son_of_bluegrass

I would put pins in. If you don't want visible pins you may be able to do blind pins. What did you do to epoxy the handle on? If you didn't degrease / clean well enough the epoxy won't stick. If the handle material is some oily hardwood, you'll need to wipe that down to remove the oils or the epoxy won't stick. If you didn't thoroughly clean the old epoxy off, it might not stick. More details and pictures may prove useful. ron

I understand the question you're asking. However I don't know the answer. If you look at the end grain, the growth rings form an arc. He wants to know if the arcs of the growth rings are arranged in a particular fashion or not. Today a lot of 4X4's are cut from the center of a log which would put the pith in the block and make your question moot, if you cut the blocks from a 4X4. I don't know if it was always that way or not. ron

It may be fine for some to install propane yourself in some places but where I am it is illegal unless you are a licensed plumber. Even if you do the work correctly you could be facing problems doing it yourself. Check first. ron

If by "cooking charcoal" you mean the formed briquettes that is likely your first problem. While some people have reported success with these, most folks who try them find they don't work that well. As was mentioned, charcoal doesn't require as much air as coal, you may well have been pushing too much air through and forcing all the heat out of the fire. I've used both coal and charcoal and in my experience, charcoal prefers a side blast but can work in a bottom blast. Also since charcoal is much less dense than coal, you'll feed the fire a lot more and will benefit from a deeper fire. Anything you can add as refractory (be it wood ashes, castable refractory or firebrick) that will hold the heat in will help. My homemade forge is currently lined with kitty litter, it was just wood ash. It works a lot better. If it was me, I'd take the top off. Like the bottom, forming a fire pot like an upside-down pyramid where the large end is 6 or 8 inches on a side and down at the grate I would make it 4 or 5 inches on a side. Then use fire brick to build up to a depth of 6 to 8 inches to the grate on the bottom. Then put one fire brick on opposite sides and that will create a kind of trough than you set your iron in to heat. There should be a couple of inches of fuel above the steel in a solid fuel forge. I hope this makes sense. ron

From what I've read, it was common to put end grain up. There were a couple of reasons listed for this. For one the end grain tends to be more self-healing. That is to say if you drop something that would cut the wood, the end grain would not be as damaged as face grain with less likelyhood of splinters. The end grain also tends to be easier to stand on for some reason. At least that is what I've read. Ramsberg, yes, it was an episode of "The Woodwrights Shop". That episode was on PBS this last weekend. From what I've read, maintenance was minimal. Some books talked of sealing with tar or oil (either something like linseed or petroleum based). Other books spoke of just sweeping as needed. Most of what I've read spoke of the wood blocks being 4 to 6 inches thick. And species often depended on what was available locally. ron

I'm with the others. More pictures, closer and showing the insides if possible. I can't tell enough from the picture you have to offer any meaningful suggestions. ron

From the nature of the question, I'm assuming you have little to no experience with a forge. So there are a number of questions that need answering. What is the cheaper fuel for you. The best you'll be able to do is compare based on price per BTU as BTU usage will vary from forge to forge. Which is easier to get? How much time are you willing to invest in learning to maintain the fire? A gas forge is close to "light it and go" but a coal forge is "light it, coke off (unless you have coke), feed and clean while going". Both will work and work well. Coal is dirtier (smokier, smellier, coal dust, clinker). Gas can be dangerous. Coal has nostalgia if that matters. A coal forge is easier to cobble together with stuff that is lying around. Seeing as you're in Belgium, there may be local ordinances that restrict coal burning and make gas a lot less hassle. If you go gas, you'll need one that you can pass long blades through to heat the area you're working. Gas forges have limits on what size they can heat, you can't expect to fit something like a breast plate or gate section into most gas forges, not a problem with coal. ron

Have you spoke with your local ABANA affiliate and asked if someone there knows of a local supplier or if the group does a group buy to sell to members? The local club buys out of NE Oklahoma (Vinita I think and they will sell to individuals so far as I know) and sells to members, but NE Oklahoma is a long drive for you and the cost of delivery would likely make it prohibitive. http://www.msforgecouncil.com/ ron

You said you've already spoke to the city about a workshop, why not talk to them again asking about hobbyest welding (unless you plan on making money at it), then asked about the related blacksmithing? See if they have specific ordinances about forging. Or maybe first see what they say about a coal stove for heat then ask about other applications with coal if you want to burn coal. Or if you can go with charcoal it is much less smokey. Or as mentioned propane burns without the smoke. While you're on the phone, ask about the specifics of any noise ordinances, acceptable decibel levels and time restrictions. Get specifics and ask if you can have a copy of the applicable ordinance. If you tie your anvil down well enough it can become quiet. Mine makes a lot of noise if it's just dogged to a stump, the set-up I currently have where it is secured to a sand filled box with all-thread it is much quieter. Now I'm not much louder than a lot of woodworking equipment and quieter than somethings like routers. If you make modifications after all inspections have been passed, you may run into trouble down the road if they do regular appraisals and find what you currently have doesn't match what their records show. ron

Yes. Great photo. I really like the juxtaposition of the car in the background and all the horseshoes hanging up. ron

I didn't want to hijack another thread where it was mention if you do something wrong hooking up a forge and something goes horrible your insurance may deny the claim. Over in a woodwork forum the question was asked if anyone had first hand knowledge of insurance not paying on an individual (not commercial) claim for any reason. We're not talking about dropping a policy or not renewing a policy or the inability to get a policy for something you'd done in the past that was stupid. So out of curiosity, I'm asking here. Does anyone have first hand information (not a friend of a friend or anything like that) of an insurance company not honoring a claim? In the other forum several people knew of commercial claims (where someone was making money, not hobby or personal) being denied. One guy admitted to lighting an incompletely installed fireplace and the company did pay on that claim when a fire started. There was some other stupid stuff done, remodeling not to code and what-not that claims got paid on. But no one was able to come up with an individuals non-commercial claim being denied. ron

