Anachronist58

Well, I want to s start out by saying that this in no way compares to the heartbreak experienced by many across this continent and the globe. Just an inconvenience in the larger scheme of things. My house was built on "stilts", after a fashion, in the middle of a creek ditch. When it rains long enough, and hard enough, two catchment levies overtop, and the water follows its course. Yesterday at 1:00 p.m., the gauge hit two inches, and the levies overtopped. Instead of running through the smithy, it found a critter hole, went to ground, under the neighbor's barn, to pop up again and bypass the smithy. Very Nice! Woo hoo! Don't get much better than that! Well came home from my shift this morning 3-3/4" in the gauge. 5" deep of water at the head, pushed down my berms, and ran mud through the entire "shop". Sure was nice while it lasted! Sure hope the shoes are pointed in the right direction? The west creek ditch is still running, so this will be tested tonight . Robert the duck Taylor

Yep, I just paid Way too much for my Soderfors (no style stamp found) two weeks ago, and if I had it to do over, I would pay too much again. Robert Taylor

C-1, you might need a cheater pipe for that.........

Keep going man, you are rolling. Robert Taylor

Big Gun, are you sure that's not a WOODEN anvil?

Yep, a bit dark, but pictures help us see just how many >easy< ways there are to pad our jaws. Thanks for the pics! Robert Taylor

I prefer rust and scale myself. Can't bring myself to even wire brush my new 116 year old 157 pounder. Oh the places it has been! Millhand, you are a animal! Good on ya. Robert Taylor

A Soderfors Paragon.... $900. Hope you fellows don't get in trouble with Grandpa. One never knows how deep his attachment for the steel may be.... If it were mine I'd tell you $2,000 and you kids get off my lawn! Look at yourself, it's not even yours, and you are drooling, and your heart is pounding for it. Try not.to insult with a lowball offer - good luck! Robert Taylor

Really, Mr Huff, there are lots of people of every level of skill and experience here, and "we" value most those who display an EARNEST passion for this craft, and who are willing to put in the work that goes with it. Blacksmithing is hard work, it does not simply fall into one's lap. Most of us have regular jobs, and limited time, which we try to use wisely. So use the link below to find yourself 50# of bituminous or "blacksmithing" coal in your area, and let us know how it goes. http://www.google.com/search?q=coal+sales+southwest+Michigan&oq=coal+sales+southwest+Michigan&gs_l=mobile-heirloom-serp.12...2290.22200.1.24668.10.9.1.0.0.0.372.2447.0j3j2j4.9.0....0...1c.1.34.mobile-heirloom-serp..6.13.3779.vHdUfgGjwL4 Robert Taylor

Actually, I am lying in a pile of fallen equipment as Mrs Taylor hurries down to do >another< welfare check. The axle brackets on the hand truck have collapsed. Had to clock in, so more to come. Robert Taylor

BEE-tuh-pon

Wow. Nice table. Robert Taylor

"Beguiled" certainly deters my urge to pick mushrooms. In 1984, a certain medical institution found it expedient to prescibe poison to me for a head injury, and much cheaper than a full work-up. I like receiving this tech news because it informs me of what the world will potentially look like in the future. Like these scientists, I too get excited when I discover a precursor for something that will not be immediately usable by humanity. speaking of hype, I remember Lockheed Martin's excited invitation to the world's technologists to help them finish their fusion power project, which they claimed was nearly complete. I suspect that their call for "collaboration" was because they were stumped, and after several years, they still are. Then there is the "sticky tape x-ray", heralding a new era low-cost remote locale field diagnostics, which has not made headlines since 2008. Meanwhile, my cold-fusion device continues to chug along, producing copius power from margarine and cold cream. Robert Taylor

OK Bubba (forgedinfire 123) - I broke my back in two places when I was 15 and I got up and walked away. By age 29, I was experiencing....... I shouldn't even be walking. Never mind Brother, I have a great sense of humor . And I DID move from the tailgate to its pedestal. Five more pounds and I'd have to call the Neighbor. HE could lift it with one hand! Robert Taylor

#1 when I am alert uh.... No. #2. I think. Sometimes I speak like a Californian, sometimes Texas Panhandle.

KRS - do you have a picture of your set-up? Robert Taylor

These are made pretty much to Glenn's spec, except for the latch bend, which goes over the top, instead of the sides, as a post vise would require. Easy to make, following Glenn's clear instructions. Use your smithing skills to obtain a firm yet removable fit. If you need wear resistance, (solder) some thin steel sheet between just the jaw faces and the copper. Robert Taylor

These are best used to practice your packaging skills. Put a couple in a flat rate box. I will let you know how you did the moment I receive them. Robert Taylor

Outstanding. Striking. I bow. Robert Taylor

I walk and wobble on the knife's edge every night....... I have occasionally fallen off...

Andy98, I agree with your presentation, and being human, I am still in the process of evolving (and sometimes devolving) from cynic to coach. Depending on factors such as fatigue, irritability, and exasperation, I plod steadily toward that positive goal. I regret that I am unable to engage my manager except indirectly through my own conduct, or courteously, yet firmly, adhering to logic and my own long-honed standards. Dunning Kruger IS pathological by definition (and is a component in most, if all of human personalities to a lesser or greater extent). I (endeavror to) never cast aside wise council, Andy98, so I thank you for sharing your well considered insight. Robert Taylor

Who will top that? Not me! Looks pretty cramped in that factory, there may be a darth of space in Vader's.

John McPherson, I thank you for your words. Fortunately, if you will, in my circumstance, I have several factors working in my favor: I am a seasoned Curmudgeon, in that my sense of timing is (usually ) well evolved. I place no value in retaining my current employment, and Mrs Taylor supports me in this - just look at her face! My trade is one of those rare specialties that is absolutely essential to production (Tool & Cutter Grinders are nearly extinct in this county). My loyalty is to the Mission, and not the Management, which shields me from a tendency to please people, as opposed to fulfilling the letter of my own professional ethics. I am sad to know that many must compromise their sense of right and wrong in order to keep bread on the table. I believe most people would do the right and sensible thing, if Leaders were wired to foster that concept. I am not independently wealthy, but my time on this planet is running out, and I now value that time at $600 per hour. None have been willing to pay that rate, but I tend to work for "free" on MY time. The last independent job I did, I had three months to finish, and the customer began to pester me after 18 days. I quickly finished the job: "No charge, and don't ever bother me again". That's when I set my new rate, which may come down if my venture takes off. I thank all here for your indulgence, Robert Taylor

Should not be much of challenge with induction pulse heating (the induction pulse being what propels the aluminum droplet in the Vader device) within a non-conductive ceramic discharge vessel or one made of high permeability sintered or formed metal such as "mu metal"? Additive Manufacturing is currently being heavily invested in by my employer. http://www.steicoindustries.com/lib/video/steico.264.mp4 We will see the combining of some of the best off-the-shelf systems result in a huge leap forward quite soon, I think. Mark1 - Drop or slide a magnet down an aluminium tube, or across an inclined aluminum plate. You will observe the reactive drag of the induced eddy current. Thomas, this thread is moving faster than I can post - yes, eddy current braking. And further, Thomas,add ferrimagnetism to the list. And Frosty, I see that you just chimed in, I will read yours after I post - nothing mysterious for YOU! Slag, easier to move the nozzle in X & Y than to magnetically bias a metal stream - but I am working on a new invention - I call it the cathode ray tube! Cheers, SLAG, and all enthusiasts. And Thomas, I look forward to your expose`. Robert Taylor Wow, Frosty, good on ya!