DocsMachine

Oh, that's Kenai, by the way. A not-too-distant neighbor knows Mark, who I think taught him some farrier techniques? Don't know of any other blacksmiths- hobbyist or otherwise- in my area. There's one I've heard of but haven't met, but supposedly has access to a large quantity of train rail, and there's a metla-fab shop that's supposed to be adding some blacksmithing (ornamental) to their shop. I know he's got a 200 or even 300-pound bridge anvil in his office (beat pretty badly though) and a cone mandrel that's at least five feet tall and over a foot in diameter at the base. Doc.

Still playing about. One of these days I'm going to have to try to remember what projects I had in mind, lo those many years past, that led me to wanting an anvil and forge. I know these look like they're heating unevenly, but I'd just stuck 'em back in for a moment to get a photo before I shut the thing down for the night. I have about a quarter-ton of 20' sticks of semi-rusty 3/8" rod. Any suggestions of what I should make with it? Doc.

What, the Pneumatic Dwarf Catapults? No, you're thinking of some other guy. Doc.

I'd say we're only "neighbors" in the same way Washington is a neighbor to Oregon. I stopped and talked to Mark at his booth at the State Fair in '06, as I was passing through from shooting (photographing) the Labor Day races at the Palmer Dragstrip. Mark's booth was, point in fact, about the only thing at the entire fair that even remotely held my interest. Speaking of; I still have a Champion 400 blower I got with this collection of tools, that I'd like to see go to a good home. I don't need it- I don't forsee using coal/charcoal any time soon- and it's in pretty good condition. (No stand, though.) If anyone needs it or wants it, I'll be in Anchorage roughly sometime between now and Thanksgiving, and I'd be happy to meet up. It'll be a weekday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, around business hours. I could use the cash, but if anyone has an interesting tool to trade, I'm all ears. Doc.

Roughly centered. As this was kind of an 'experimental' setup, I didn't try anything fancy other than setting the burner to maybe try and "swirl" a bit. Heat seems pretty even, though. I could get six inches of those 3/8" rods to a pretty uniform yellow with no trouble. It's a big burner though, and I kept the inside volume pretty small- it only uses one firebrick. Doc.

The gas jet, as I said, is a chink of 1/4" stainless instrument tubing, threaded to 10-32 machine screw size, and fitted with a stainless quarter-turn ball valve. Photo 5 The orifice is the usual .024" MIG tip, but mounted this way makes for a very streamlined jet. Photo 6 I'd made my own intake bell out of old exhaust tubing, as I thought the old "pipe reducer bell" was kind of hokey- and the local plumbing shops didn't have any, anyway. Photo 7 The bell has a central collar that holds the gas jet, and through the miracle of a small hose clamp, is actually adjustable. The mount for the whole works is a little jury-rigged, but again, this unit was put together in a hurry, to use, not to look good. But now that I know my burner design works- albeit I made the intake bell over twice as large as it probably should be- I'll eventually build a slightly larger and somewhat fancier two-burner unit that's a little more refined. Though for the moment, I'm just glad I have a workable forge now. Doc.

Last February, I lucked into an anvil and other tools, pretty much lacking only a forge to start playing around with hot steel. I'd built my own version of an atmospheric burner a few months later, but only had a few firebricks to stack up as a "forge". I eventually bought some Kao-Wool, and finally- only eight months later- sat down and put together a quick, simple and ratty- but entirely functional- propane forge. I started by making this base "tray" of 1" angle iron, expanded metal mesh, and a few bits of scrap: Photo 1 The tabs hold a firebrick (as a more-durable "floor") and the space allows two layers of Kao-Wool to be wrapped around. A scrap sheetmetal cover to protect the wool, snips to nibble a hole, and an X-acto to cut out the wool for the burner. Photo 2 The burner is my version of the usual atmospheric, with a tapered sheetmetal bell, stainless steel nozzle, and an adjustable orifice. The orifice is a chunk of stainless steel instrument tubing, appropriately bent, and threaded on the end for a MIG tip. The usual tip thread is too large for the tubing, so both were threaded to 10-32. Hey, I am a machinist. It makes for a fairly elegant and streamlined gas jet. Photo 3 Here it is assembled and running. As you can see, I had to throttle down the intake bell a bit- I'll make some adjustable shutters, but the tape was an expedient solution. Takes about 5 psi with an .024" MIG nozzle. It'll get to yellow, but can't yet get to welding/sparking heat. I may fiddle with it, but for the moment it still produces plenty of heat. Just fiddling around with a few pieces, I whanged up these. (What's the present-tense of "wrought", anyway? "Wringing" iron?) Photo 4 The first one, on the right, didn't cooperate, and was too small to go over the horn to straighten out a bit. The second, on the left, was a bit better- that's 3/8" round I first squared, then turned the ring. My anvil has no sharp corners left, so that was about the tightest I could get the neck. It's not the prettiest forge, but it works, and I'm happy with it. Doc.

