dntfxr

BTW they were obtained legally in case you wondered. :)

...and I found this!102 RR spikes marked HC! :cool:Several other pieces too. The large pin in the second pic I'm hoping will be a carbon type steel.The tongs type things are my first creation (not from rr spike,just square bar). Oh yeah, the last pic is my anvil turned buisness end up. I think I'm gonna go ahead and stick it in a bucket of concrete when I get back from vacation.

What an awesome resource! Thanks!

Thanks Frosty, will do!

I figured I would post a few pictures of my temporary setup. I've been waiting all week for my mud to dry and finally fired it up today.The forge works great, actually better than I expected. The main difference between it and the original Lively is its a different bucket and my blower is a shopvac. I think it may be a little taller which helps it to turn 2x4 scraps into charcoal pretty quickly! I still need to cut the end notches out for longer stock. I just stuck my anvil in 2 wood clamps to play around and it worked ok for now. The last pic is a hardened steel bolt that I experimented with and had no trouble getting it glowing yellow. After I beat on it I heated it up again and quenched in cold water to get a feel for how brittle it would be. It snapped after a little tap- no big suprise! Anyway I figured I'd post a little update. Thanks to all for the suggestions, and to Mr. Lively for posting his forge design. I need to make some tongs now!

Thanks for the tips guys. A little update- I did a spark test this morning on the 2x6 and compared it to a piece of RR track I use on the front of my garden tractor. From my untrained eye it doesent seem to have the carbon that the RR has .The 2x6 wieghs 103lb, but the RR track is only about 35 (guess). Well at least I have options. I took a few pics of my spark test, but the camera wasn't on a very fast shutter speed so I don't know if they'll show very much. I'll try to post them tonight.

Now I need to figure which direction I should go with a forge. Coal isn't common in these parts, propane is very convienient, but I'm kind of drawn to charcoal. In my subdivision it may be a bit much though? Whatever direction I go I'll probably make it myself. Any suggestions?

Thanks for the replies! I was kinda leanin toward standing it on end. It definitely has more ring and rebound to it in that position-Alot better than the old rr track I used before. Is it worth it to try to harden the business end, or just work harden it a bit? I was thinking of mortising out a stump for a base and putting in a bit of silicone for good measure, then banding it. The concrete bucket would be less work, but would it not crack? Whatever I go with I'll post some pics when its all done. Again, Thanks!

Spot on with my occupation! Most people don't decipher that. I've been doing paintless dent repair since I got out of high school, so I work with sheet metal every day. I don't get to swing my hammer hard enough at my day job though! Thanks for the warm welcome guys. Speaking of pictures and problems, If you will see my thread in the blacksmithin forum " An anvil, maybe". Again, thanks for the help. Dntfxr

I've been looking for a real anvil, but in the meantime I found this scrap today. Its 2"x6" by about 29", and I think its just mild carbon steel.:confused:What would you do with it to utilize it as an anvil? Stand it on end, on edge, cut and sandwich the pieces? Is it possible to harden part of it if it is mild steel? Thanks for the help!:)

I've been reading for a while now and have been learning alot from the wealth of experience and knowledge here. I figured I ought to join up and introduce myself. I'm 31, from Louisiana, and haven't played blacksmith since I was about 8 years old with a claw hammer and a piece of rr track. I made my first (and last) "knife" from an old nail and wrapped intertube for a handle. It was quite crude of course but I wish I still had it, unfortunately I dropped it in the bayou about a week later. Fast forward a few years and I took up arc welding as a hobby and still enjoy that today. But I've always wanted to learn how to forge, so thats why I'm here.:)