ThorsHammer82

My thought was power hammer dies as well. with the second thought being a portable anvil, or loaner Anvil for someone who's just starting out.

Try taking the picture with the phone in the Horizontal position instead of vertical. That might help.

I'm amazed you got that much in Frosty the forbidden. I Feel you and I would have gotten along quite well if we were in school together.

From my take, many on here are just the continual student, absorbing and learning what they can from any and all experiences in their lives. Some are able to retain the technical detail, some the visual detail, and some the textural details. Some are good with numbers, others with words, and others with action. For me, I'm a learn by doing type, and I have a very good muscle memory. for example, The first time I went white water kayaking was about 12 yrs. ago now. I went the second time about 5 yrs ago and was still able to roll, even though I hadn't even practiced in over 5 years. I like to learn how to do things. As doing things myself if one of my passions. I like creating things. building, shaping, or even sowing. My other passion is taking metal, an otherwise non-malleable material, and making it do what I want. The first time I struck a rod in my high school welding class I was hooked. And it's been a hobbyists addiction ever since. I was the kid that took Auto shop as many times as I could in High school. Engineering and Draft, and welding. I skipped Chemistry and went straight to physics in high school, and helped the other kids in my math classes. But I have a thing with repetition and saw no point in doing homework on something I already understood well enough to explain to others. Today, I sit behind a desk and sell insurance for a living. But I have also been called (and I do not accept this title) "The king of projects", as I've always got a project I'm either working on or planning.

a gas forge will heat up a space real quick even with the doors open. That would be my choice. I ran my gas forge for a couple hours a few weeks ago and was easily cooked out of my shop within the first hour. with the 8'x8' door wide open and open gables on my 12'x16' shop and a good strong breeze going I was still standing outside the majority of the time. Luckily my anvils and post vice are outside. I don't get 0 degrees over here so I can't comment on that. But I know I would be more than willing to forge in the coldest day here with that forge running. as for you getting cold, If you are, you're not working hard/fast enough.

Mine cost me $28 from the local Propane supply. it's a 0-30 PSI regulator.

...astonishing...

Dang! if I was within 3 hrs of Frosty's I'd be taking full advantage of any help he could give me. A Frosty T burner is VERY simple and very cheap. at less that $60 for everything from regulator to breathing fire it's hard to go wrong with that.

what is the PSI of your regulator?

how big is your forge? Cubic inches inside volume (LxWxH if rectangular, rx3.14xL for cylindrical) As Thomas said, Follow someone else's design to a "T" (that's a hint) and you'll be much better off.

probably meant crank shafts.

All of those parts need to be very strong, so I'd say they would all work for forging.

I would think if the container of water has a large enough volume it wouldn't have to be fast flowing. Like a large water troth, or even a large garbage can/Recycle bin. Just so long as you've got the ability to move the anvil around in the water Vertically and horizontally.

I think I'll do the same if I ever come across another vise without a screw, or with a messed up screw.

were it me, I'd be heading to the local plumbing supply with both regulators and just say that I need a reducer to get from the Larger to the smaller. They should take care of you really quickly.

if it were me, I'd just seal the bottom from sucking moisture through the concrete, and let it be. If it starts cracking/splitting wrap 2-3 straps around the stand and call it good.

I'm going to pay him a visit again soon. I need to come up with something to make him as a proper thank you. The bolt (sitting on top of the rock crusher anvil) I turned into a bottle opener was REALLY rough. But it was literally the first thing I forged. I'm thinking maybe a knife out of that spring pack you see behind the breaker tip. Both the crusher anvil and the breaker tip have great rebound. to the point I'm worried about getting my head to close to the work piece while forging on the crusher anvil as it'll launch a 2 lbs cross peen back at me with as much force as I'm putting into it, even with hot metal under the hammer. I mounted the tip just like you see it in the picture. Didn't even bother with trying to grind the bottom flat. I liked the thought of the radius edge as it will serve at least some of the purpose of a horn, which I'm still working without at the moment. I did weld about an 1 1/2" worth of 1/4" plate to the side of the crusher anvil to act as a pritchel hole. Still don't have a hardy hole of any sort, So I'll be making bottom tools that will mount into a vise.

I have a brake rotor that fits tightly over my brake drum forge. I put that on top, and close up the tuyere and it goes out really quickly. I typically can predict when I'm going to be done and stop adding coal onto the fire to let it burn down some before I snub it.

so in theory, for a billet, if I left enough room for the handle to pass through that would be the best case scenario.

if you're good at scrounging and have a decent amount of tools on hand already you can make forges or relatively cheap. My gas forge, if you include the fire brick I already had cost me about $100 to build using a Frosty T burner. and that was using all new fittings, regulator, valve, and scrounging the fire bricks out of my smoker which isn't being used at the moment. If you're looking to build a coal forge with a hood and flue, and you're on a budget, you're going to have to become very good at scrounging because that's a VERY tall roof line. and chimney stack isn't cheap. Have you been running your drum forge in the barn already? Based on the openings, I would think a calm breeze would be enough to make it seem like you're outside in that space. what kind of tools do you have at your disposal? do you have a welder? Access to the right tools is a big help in keeping costs down.

Top tool, anything hit by a hammer on top of a work piece. Bottom tool, anything the work piece sits on while being worked on with a hammer or top tool. AKA hardies, swages, etc. So to answer your question, yes, slitter, punch, chisel. what you'd be making with a ball peen is a handled top tool, assuming you are still able to put a handle in it when you're done.

First and foremost I want to apologize for my rude gruff "Merican" nature. I assure you that was not my intent. I will attribute it to my lack of linguistic skill, and more than likely being at least a little "Hangry" at the time of my response. Both of which I take full responsibility for. Alan, I want to thank you for clarifying your response. As you obviously know far more than I probably ever will in regards to Blacksmithing. I feel that I read to much into your opening statement and didn't follow along clearly there after. so close up the opening. Got it! But I do have one question. how do you maintain the heat when the work piece is to big for the forge? Is it a matter of packing the opening around the work piece during heats and removing it right before it's time to forge? For example a Damascus billet on a handle. Or a larger cross section work piece like scrolls and rings? I know in many forges people make "pass throughs" for longer stock. From what I've seen these can be anywhere from small flap type openings, to the whole back side of the forge opening up. how does one accommodate this with a brick pile forge? Is it just a matter of stacking bricks in such a way that the least amount of heat possible escapes while still fitting the work piece through?

OSB is more susceptible to moisture too. and will swell like MDF.

you're on your way, that's for sure.

what type of wood is it? will it actually get water on it, or just be in the moisture/damp air? what kind of surface is it sitting on?