rthibeau

What is meant by "tuning a hammer"?

I was testing how to post a photo on this website and didn't think about touching up the photo. It didn't occur to me that most photos could use a touchup until Glenn mentioned it.

I recently scored some 4", 6", and 8" channel iron in up to 8' lengths. It was free so it came home with me. The problem now is, what do I do with it? I already have cranes and hoists built, so what else can someone suggest? Most of it is really heavy duty stuff.

I have 200 amp service to my shop (twice what goes to the house) so power isn't a problem. For 24'x30' space I have 7 overhead four foot flourescents for area lighting and each major tool (grinder, sander, band saw, etc) has its own attached light. Each light fixture can be individually controlled, so I can adjust the lighting to whatever level is needed. There are extra work lights also if needed. The overhead lights are usually all that I need, but I figured when I was wiring the shop, more is better and the materials were available, so I probably went a little overboard. As an example, I have 220v outlets with 4 differently configured receptacles, don't know how that happened. :roll: I agree that you get used to the lighting level you have and seeing colors is all relative anyhow, just as long as it's consistent.

So Glenn, exactly what did you do to the photo, which I should have done myself???

Scrounging presents to entice cooperation Edit: photo reworked.

I heard about it on another website as a product to hide the sanding/grinding highlights on steel, so I bought some in various colors. It comes in small tins that look a lot like shoe polish and like polish, you can apply it with your fingers, a cloth, or brush. It acts more like a stain than a paint, but I think polish is closer to the way it really acts. It will cover the metal, dry, and then you can buff it out to a nice shine or leave it flat looking. The manufacturer recommends using a UV resistant clear coat after it's dried for durability and protection. It's supposed to leave a pretty good protective coating and of course whatever clear coat you use will improve that. You can put it on cold metal or metal that's not too hot to hold onto bare handed. If you spread it on the metal then wipe it off with a cloth immediately, it will fill in and color the low spots leaving the high spots untouched. I've used an old brush to really rub it into the cracks and crevices, let it dry, then buffed it and come up with a really nice sheen of whatever color it was. It comes in metallic colors as well as black, red, green, etc. It's another way to finish or color metal.

I recently got some gilders paste in various colors from AS&P Distribution [info@gilderspaste.com] and just used it on a few projects. It looks like shoe polish and you can rub it on with your fingers or brush it on. The colors are pretty true and the best part is when it dries (in only a few minutes) you can buff it to smooth out the finish and even get it to shine a little. It works to cover up the grinding/flap disk shine, too. Good stuff and goes a long ways.

Does anyone know when the Mayer Bros started putting all the lettering on the flywheel of their hammers? Every one I've seen has all this lettering, some nicely cleaned up and painted, but mine doesn't have a marking anywhere on the flywheel or clutch. It has the serial number 148 on the front side of the frame and the Mayer Bros logo on each rear side. Mayhaps mine has been replaced?

I remember coming back from overseas (Germany) when I was in the Army and had a layover in New York City's LaGuardia airport. I went to the cafeteria to get lunch and a bottle of beer. I hunted for 10 minutes for a bottle opener somewhere and finally asked the checkout girl where it was. She took the bottle out of my hand, twisted the cap off and handed it back to me with a strange look. Only about 50 people were staring at me and all I could think of was "Wow, twist off caps, what will they think of next??" Not many years earlier I resorted to a pair of pliers to open a can of soda from a machine (no more pull tabs).

Hello, everyone. I've always had an interest in blacksmithing, but never had the chance to do anything with it until I settled down in one place. I spent twenty years in the US Army and worked different places along the eastern coast for several years thereafter. Finally, my wife and I moved to her home area in NW Lower Michigan where I/we plan to stay. I've been involved with blacksmithing about five years now and have set up my own shop, Dancing Frog Forge, with both a gas and coal forge. Just recently I got a 50lb Little Giant power hammer. Until that, I was almost breaking even selling iron work to pay for toys, eh, tools and necessary equipment. I've learned a lot from this and other websites. Looking forward to learning more and helping others if I can. The Dancing Frog is the weather vane on top of the shop.