It doesn't matter how hard the material is, there's always something harder you can use to cut it. For tough steel, as the others said, sharpen the bit to a shallower lip angle, dark cutting oil, slow spindle speed, heavy pressure. If you have a good tool supplier, spring for a carbide "jobber" drill, and use it in a drill press. (Carbide tends to be brittle, and can crack if not in a rigid setup.) For evan harder steel- like a tap, or easyout- a solid cobalt spade bit in a strong drill press will cut by literally heating the base metal to red hot by friction, and wiping it away in softened strings. I've drilled through files and the shank of an endmill that way. Doc.

T'heck with the anvil. I want that Acorn table! Doc.

-Steel? It's supposed to be Uru... but I suppose the customer didn't want to pay for a long epic trip to the Dwarven Lands to get the correct materials... [/comicbookgeek] Also, 36 lb? Thor's hammer can't be picked up unless you're "worthy", so I suppose that's the next best thing. Doc.

140-lb pre-1910 Peter Wright. Aged, badly abused, and severely chipped, but no cracks or large chunks broken off. Stand fabbed from scrap angle, strap iron and some fresh 1" square tubing. Two "cutouts" at the feet for hanging tongs, and four sets of pins to hold four big hammers or six or more medium or small hammers. Doc.

-Sort of. On one of the 2110 beads, I beat on the flat spot I'd filed, with the round end of a ball-peen. Not whalin'-the-tar hammering, but some decent blows. Didn't seem to affect either the file test or the centerpunch test. Admittedly it was half an attempt, Might try pounding on it a bit more in the morning. I had no idea the brinnell was that low a Rockwell. I suppose I should find a conversion table (I know I saw one online once) but I kind of glossed over that in the paperwork, not knowing what the conversion was. R20 or so would indeed be down in the mild steel range, I think. What do you think this anvil face is? 60? 65? I found a file company that makes what they call the hardest file available at Rc72. $15 plus shipping is kind of expensive just to see how hard something is, but it'd be interesting to know. Doc.

Just how hard is my anvil face, anyway? To summarize: I have a 140-lb Peter Wright that's badly chipped, rounded and dented, that I've been planning on repairing using hardfacing arc-welding rods. To that end, I bought (at no small cost) a 10-lb box of Stoody 31 (an "all around" hard rod which was all the shop had in stock at the time) and later, a box of Stoody 2110, one of the ones commonly recommended for anvil repairs. Stoody's documentation for the 31 says it'll land around the high forties Rockwell, and the 2110 says 50-52 Rockwell over carbon steel. Now, not being a complete idiot, I tested them before committing to welding on the anvil proper. For a sample of relatively high carbon steel, I used an old truck spring, and for a high-manganese sample, I have a chunk of old train rail. My results? Both of 'em suck. I ran two beads, one of each rod, on the truck spring (suitably ground clean) with no preheat, and no cool-down insulation or protection. One would presume that would be as hard as they'd be able to get, right? The 2110, which was, according to Stoody's own documentation, the "harder" of the two by several points Rockwell, cut very easily with a file- even easier than the base spring metal, and almost identical to a piece of plain mild steel. The 31 was noticibly harder, but could still be cut with only minimal difficulty with the file. I then tried a short bead of each, quenched in water. No change. Now, I'm definitely not up on the metallurgy of the 2110, with it's high manganese and chromium contents, but I assumed that a water quench would make it about as hard as it was going to get, short of reheating back to red and doing a full quench. Unfortunately I have no access to a Rockwell tester (I will once the college opens up in the fall) so I can't make any accurate comparisons. But one thing I did try was a center punch. It's a store-bought punch (not something I heat-treated) with a relatively freshly ground tip. Obviously I can't "calibrate" my hammer swings either, but tapping the punch into each material in turn revealed about the same results as the file; Big dent in mild steel, a noticibly shallower dent in the 2110, shallower still in the 31 (and slightly blunted the punch) about equivalent dent in the spring itself, and just for comparisons' sake, I tried it in a discreet and already-damaged section of the anvil face itself. The anvil was utterly unmarked and badly blunted the punch. I reground the tip and tried it on the file, a relatively new Nicholson- it made a nice dent and only very slightly blunted the punch. (Testing on the file itself, not the tang end.) So for the moment I have to shelve the idea of repairing this anvil. Assuming I'm not missing some major point in using these rods, they can't or won't give me a surface anywhere near as hard as my existing face. Besides that, the 31 cracked several times- which the Stoody documentation clearly noted. I also had no idea this face was quite that hard- it's obviously several points harder than a file, which makes me wonder how hard it is. High fifties Rockwell? Low sixties? Seventies? How hard is a modern name-brand file? How hard is a ball bearing? Doc.