While I haven't had this problem in CI, I've sheared some heads. My successes have been with 2 methods, heat and screw extractors. The heat has been more reliable. Sometime the screw extractors just bugger everything to the point of drilling and re-threading. But I'm no machinists, someone with more experience my give you better advice. Good luck. ron

From what I've gathered, rasps and files tend to fall into two categories. One is case-hardened and while forgeable, they tend not to have enough carbon to adequately harden. The other is a high carbon steel. I've read that 1095, W1, W2 and 1.22% Carbon steel are common. There is very little difference between them particularly if you have a primitive heat treating set up. The W2 and 1.22% Carbon steel may benefit from a bit more soak. I don't know why some people weld a bit into the working end when turning a rasp into a hawk unless they've gotten a hold of a case-hardened one. ron

I have read (don't remember right now where) that the idea maraging steel tending to break square is a myth. In the same article it stated that maraging steel has a slower crack propagation and is more resistant to breaking. Because it can flex more times without breaking is why some organizations require fencing blades to be of a maraged steel. But it is still more common in the U.S. to find fencing blades that aren't of a maraged steel due primarily to the cost of such blades. (The last time I priced blades, maraged blades ran about 3-4 time the cost of non-maraged blades). ron

There is a potential problem with plastic. I've seen people drop something hot and burn a hole in the bottom, suddenly no more tub. So long as you don't burn a hole in the bottom they work fine. Just a caution in case you hadn't thought of that. ron

I understand that. I may be wrong but I thought that was also true of 2 chambers. As I see it, a double lung bellows has 2 chambers and I can't see how adding another chamber would even out the air flow any more than the 2 chambers of a double lung bellows. ron

You generally don't have to worry about insects in these barrels. Once the wood has dried it isn't palatable to such bugs. Even when re-wetted (filled with water) some of what is left behind from holding the alcohol makes the barrel unpalatable to just about all insects. Mold and fungus may still grow, but that will take years to become a problem. It is a good idea to set it on something (I use a few bricks). The important thing is that it still holds water. ron

Three chambers? Is there any advantage to having 3 instead of 2 chambers? ron

What do you mean by "flame grain"? As a woodworker, flame grain is a particular grain pattern in the wood itself, like curly or birds-eye, and is dependent on how the tree grew and the lumber was cut. I've seen hawks with the handle burned in some fashion and wonder if you perhaps mean this as a way to add an artistic flare to the piece? ron

For my website, I went with free hosting and use the drag and drop that they have for creating the site itself. I decided on weebly.com for the host. They don't have intrusive ads and I like it well enough, if I ever start making money I'll likely pay for the pro version instead of just using their free version. I can update with new stuff in less than a day, including taking the pictures and trying to make them look right. ron

All states I've looked at (a half dozen or maybe 8 out of curiosity, 3 I've lived in) have had use tax and it has been in place for a long time. I don't recall looking at California but I imagine it has been in place for decades and is now being enforced due to budget problems. Also a lot of states are going to destination based sales tax with the idea of a nation-wide enforcement of sales tax. It is being called stream lined sales tax (I think). There is also a nation wide database being built to help with correct sales tax collection. For Kansas if I pay tax on something mail order from out of state that amount is deducted from the tax I owe. I don't know how California has worded their law. From a suit that went before the supreme court some number of years ago, no state can force an out-of-state retailer to collect sales tax for another state. Even if you asked to have tax added from someone out of state, he may chose not to and there isn't much you can do other than pay the use tax for California. Yes origination based would be much easier but everyone is pushing for national destination based sales tax. ron

Somewhere I run across the following The difference between someone with tools and a craftsman is the craftsman pays attention to details. The difference between a craftsman and a master craftsman is the master craftsman knows what to do with his mistakes. As such if he has been in business for 34 years, he knows what to do with mistakes. If he didn't he wouldn't be making money. ron

I'm with BigGunDoctor. I haven't made much I think is worthy of a touchmark. Same with my wood work. I have a branding iron for that with my name on it, but I haven't felt my skills are up to signing my work yet. (Although a number of folks who look at it ask why I didn't sigh it). Maybe I'm just to much of a perfectionist. ron

For tongs, all you need is something you can hold hot work without yourself getting too hot. I've used pliers (a bit short for some stuff), channel-lock pliers or if the stock is long enough, my hand (hold the cold end, hit the hot end ). A forge isn't difficult to make. The basics are just a hole in the ground with an air source. You can line any fire-proof container with a bit of dirt, ashes, kitty litter (the cheapest all clay type) and have a pipe come in the side (or up from the bottom, side is easier to cobble together I think) connected to an old hair dryer (don't use the heat, just the fan ) for an air source. If your lining is thick enough the container doesn't have to be fire-proof (I've seen wooden boxes lined with dirt). ron

Back when I was in the army, my first station was Germany. Since the post library had internet access and so did my folks, I decided to get an email account for conversing with the folks at home. After looking though and deciding on a free email server, I started trying to get a login name. The variations of my name, ronald payne, were largely taken. Since I needed some thing my folks would recognize as me, I had to come up with something unique. Dad played every instrument with strings and his genre of choice being bluegrass, I started son_of_bluegrass. That is unique enough I haven't found it anywhere else, so if you run across son_of_bluegrass it's probably me. ron