son_of_bluegrass

I'm afraid I can't offer advice on finding insurance. But if you smith for a living (or maybe even just some profit) you may or may not be covered by home owners. Some insurance companies have different policies for "home" and "home based business". At least that is something I've heard, I'm not a doctor and don't play one on T.V. Good luck. ron

For inside (where you don't need to account for wind), you need something for the cards to rest against on the back and something to keep them from sliding out the front and maybe a back leg to stabilize it setting on a desk. So a basic premise - take a long u shape, the bottom of the u is the back base, turn the legs down (the cards will rest on this part of the legs), turn the legs to the front for some space (the longer this space, the more cards it will hold), turn the ends of the legs up (keeps the cards from sliding). You can add decorative elements to the ends of the legs or at the top. Make adjustments to get it to sit right (since it's 3 legs this won't be difficult). Or somewhere I read of someone using a bead of clear silicone on the bottoms to keep the ironwork from marring what the piece is setting on. I don't have pictures of an iron work card holder (I've done a couple in wood). But it's easy enough to think, "What form will hold cards?" to get the basic shape then add the decoration to personalize it as the function allows. It can be as simple or complex as you want. ron

Then you likely want something you can get again easily so once you get it right you won't have to make changes. The alternative to getting something you'll be able to get again is to buy large quantities of one steel now. I'd be tempted to get a piece of each, make one of the tools and test it to see it one works better than the other. From what you're looking at I'd lean to the 1080.

I do believe it was warmer today here in Kansas than Florida. (I'm still waiting for winter to hit.) And I was stuck inside doing other stuff. ron

What I have is largely from http://www.kramers.org/finishes.htm and http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/17935 I haven't look through recently to pick out specific recipes. Various resins are used in the recipes and some may apply to pine resin (pitch). It may need some processing first. Usually processing involves heating and there is the risk of fire. ron

Somewhere I have a few recipes for wood finishes with pine pitch, I may be able to dig them up in a couple of days if someone else doesn't chime in first. Since these are wood work finished, I don't know how well they'll work on metal. ron

The only sure way to know what it is would be to have a sample analyzed. I've never had it done so can't go further on that. There are all kinds of alloys used in aircraft these days so it's hard to say what it might be. ron

The tines I've sharpened for our rototiller sparked like a plain medium carbon steel. That doesn't mean that is what you have, just what I have. Treat it like the unknown it is for it could be anything (I've worked with a mower blade that was red short and shattered when quenched in oil and another mower blade that needed water to harden at all.) ron

Pictures? How deep is your fire pot? How big is your fire? Forge construction? Brake drum? Lined sheet metal? Lively style? Something else? Blower used? Fuel? Coal, charcoal, coke? Something else? More detail will help answer your question. As it stands your questions is like saying I've got a car, how can I go faster? ron

I've made and use both right and left. It isn't a problem (for me anyway) to use either way in either hand. I don't know that I accept these things really exhibit a high degree of handedness. ron

I've taken a similar torch apart and found there is a screen inside. In my case, something left a cocoon over the screen. Is it possible when you shortened it, particles fell into the tube and are clogging it? Pictures and a more complete description of what you did would help. ron

A question Boiled or raw linseed oil? Raw linseed oil can take weeks to cure. Boiled may take days. Depending on how hot you applied the mix (did it smoke?), that may be it and the solution is to wait for it to cure fully. If not then it is likely the wax is too thick (when using wax, especially bees wax, less is often more): burn, strip or buff off and apply less. At least that is my experience using similar mix. ron

The flak jackets that were in use when I was in (got out in 01) wouldn't stop a sharp edge, they were designed to stop shrapnel (can be sharp but oddly shaped) and slow bullets, knives went through them easily. Also the ones with kevlar may not do much as the kevlar used degrades over time. Some padding and a full leather apron would likely do more than an old flak jacket. ron

I wonder if you have (or have developed) an allergy to one of the woods you were charing. Or maybe there was something nasty in the pile (Dad got exposed to poison ivy that way once.) ron

Most of my work is done with a hammer in the 1 1/2 to 2 lb range. It works for me. I do know guys who use 3 and even 3 1/2 lb hammers as their go-to hammer. I have control with the lighter hammers and can swing one all day if I have a whole day to spend. Use what works for you. ron

