NateDJ

In my first forge I thought the same thing and found I needed to add some firebrick to decrease the inside area or add a 2nd burner to increase the heat in order to get it to heat up enough to forge with. There are calculations that will help you get an idea of how much space you can heat with each type of burner. Perhaps I should have used one of them LOL!

O,O Wow replace your picture with one of TeeJay and you have his exact setup except his vice is mounted on the other side of that same corner and I don't think there is a crossbeam just above the bellows on the frame. He usually also doesn't have a pot on his camping set (in the background). These are built on 16th century plans and are of wood with a firebrick/adobe layer in the bottom. the main problem with them is that they are bulky, heavy and you really have to watch your work as they work VERY well and will burn your work up fast! Wish I had room for a setup like this in my garage/shop!

Want to see just how easy it is to get into most door locks? The remainder of this post has been removed as we really to not need to assist the bad guys. Having looked up the reference cited, we need to choose our security wisely.

Should be able to make those hats now, thanks! Will be fun for the kids.

A decently balanced /weighted flapper valve on the bottom of your firepot / tuyere should allow the blow back to escape into the ash bucket instead of into your blower shouldn't it?

Mineral Oil is sold in most stores in the health and medicine section, sold as a laxative. It is also the oil used in baby oil with only a little perfume added. (keeps your hammers as soft as a baby?) I haven't used anything on any of my hammers yet, waiting on this thread to pan out into an agreed upon solution LOL

In building my own anvil I found that adding weight to the bottom of it was a great help so long as I added it where It would not cause the anvil to become top heavy. YMMV of course.

Can we see a picture of this? it sounds like something I would be interested in trying.

This line says it ALL, She knows exactly what it would take to make it, and apparently she is working on how to get YOU to make it for her!

Would grinding not induce stress that should be heat treated out? (not a knife maker, just wondering based off of info I have read in previous post.)

To determine the presser that one of these fans put out we (computer modding guys) stack sheets of paper on top of them to see how many they will blow off. This is by NO means a scientific measurement but it gives us a good idea of which fan moves the most air pressure wise. For volume hang a sheet of paper and see how far away it will still move the paper. For a fan that will do what you are wanting you will likely spend $50.00-$100.00 and are looking for a fan that is built to go in a rack mount server. These fans are VERY loud compared to other computer fans but also move a lot more air. A different approach that seems to work is to stack 2 of the same fans on top of each other, this will increase the presser but not the volume of air. You can find a computer modding forum that has more info than you can ever care to read at bit-tech.net Forums If you are interest in a very strange computer I made for my wife...ThinkTank

Yep, and we are not going to stop till a full recovery is made! And even if the hair doesn't grow back, that doesn't change the person. A friend of mine has just gone through a bought with cancer with his wife and her hardest thing was to lose the hair she hadn't cut in 30-40 years, the thing she said she appreciates the very most was the fact that my friend stood right by her and helped her brush the hair out and once it was all gone, he told her she was still beautiful, and that the hair changed nothing about the way he loved her.

O.O Just the info I needed, simple but for some reason I just didn't think of this. Will give it a try on a blower bolt I broke. Thanks!

orgtwister The Saltfork Craftsmen has swage blocks for $105 new cast for non guild member, can't cost $300 for shipping!

Do your new punches work as you hoped? What were the procedures you settled on to make / heat treat them?

This is the part I was wondering about most, case hardening is only a few thousands thick but a quench will be much deeper if not throughout the object. Will be an interesting test, as soon as I get time. I wonder how well combining the 2 would do?

OSHA requires that handrails be installed before anyone else is allowed on my back, you will have to get in line.

John B That sounds more like a type of super quench than case hardening. The use of salt in water will make it quench faster/harder so would attaching the salt directly to the blade with a flower glue make it even faster? Will have to give it a try next time I need to get some a36 a little harder.

LOL nothing like stepping up to the plate. I am sure you could find a fab shop who would cut the blanks for you, quantity lowers the cost so just sell the excess!

really simple list: Something to hit Something to get it hot with Something to hit it with Something to hit it on The rest is just details Welcome to IFI! All kidding aside the getting started pages are the very best resources you will find on the web! Grab a lunch and a large "jug o drink" and a comfy spot, you will likely find your day passing before you know it!

arm and hammer forge is taken ... how about skull and hammer forge :)

I sure do around here, their only saving grace is that they all mostly sell to the place I buy scrap from. Cost me more but then I don't have to go hunt the stuff down ;)

Well, for what it is worth those pictures are truly inspirational! I do understand the desire to '' quit the day job'' to pursue the hobbies and even if your day job and hobby is the same technically ... it just isn't the same thing. Perhaps you just need a good long vacation? (God knows I do! Though not from smithing.) What about knocking off an hour per day to just do what you want to do as a break? Say the last hour before you shut the forge down for the night you work on Your Own Stuff. Divide your day up just like you would if you were punching a clock and set aside time to relax doing your hobby at the end of the day. You may not get other things done quite as fast but life is about the quality of your life not the money you make, though you do have to balance one against the other and each person is different and must find and attain that balance for themselves. The old saying goes ''All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy''?

Don't forget the value of helping a friend, the friend may only be able to afford the $200 but you both know the real value of the anvil is way higher. The friend may have been willing to pay more and just couldn't? ;)

I have thought about using Grey Iron Forge but it looks like Grey Iron is some king of term for cast/pig iron ... not really what I want my forge name to bring a visual of when mentioned.