notownkid

Happy Birthday Frosty, Pass the Cake please!  Your old enough to know not to try outrunning a tree.

it would appear you paid $25 for the privilege of sorting his junk for him.  No matter where they are they are all the same, everything is worth a million when you show interest. 

Watch the Obits maybe you'll do better when the place gets cleaned to sell.    

Make a Good Show & Tell Piece for the shop, enlighten the masses at some point. 

Colonial Williamsburg has a video of them making a complete muzzleloader including making the barrel from flat material, nicely done and a picture is truly worth a 1000 words.  Nice 4" or more tire material would come off an OX Cart Wheel, I've seen them up to 8" or so.  I've sure they are available at most Used Ox Cart Dealers.   

Very Nice!

I saw a well used 150LB anvil at an antique mall today for $850!  Thought that was more than enough. 

This isn't a foot to hold a leg of something up?  With the nice flat surface on one end.  The smaller end slid up inside another piece of pipe.  Can't see the thing that looks like a Zerk good enough. 

Ausfire

I'll send you some cold if you'll send back some Heat!  Light snow and 27 degrees F at the moment in Central Vermont.  Headed down to the single digits for the week.  I read were you guys were getting record heat.  Enjoy it as best you can.

Martin

If you are making something, selling it and installing it you are a business!  You need to be registered and insured as a business and you will pay business rates.  Why they use the installation as a kiss off point anybody knows but we can be sure it's from a lawyers office. 

We were quoted a 1 day liability insurance so people could bring their own Booze to a 50th High School Reunion held at a Senior Citizens Center (No Jakes Please) for a cost of $400 for the day. And they could not share it anyone other than their spouse.

Liability concerns and law suites have all but killed free enterprise in America.   

Grumpy      Maybe So!  I'll call them in the AM

Watch they don't try selling you 140W in a multi viscosity which most parts stores would sell.  Try farm equipment stores as they have more call for it in brush hogs and what not heavy equip. 

Check out Colonial Williamsburg they have a video showing them making a Flintlock from scratch including making the barrel from flat stock.  IF and that's an IF I remember right they cast the hammer, I know they cast the trigger guard and butt plate.  When I was at Williamsburg I saw some of the rough castings setting on the benches. 

Check out Colonial Williamsburg they have a video showing them making a Flintlock from scratch including making the barrel from flat stock.  IF and that's an IF I remember right they cast the hammer, I know they cast the trigger guard and butt plate.  When I was at Williamsburg I saw some of the rough castings setting on the benches. 

Grizzly industrial has a 300lb for $379.98 +  $23.95 freight +$99 extra freight(unless you are close to Springfield MO)   No idea how good, 2" Hardy hole and no printal.

Just ran across it in their new catalog. 

It is in deed a punch press.  My brother in law had a shop with 40 of these in different sizes 2 ton to 70 ton.  Last June we scrapped the last 6 that were in perfect shape as they were not wanted by anyone.  I wouldn't trust it if was welded or repaired you can get hurt big time with this thing.  it could snap the top section off if the ram bottoms out by being unadjusted in length. 

A good one can be used as a hammer if adjusted correctly but not as effective as a real hammer, I've seen a number of them used in Blacksmith shops in our area.

I may be blind but I don't see a motor on it nor any safety equipment.   We sold some in the 20-30 ton range for $300-400 complete with motors plus bolster plates ready to produce parts.  All it needed was a die.  All of his were 220V 3 phase that wouldn't have worked in my area or I would have a 5 ton working in my shop. 

Be real Careful with this thing, think anchor!

Bob does a grand job and I do mean grand, on the News Letters but I think he met 4 a year.  Best $20 you'll ever spend in blacksmithing!

Glad to see you are out of the spill zone, was concerned for you.  Now I'll be concerned for the remaining multi 1000s of folks.  Our local water company lost 2 wells to hurricane Irene a couple years ago plus a main distribution line system down for a couple months.  We too live with a well, a 797' well! 

re read the post not out of the zone at all.