It may be easier for you to set up gas. If you aren't going to be doing a lot, then you probably could get by with charcoal (chunk, natural, hardwood and real are all descriptors for the fuel that is not formed briquettes). Especially if you have a pack of hot dogs on hand so if someone comes around you are just cooking. And hobbyist often get a pass on stuff that someone selling (even small volume to recoup the cost of the hobby) can't. Do read up on the various safety precautions of the various set-ups. Do look around for a local group - you may be able to find a close group that has open forge time. Try the ABANA site and look under affiliates. You can expect a bag of natural charcoal to last no more than a day depending on the specifics of the forge (something to consider since you are car-less) Ron

First, if you put a general location (city, state or country), there may be someone close by who is willing to help in person. Next, I think you'll be better off turning the wood into charcoal before using it as forge fuel. You can reach smelting temperatures. If you post more details on your plans for your forge you'll get better responses. ron

Once fully cured all finished available in the U.S. are considered food safe. This may or may not still be true if sufficient heat is applied and the heat can allow for some reactions that wouldn't normally happen at room temperature. The solvents evaporate and the dryers used today are suppose to be safe. This may not apply outside of the U.S. or if you find a really old can of finish. ron

Cocobolo is one of many woods that is naturally very oily. Any of the oily woods would works as well. The problem with them is allergic reactions, I personally can't work with anything from the rosewood family and some people develop problems after long exposure and can't handle these woods. ron

It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye....then it's a game of find the eyeball. :rolleyes:

Linseed oil dries faster than tung oil generally. Real tung oil isn't easy to find here in the States. Most of what has tung oil on the label is "tung oil finish" and has various varnish components and may or may not contain tung oil. For my personal knives (including some of pecan which is a cousin of hickory and often sold as hickory) I tend to use either linseed oil or linseed oil/beeswax mix. I sometimes spend a couple months putting the oil on waiting for that coat to cure then putting another coat on until I've built up 10 or 15 coats. I use raw linseed oil that takes longer to cure than boiled linseed oil. Hickory tends to be rather dense and doesn't take all dyes well. Test on scrap first to see if you like what you get. Some dyes will fade with exposure to UV light (many of the water based leather dyes and some of the oil based ones will). The metal based dyes tend to be color fast but may come with health issues. Read and follow any safety warnings on the dye if you go that route. (I'm using dye for both dye and stain even though they aren't the same.) ron

That sounds like why I got into this. If you haven't yet check out ABANA for a local affiliate, there may be a group near you. ron

You can get by with a couple of fire brick. Or with 6 or 8 build a stacked brick forge. You can heat a larger area easier and evener with a forge (even a simple hole in the ground type). Soak is holding at temperature for some time to allow all the alloying elements to go where they want to go (way over-simplified ). Don't expect to be able to do that with a torch. It's hard to do with a forge. So far as your choice of steels. I don't care for either for cutting tools. You'll get better results if you heat treat 1080 or 1095 yourself and treat them specifically for cutting tools.* If you insist on using either O-1 or A-2, I recommend you send 'em out to be heat treated by someone with to tools to do so. ron *My opinion based on some of the chisels I've made for myself and the knives I've made for myself comparing to the one or two tools I bought with O-1 and A-2.

With practice you should be able to do that size with a plumbers torch and one or two firebricks. The firebricks should be available at a place that sells wood burning stoves. The soft are better but the hard are better than nothing. Have all materials ready. What I would do. After shaping, before final grinding.... Set the iron on the brick. Light the torch. Play the flame over the iron until it glows. Watch for the decalescence (sp?). OR use a magnet. Give it just a bit more heat. Quench in an appropriate medium. Check with file. Temper. *Note: O1 does best with a soak that you probably can't achieve without an oven. You may get better results with plain carbon (1080 or 1095). You can go with a stacked brick forge. Or dig a hole in the ground and run an air pipe in (will work for solid fuel). ron

I've found that a soak in vinegar (overnight or longer) loosens the scale enough it can be blown off with my compressor. I try to avoid wire wheels. I do occasionally use a nylon (I think) bristled wheel I found at a jewelry supply place. ron