 3' pieces.... Also asked what they did with their old concrete saw blades. Guy said they have at least 3' of them in the shop. He's going to ask the boss..... NEVER hurts to ask!

Also, check any local ordinances regarding noise as regards to time. Many cities have quiet hours....

Depending on the size of your stock, heating in a propane forge will actually be quieter as you will not have to hit it as hard to move the same volume of metal.... Old mattresses make excellent sound baffles and Goodwill or a motel/hotel may have some they are throwing out.... Another way is to look at items that can be bent cold, such as courting candles....

Casket - to - coffin

Dothacker, If you could let us know where you live, there may be a forge nearby.... You should update your Profile...... Thanks! MooseRidge

I've always looked at it as a craft is something you do, art is something you make.... To practice a craft is to always be learning, practicing, experimenting.... To create art requires imagination, knowledge, and vision.... To create something from raw material, to form it to match a vision of your imagination such that others can see and appreciate that vision, is art....

Our cats are indoor only and better half will NOT entertain the thought of outdoor kitties..... And they're not use against wasps.... LOL!

Not familiar with this type.... is the blade cast? Either way, you could try cutting back beyond the break and either welding in a new blade, or slit and pin a new one in place.....

Our guild meets at the shop of the Tennessee Valley Railway Museum... Only through their good graces are we allowed on site and we keep a careful watch on others whenever we are there. The liability issue is probably greatest, followed by sabotage (even as a prank, its still sabotage), and then loss of material. If you happen to see track gangs working at a crossing and there is scrap pieces nearby, never hurts to introduce yourself, explain what you would like and why, and be ready to take no as an answer.... However, many times, by asking AFTER you have introduced yourself, you can get some of the smaller items....

I had a cave cricket problem in my old forge (look at the pictures, up on the walls).... Now its just wasps for the most part....

There are a number of ways.... As you said, casting.... Using a low temp metal (lower than steel) such as aluminum or pewter, cast a handle, then insert the tang (long end of the utensil - hidden in the handle). Cool and clean. Make a handle where the tang passes completely through the handle and exits the end. Thread the end and add a cap, or bend the end over to hold. Handle a handle, usually two piece, with a channel down the middle for the tang. Drill two or more holes through all the pieces. Use rivets or screws to secure.... There are probably other ways but these are the most common ways I know....Much will depend on the size and end-use of the item you are creating as each method has its pluses and minuses....

Thomas, BTW.... How are you called in the Society? I've retired.... Don Nikolai Nabokov MooseRidge is so much "quieter".....