Dan C

Those are nice tools and I like your style. Later he'll look back on this and cherish the time spent. Happy Father's Day.

Thanks for asking. About 6 hrs on the knives and then 2 hrs at least for the sheath, probably more like 3. I hadn't done a stacked double sheath before and lost track of the time. The picture above was not the sheath for this one as the buyer wanted a double sheath. I'd like this setup better had they both been matching file knives, but this is what the customer asked for. I haven't delivered them yet, but sent the buyer pictures with my price of $170 which he felt was a fair price and is excited to see them. I have to build a better grinder in the very near future, probably a 2x72. Currently I'm using a 1x30 cheap HF one, it works but is slow and then I spend too much time doing stuff by hand. Then I'm torn between selling something for what I feel I'd pay and trying to get compensated for my time.

Depends on you, your ability to fabricate, weld, bank account and if you are going to need an anvil, vise & other tools. Here's a link to my setup. I would like to make a side draft hood for it in the future vs. always making sure I'm upwind. It would also shield sunlight as I use it outdoors. Other than that it works great, plenty of room to heat something long like a rockbar. I would suggest getting the largest brake drum you can and line it which helps with fuel efficiency. '?do=embed' frameborder='0' data-embedContent>> If you can you'd want to get the 2" pipes as drops from an irrigation company that would save you money vs. plumbing supply. I probably have $30 or less invested in my forge. The angle iron was scrap from a demolished fire pit that I got for free. Ugly yes, working great and does most of what I need.

Here's a link to my setup. I would like to make a side draft hood for it in the future vs. always making sure I'm upwind. It would also shield sunlight as I use it outdoors. Other than that it works great, plenty of room to heat something long like a rockbar. I would suggest getting the largest brake drum you can and line it which helps with fuel efficiency. '?do=embed' frameborder='0' data-embedContent>>

Well at least today I DIDN'T miss a sale. The woman who wanted a knife for her husband for tomorrow did get in touch with me. And I updated my listing on CL to include a contact #. Good suggestion Bauce!

I put what they suggested at Tandy to the test, which was using a cloth to apply the dye or stain vs. one of those applicators. As you can see in the picture, the top sheath has a streaked look, it was done with an applicator. The bottom double sheath was done by putting dye on a cloth and the rubbing it evenly onto the leather.

Here is my setup. You can see I have a small work area that's carved out of my garage. I roll the forge outside to work. When walking from the forge to the anvil the horn points off to my left, just in case I did something dumb I don't jab myself. It sounds like we're setup very similar. FYI, I'm not good at it yet, but when I forge weld I drag the RR track anvil outside vs. using my main anvil. Too many sparks for my taste, maybe in the future I'll put sheet metal on the wall there. The rose bush would probably have to go, that wouldn't sit well w/ my wife.

One thing I did, as suggested in the Backyard Blacksmith, is arrange my forge, anvil & postvise in a triangle and everything is within 1-2 paces. The horn of the anvil is turned towards the outer part of the triangle so I won't inadvertently back into it. While the horn on mine was blunted I still don't want to jab myself with it. Good suggestions above, the stock you're handling would definitely play a factor. I do mostly small stuff, knives, gardening tools etc.

Those are good looking tools! I have the hot cut on my to-do list and it's good information above about it's cutting edge. Like you, I'll be doing it with a 4 lb hammer though starting from a jack hammer bit should cut down on some of the work. Frosty - what do you mean by this in regards to blunting? "I don't do it except for butchers and area section isolation sets" I'm not following you.

Would missed sales count? In addition to word or mouth, I use craig's list to sell stuff. Several times I've missed opportunities where I check my email, someone wants an item, but it's too late as they've left town, or found a different present because I didn't respond fast enough. I only thought of this one because someone just emailed me asking me for a knife for Father's Day tomorrow. Maybe I'll get lucky this time and be able to connect with them.

It's a partial tang. I drilled a hole in the antler, then dug it out so the tang would fit and epoxied it in. Send me a PM if you have anymore questions on it. Tim, I like how you left the hammer marks on this one. Keep the videos & pictures coming. I sold a bottle opener like the one you made in that other video today. 2nd one like that now that's sold, it's good to share ideas! Dan

hmm...is that an insult, as a former jarhead I'll have to think about that one and get back to you. Things hhappen in a blink of an eye. You hear often about how the grinder is one of the most dangerous tools in the shop, these are good reminders. Not smithing related, but one tool that I didn't give enough respect to is the air compressor. I went to my neighbor's to borrow his power washer and one of the tires is flat. He hands me the end of the compressor hose with an air jack and a pair of pliers saying I'll need them. Stupid me, I should've stopped right then and asked why, I didn't must be the Marine in me...couldn't pass up that one. Anyway some of y'all probably see where this is going but as the tire is full I realize the air jack is stuck on the tire, so get the pliers and start to twist the jack off. At that moment the wheel the tire is on explodes and my left hand take the impact, breaking 4 bones and blood everywhere. Sometimes when driving I'll play the what if game, if the car in front of me does this what should I do. Had I been thinking of potential risks I would've asked my neighbor why I needed pliers to fill the tire and then could've used mine instead, or maybe when it was stuck, shut off the compressor so it didn't keep filling.