Membership Dues are Due in January I was reminded this week.  Dues are $20 a yr. includes 2-3 newsletters which lists upcoming events, items for sale,  and stories of NE happenings. 

Membership forms can be obtained by downloading from the Web Site New England Blacksmiths.

Looking forward to the announcement of the Spring Get together.  Sad to hear of Toby Hickman's passing in Dec.  He had been the Demonstrator at the May 2013 3 day event and it was a grand event. 

When it comes to Bottle Openers from RR Spikes I doubt anybody owns the rights to it.  15 yrs. ago we, my brother in law and I made and sold many RR spike bottle openers.  The idea is the same as today but we did them on a Bridgeport and sold them to the Model Railroad crowd.  The market finally got full of them and when we cleaned out the company last spring we found 400 still boxed in inventory.  On day we will find a place for them.  If someone else makes a  opener from a spike did they steal our idea or did we by accident steal someone else's?????  We in fact made a number of items from RR Spikes.

I doubt anything made by hand, one at a time, without a die of some sort can be made exactly the same.  Without a copyright I believe legally it's fair game.  Even if copyrighted at what level of sales can a blacksmith afford the legal costs of fighting the infringement?  Starbuck we are not!

I would hope if your neighbor or club member has made something you like you would have the decency of not copying and making money on it, if your 100's of miles away that's another story. 

I think the majority of smiths on IFI who might see an idea they like here, believe they can do a better job of making it so they make a change or changes.  With that in mind what constitutes a copy?      

I don't make or sell anything from my shop for profit, I don't have a horse in this race, I don't have an axe to grind.  Will the waters ever clear on this matter, NOPE!  Just try not to through more mud into it!

My son in law was an agent for many years and his #1 advise was shop your insurance business every 4-5 years.  I dropped mine by almost 40% 2 years ago on my vehicles by doing it and ended up with who I started with.  My Property insurance is next in a few months.  Brokers are the way to go as well, let them beat up the companies for you, saves you a lot of time and stress. 

As far as getting into legal problems with liability, lawyers want to get paid, they will find every nickel you have regardless what you think you are protecting it with or where you have it hid.  Is it really worth giving demos if you stand a chance of losing everything you have worked for?   

Welcome to the rest of the NEB members, been wondering what had happened to you.  Don't know who is responsible but thanks,  Now lets keep the news coming not that New England seems to generate a lot of news. 

Dale Johnson

Woodstock, VT

Harwinton, CT

You sure this was a heating furnace?  From what I can see it looks like it MIGHT be a sand drying furnace.  Engines, Steam or Diesel including the most modern require sand for traction and they had to dry it in large heater system so it wouldn't freeze up or clog up the pipes.

Might be    

These fire codes are and have been a problem for years.  Two layers of 5/8 fire rated "sheetrock" both layers tapped and mudded with no joints within ?? inches of each other has been the standard for walls between living areas and garages/workshops for many years.  I'm sure things have gotten tighter since I got out of the business. 

Now in my  area residential buildings are not inspected unless you are going to rent them but should you build it "your way" and it doesn't meet acceptable  or usual code the insurance inspectors can refuse to insure or if a loss happens they can refuse payment or reduce payments. They always win. 

Granted sheetrock doesn't work or look all that great in a blacksmith shop but because you are adding onto where you and your family sleeps you might think hard on this.  I was in this position recently and decided to take a different route and built a separate building away from all the others for the shop. 

I was a Fire Chief and firefighter for nearly 30 yrs. and dealt with building inspectors, insurance Inspectors, adjusters and fire investigators, one of the first things looked at if a fire started in an attached garage or shop was the separation walls.  What were they and did they hold up. 

Not an expert but slightly experienced.  Good Luck

Tom,

We do get high 90's and not dry during July & Aug.  great for haying!. Temp spread in a yr. +95 to a low of -30 is usual but can't make Maple Syrup in the spring without the cold in the winter so it's all part of the "Master Plan." 

Very nice work