jwilson645

2 hours ago, Mike Hall said:

I'm having trouble finding the 1/8" mpt x ¼" flare fitting locally. I just checked Lowes and they don't carry them from what I can see. Where have others found this fitting?

Mike

I ordered mine from Grainger and picked up at the local store. 

On 4/29/2017 at 8:00 PM, Frosty said:

 

On 4/28/2017 at 3:15 PM, Frosty said:

 Recently I had to start using 1/4" flare couplers rather than my preference of 1/8" FPT - 1/4" flare fittings because the new batch has too large an ID to thread 1/4"-28 for mig tips.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

Wish I had seen this before I purchased the 1/8 mpt x 1/4 flares. I picked them up yesterday from Grainger and thought the the ID looked a little large but haven't yet tried the mig tip because I haven't yet sourced the Tweco .035 ones yet.

May have nothing to do with your issues but something I noticed was the bell reducer.  This is quoted from Frosty's write up " No, a bell reducer does NOT made a good flare, they expand much to abruptly and induce bad turbulence."

Also looks like your mig tip is crooked in the T.

Welcome Boedie. You have found one of the greatest Blacksmithing resources there is, short of a Master Smith taking you under his/her wing.  

1. Read all you can here. Pretty much any question that you may have has already been answered. 

2. If you have a specific question about something after you read, then ask. 

3. Listen to what you're being told. The knowledge pool here is enormous and most have been doing it much longer than you (maybe even your parents) have been alive. Don't disrespect. 

Dang Mike. I hate to hear that. Hope it heals up quickly for you.  Makes me think about how stupid I was yesterday using my grinder to knock some rust off a piece of round stock WITHOUT my shield on.    It happens to easily and quickly to NOT wear it every time. 

Saw this when you posted it on Pirate. Very nice work! 

Mike, that is quite a good looking sign. I have some 16 gauge sheet and other stock laying around so come see me before you go buying anything. 

Picked up this little jewel at a flea market this past saturday. It's a Baldor 111 buffer. Looks like someone had been using it as a grinder but it is still in like new condition. It came with 2 wire brush wheels and 3 grinding stones for $48.00. 

I'm in the same boat as Frosty. I take mine off when I remember. Problem is that I really never notice it's there and forget about it. i've thought about getting one of those bands made of silicone to replace mine with. You can get a variety of colors too. At least if you catch it on something it won't (or shouldn't) rip your finger off. 

https://qalo.com/

https://ensorings.com/

http://www.saferingz.com/

Last weekend was the AFC annual conference at Tannehill so I'm sure they cancelled because of that.  Give them another try next month. I bet you have better luck then. 

There are 2 chapters that meet close to us. Cullman meets on the first Saturday of each month at Pienhardt Farm and Vulcan Forge meets on the second Sunday of each month at Tannehill. I'm usually at Tannehill. Next meeting is June 12th. We'll be at the barn behind the blacksmith shop at 9am. 

WOOT! Another local!!! Welcome to IFI.

The guys are right. Tongs are not a necessity. Find some pliers or channellocks. You can weld some stock onto the handles if needed.  Trade Days is this weekend at Tannehill. You can probably find tongs and pliers there but be careful on pricing. 

Make hooks, lots and lots of hooks for first projects. These are great practice because you have to use several different techniques. Keep making them until they all look exactly alike. 

Vulcan Forge (part of the Alabama Forge Council) meets at Tannehill on the 2nd Sunday of each month. Come join us. You can see all the member forge information here.  http://www.alaforge.org/contact_us.html

As far as material goes, do not use anything that is galvanized (silver coating usually), there is plenty of scrap things you can use. Go to a junk yard and grab some coil springs. They are a good start. Cut the coils into smaller pieces and start hammering. You can also pick up new material at Metal Supermarket in Bessemer. They sell smaller pieces. If it comes right down to it, you can even get new material at Lowe's or Tractor Supply but you're going to pay a higher price for it. 

I actually have a couple more buckets of scrap that I could donate to you. Nothing special in them, mostly just cutoffs, but I'm moving and trying to clean out some stuff.  Shoot me a PM if you want.

Good luck, Mike. 

On 5/11/2016 at 8:55 AM, PVF Al said:

10'x15' Everything,walls ,floor, lights, product, display stands, plus cart, suitcases, whatever, fits in back of pickup with camper shell. 

Hello there, fellow Alabamian! That's a beautiful setup!

Love it! Beautiful piece. 

1 hour ago, HEAP of JEEP said:

 

Well of course your Jeep is going to spring another leak, and of course its going to want more of your money.  Come on.... its a Jeep. LOL

Coming from another Jeep guy....................I'm sure you've heard that Jeep really stands for Just Empty Every Pocket.

I have a pair of Georgia steel toes now. My previous Georgia's were not steel toe and I wore them all day everyday. Lasted many years and were very comfortable for me. You may be different though. They were around $150 though and I don't think you're going to find anything less than that that will hold up very long.

I've had my eyes peeled for a leg vise for a year or so but they've all either been snatched up before I got there or made of gold. This past Saturday I took the family on an adventure to a flea market an hour away from home. We arrived before daylight and sat in the car until the vendors started moving around and uncovering their goods. We made our way up one row and down the other. I began thinking it was going to be a bust as we were only finding cell phone accessories and discounted medicines. We got to the last row and I spied a booth with lots of old rusty farm equipment, my eyes got huge, I'm sure. Once there, I see it.......a lonely leg vise just laying on the ground. I take a peek at it and it is complete with the original spring and mount (although they are mounted incorrectly). Even the screw turns freely. I ask the guy how much and expecting to here $200 (which is what I've been finding mostly) when he says $75. I wasted no time whipping out my wallet. Handed the man the money and hauled my treasure a half mile back the car before he changed his mind on the price.

Here she is.......

That's awesome, Ben. Good score! (on the anvil & blower too!)

You're right. I know I have sworn up and down that I what I THOUGHT I knew was correct only to find out years down the road that I was mistaken.  It isn't always good to trust a single source. I learned to investigate several different sources to try to come up with correct information.

Guys! Sure he knows more than anyone here. I bet he's seen EVERY episode of "forged in fire"!

Brian, you might want to quickly yank that hand back before it gets bit.

Good looking knife, Mike!

Very nice. I made one not long ago with a mower blade that has the same star shaped hole. I just did a paracord handle on mine though. I love the wood and the way it has the twisted look to it.