The ball bearing "test" is simply a way to test hammer rebound. We all know that cast irons tend to absorb vibration and impact energy (which is a large part in why it's used for the main structure of machine tools) and the harder the surface gets, the better the rebound and "ring". We used to do it with a hammer, but a ball bearing is somewhat more portable, less likely to damage the face (if it turns out to be a soft iron anvil) and gives a better reaction. And yes, a hard steel ball off a hard steel surface will bounce better than a rubber ball- less energy is absorbed in the flexing of the body of the ball. It's not entirely voodoo. It may not be scientific or really even quantifiable, but it's functional and simple enough- the more the ball bounces back, the harder the surface, all else being equal. If a welded/repaired section shows measurably less bounce, then you can be virtually assured that that section is somewhat softer than the rest. You may not be able to translate that information into any real data (IE, a Rockwell or Brinell number) but the comparative value is still very useful. I'm roughly guessing my anvil has a face somewhat north of 50 Rockwell C, and I want any repair I do to match or slightly beat that. (Of course, hopefully without cracking, or being so hard it chips under even light blows, etc.) Doc.

If you have a complaint, sir, then voice it. If you're upset that I'm not leaping up to utilize your detailed advice ("use high-manganese rod") please understand that I intend to fix this anvil correctly, or at least as correctly as I can. I wish to do this only once, and to do it right the first time. Simply telling me to use a "high manganese rod" is just reiterating what Robb's article has already stated- except that we know now that said article isn't quite entirely correct. I've also had several people say to use the slightly softer rod alone, others said to lay the "softer" rod and cap it with the harder, and still others say to use the hard rod alone. It took me a very long time to find a good anvil- they're rare as promises kept by politicians up here- and I don't wish to do a half-a** repair. I'm a very competent weldor, and I have no qualms with the actual application, but I've never used hardfacing before, even for excavators, let alone anvil faces. Please excuse me if I wish to get as much data as possible before I light off a rod and just hope it works. As for a photo of the anvil itself, here's one I already have online, see attached photo: This is as I got it, the white spots are snow after I first brought it in. The can is merely a size reference. There's a shallow "crater" aft of the hardy and just to the side of the pritchel hole, about the diameter of a half-dollar and an eighth-inch deep. Looks like the steel spalled there by a particularly nasty hit- or series thereof. Right in the center of the working face- about where the rectangular spot of snow is on the top- is a low spot, just over a eighth inch lower than the rest. A straightedge touches at the front edge, and starts hitting again at the hardy. Milling it flat is unwise, as the steel face would likely be down to less than 1/4" thick in places, and still wouldn't address the badly rounded edges. The hardy hole itself is essentially recessed, with the four edges heavily rounded and chipped. The opposite edge of the face is actually worse than the near side shown- chipped and flaked all the way down to where the wrought iron presumably starts. The step is badly cratered, it's obvious it had a lot of use as a chisel table. The horn isn't bad, a bit blunted at the tip, but only minor pits and dents, no major damage. The existing face is badly pitted and flaked, but very hard with excellent rebound. If at all possible, I want to keep as much of the hardness, rebound and "ring" as possible. Doc.