The name definitely fits. Just wondering if there are other IFI members who would live close enough to help make the video. I know if I lived close enough I'd jump at the chance to see it in action.

There's a lot of good information on this site regarding resources and how to shop around. If you're not familiar with metal shops for stock you will be. They have drop zones that sell steel at scrap metal price. Something I didn't know when I built my forge was irrigation companies will have cut offs too. As you noticed, I cut and then welded the T-section of my tuyere which saved a little. When you can before you drop some coin on something search the forum, it's almost certain that someone else ran into the same situation and posed the question.

Thank you, those videos were very done and helpful to answer my previous questions. What sort of acid solution do you soak them in after the heat treat and for how long? Does that also give them the darkened finish?

Looks nice, each time you'll get better and better. I decided to remove & straighten the bottom edge on mine during profiling, which makes sharpening easier. Here are some of mine where you can see what I mean. How are you hardening yours? I quench in ice water and then only do a minimum temper of 325' for an hour. I don't do too much cleanup on these, going for a more primitive look. I'm working with old files now, the profiling & grinding that I learned while working with spike kso was beneficial. The forging & HT'ing is obviously different. Here's what I made my dad for Father's Day. I took it over to him at lunch, which we spent sharpening knives. I now have a bald spot on my left arm.

A little off subject from the original question, but would you expect the heel of the anvil to have the same rebound as the face? The reason I ask is mine has ~80% rebound but the heel seems dead and the ring is different. There's also a couple of torch marks on the heel which would explain the difference.

LOL yes, but if we can learn from each others mishaps maybe we'll have fewer incidents in the future. Plus you know there's some good stories out there to tell. I'm sure no one would ever embellish...

I live in Central Texas, but the prices for anvils down here is expensive (or so I thought at the time) I had a co-worker who was from Pennsylvania planning on moving his stuff down in a few months that offered to bring one down from there is I could find it. I searched the Pittsburgh cl for a few weeks and then found one that looked good, a 190lb unknown maker for $250. I called & talked with the seller who emailed me more pictures, held the phone up to the anvil while he tapped it. The ring from the base and the pictures, at least to me confirmed it was wrought iron and very likely a Peter Wright. The man was very considerate and promised to hold onto it until I could find a way to get it down here. At least 3 months later, eventually everything lined up and we were able to get it down on a moving truck. As a thank you for holding onto it when he could've easily sold it to someone else I forged a RR spike kso for him which he was delighted to receive.

What are some of the oops, gotcha moments that you've done that others could either laugh at or learn from? Could either be a close call with a safety issue or messed up a project. Either way you learned from the experience and by sharing others could too. My list is long, some examples would be I find myself resting my hand on the post vise while waiting for something to heat in the forge, bad idea after clamping down on hot steel. Another that doesn't involve pain is at the end of the day when there's not enough time to forge, but want to be productive, sharpening a knife and use the anvil as a chair while watching the sunset, then realize I'm still wearing good pants, oops. My most serious one involved welding. I know better than try to rush things, was trying to quickly weld something and did it in an area of my garage that wasn't fire proofed. Sparks smoldered and ignited some paper after I'd gone back inside, fortunately I came back out to a smoke filled garage and put it out, the result could've been much much worse. The next day I installed one of these First-Alert-SA710CN-Photoelectric-Sensor as well as revisiting the garage for potential risks and slapping myself in the head anytime I think of trying to just do something quick again.

As many have already stated, I love the forged look! Unless this information is already posted somewhere else, what steps did you follow to get this look? To me the bowie appears to have both a hammered and ground bevel, correct?

I was at Tandy Leather yesterday and asked them this question. The guy recommended not using those little applicators that they sell and instead using something like an old rag or t-shirt. He gets the dye on the cloth and using small circles rubs it into the leather. Supposedly this doesn't result in the streaks that you get with the applicators. I haven't yet had a chance to try this, but will in the next few days.

Wow, talk about a steal! That is a dream deal that you made, congratulations!

The grog only needs to line the brake drum and leave the area of the tuyere open enough so you weld in a new grate from time to time.

ASO or not, I'd give it a shot and try you hand at forging. Make some things, have some fun and sell them. Save some of the money you make in case this one doesn't work out. And there's always alternatives as mentioned, I started on a RR track anvil and still find use for it today.