Spotted that. Thought I was the only one making the "crossover". Thanks! Okay, how about some empirical testing? I have ten pounds of Stoody 31, and ten each of the 2110 and 1105 on the way. Any one of which should be more than sufficient for the refacing, and plenty if using a little of both. So I'm thinking of taking a chunk of old truck leaf spring (I have plenty) and going through the steps in Robb's article. IE, preheat to 400, and weld a bit with each of the rods seperately, then stacked in various configurations. I know the temps will be a bit different with a thin chunk of leaf vs. a 140-lb anvil, but if I'm careful, especially with the cool-down (bury in kitty litter?) the results should be pretty close. (I'm assuming using the spring to get a high-carbon base metal.) I don't have access to a Rockwell tester (will once school starts back up though) but I can still use the old tried and true methods of smacking test strips with a sharp punch, or running a file over it, etc. And, of course, beating the bejeebers out of it with a hammer. Any thoughts? Doc.

Bernard- As I thought, all the useful data was in the PDFs on Stoody's site. I didn't have a reader, and their "products" section just said "coming soon". The stuff the local shop carries is Stoody 31, which is, according to them, the most popular all-around hardfacing for 'dozer teeth and the like. The specs according to the PDFs aren't bad, except it "cross checks"- IE, micro cracks- as the welds cool. The 2110 and 1105 say they don't. Also, Robb's article has them backwards- he says the 2110 gives HRC 45 and the 1105 gives HRC 50-52. Stoody's documentation says the 2110 gives HRC 48-53 over carbon steel, or 50-55 over manganese steel, while the 1105 gives HRC 38-42 over mild steel. And says it isn't recommended for over manganese steels- the 2110 is a high manganese alloy. Now, I don't have to do much "repair" to my anvil. I need to build up some corners, but it's not like I have to essentially replace the entire existing hard face with weld metal. I'm assuming, from Robb's article, I'd want to get the corners built up with the 2110, then "butter" the entire face, and newly-built corners, with a uniform layer or two of the 1105. Except that, if we accept Stoody's data off the PDFs, the 1105 has only "moderate" impact resistance (the 2110 is rated at "excellent") and only HRC 38-42 (again, the 2110 says 48-53 over carbon steel, which I assume the face of a century-old Peter Wright will be, or 50-55 over manganese steel.) Needless to say, I'm confused. Any insight anyone can offer? What am I overlooking here? Doc.

Saw those too, but thank you. Again, the rods they mention don't easily cross-reference with anything I have available or can get locally- at least, without ordering a minimum of fifty pounds at anywhere from six to nine dollars a pound. I've been trying to find hard data- pardon the pun- on the various manufacturers' rods, but it's proving difficult to get firm, current data. Stoody's site is "under construction" and largely bereft of actual information. Basically, I need a chart that says Rod A from Manufacturer B is the same or equivalent to Rod C from Manufacturer D. Doc.

As for the hardfacing, I plan on going by a how-to written by Robb Gunter, that I downloaded off of Anvilfire. This procedure was recommended to me by some here and on other boards. The only thing I'm worried about is the article mentions some specific Stoody rods that aren't available anymore. They've been replaced by other rods, and I'm trying to find info on what rods of other brands or other Stoody products, match up and will perform the same. The article mentions an "underlayment" rod that'll supposedly give 45 Rockwell as welded, then a surfacing rod that'll give 50-52 Rockwell. My local shop only carries one Stoody rod, and it's a number not referenced to either of the numbers given in the article, so I don't know if I have the "underlayment" type or the "facing" type. Color of the weld is irrelevant, as I plan on building up the entire face- and possibly the step and horn as well. But I want to do it right the first time, so I'm doing my research first. However, in the meantime, I'd like to use the xxxxxx thing, so I figured I'd shave it down a touch so I at least have a reasonably flat and smooth working surface. Won't help the corners- you can see here how badly chipped and rounded they are- but it'll be a start. Thanks for the help. I plan on taking pictures and doing a full write-up on the reweld. I'll let you know how it comes out. Doc.

I have a 140-pound pre-1910 Peter Wright anvil that's seen better days. The face is badly scarred and all the edges are badly chipped and cratered. My original plan was to weld it up with hardfacing, but I think for the moment, I'd like to just pass it under the mill and take a minimum amount off. That'll be quicker, for the moment, and after all, if I'll be rewelding anyway, that small bit of extra metal won't be missed. Anyway, I'm wondering how thick the "face" plate of a Peter Wright is. I can't see any trace of a parting line on mine- too much rust, scale, dents, flaking and hammer damage. Looking around, one source "thought" it was only 1/2", another says it could be an inch or more. Anyone know for sure? Doc.

I understand that you can use brush-on coatings like ITC-100, to help the efficiency of a forge. But I haven't been able to find the answer to two questions: One, I read about it being applied to Dura-blanket and Kao-wool type liners, but can it also be used on firebrick? Does it or will it crack off if so used? And two, can the coating be applied to a "used" liner? In other words, if I build my forge with Kao-wool, and use it a couple of times, can I later go in and apply the ITC-100 to the wool and have it work properly? (And not crack and fall off, etc.) Doc.

-Don't mind a bit. It's not like I copyrighted the layout. I only took two measurements, and the rest was cut and glued by eye. Sorry, no plans. Doc.

Almost any particulate is harmful to the lungs. Some, like most household dust and pollens, being largely organic, are dissolved and absorbed by the linings of the lungs. Inorganics like coal dust (crystallized carbon) can't easily be dissolved or absorbed, and therefore tend to get "encysted"- the mucous lining encloses the particle and essentially seals it in. The problem here is that, over years of exposure, eventually large portions of the lung lining are encysted particulate, and no longer able to allow air to get close enough to the bloodstream to be absorbed. Any smoke particulate is bad for you over extended exposure, as is almost any "rock" dust. Any measure you can do to keep the smoke and dust away from you, is worthwhile in the long run. Doc.

-Just went and looked, and didn't see much in the thread. Is there a place elsewhere that challenge results get posted? Also, I think the main point of that challenge was the height adjustability. I'd played with that idea here, but decided against it for complexity reasons. In the few times I'd used this when it was on the too-short stump, I felt it in my back within a very short time. It's now some six inches higher than that (roughly wrist level) and while I haven't tried it yet, it does indeed seem to let me stand a bit straighter. In the future, if I decide I need variable height, I'll probably just have a series of blocks to go under the feet. Say, a 2X4 with a "pocket" for the foot routered in it, for a quick and easy (and cheap) 1-1/2" rise. -Ditto. I have a decent shop, but it's all car bays on one side, with a small machine shop on the other. I really don't have the space (or really, the need) to dedicate to a full-time indoor forge arrangement, to say nothing of the heat, dust/grit and soot issues. But I have lots of acreage, open yards, and relatively distant neighbors. I hope to have a setup where I can spend maybe five minutes with a handtruck rolling gear out front, light the (gas) forge, and go to work as soon as it's up to speed. Doing so in the winter will certainly be an issue, but I'll work something out. This stand, by the way, lets me slide the anvil onto the lower shelf (on a piece of thin plywood so it doesn't stretch out the mesh) to make it more compact for storage. Doc.

I need an idea or suggestion for a small Mothers' Day gift that I can make. I have a decent anvil (bit rough) some good hammers and at least an adequate sorta-forge for the moment, built up of loose stacked firebrick and a homebrew but quite functional atmospheric burner. It's not yet capable of welding heat, but then, I have MIG and TIG for that if necessary. I'd like to make something not too huge or complex- I'm still very new at this, and she's got to be able to carry it home in her luggage. I have stacks and stacks of 3/8" mild steel rod, and smaller piles of various other sizes and drops. She doesn't have a fireplace and so doesn't need the typical poker/shovel/broom combo. So what else? A fancy candle holder? Some bit of wall-art? I've looked around, and haven't seen anything inspirational yet. Any ideas or suggestions? Doc.