Tyler Murch

The words "too many" and the word "tongs" can be used together in a sentence only if one is pointing out that one can never have too many tongs. . .

LOAN me a dollar......please

And drop like a block of LEAD ps. I was wishing the reply to my last one would be kerf, as in saw kerf. don't know why.

why thank you. looking at them now, there is much room for improvement.

One big piece of charcoal? That is the same as trying to light a log versus trying to light a twig. Put some crumpled up paper down, a little charcoal on top. Light the paper, then turn on the air. Or, the easy way, take one of the small hardware store propane torches, hold it to the charcoal for a few seconds until it lights, then turn the air on and let it spread. This is what I do, because half of the ash in your shop will be from the paper you use to light the charcoal. Charcoal lights easier than coal, and even coke.

working like a SERF sure ain't fun..

The working end needs to be hardened, and the striking end needs to be pretty soft; that's as-forged (or if you're a perfectionist, normalized). Heat only the working end to quench. If you don't want it hard, don't get it hot. So only heat the working end to quench. Now the way to heat to temper, there are several ways that work. You can hold it above (or outside the mouth) of your forge and let it heat slowly while rotating it. You can heat the striking end with your forge or a torch and let the colors run to the end. Remember that steel heats from the outside-inward. You must heat it very slowly to allow the temperature to be mostly equal inside and out. The only time I practice the method where you quench the end and let the residual heat run and draw the temper is if it is a water quench, and I would not quench a coil spring in water. I have the habit to make a hot punch or hot chisel real quick for a quick job and not heat treat it. Many times, being that since it is ALLOY or HC steel it is durable enough for the job without having to be heat treated. In fact, not too long ago I punched and drifted a 7/8" hole through a 1-3/4" thick piece of steel with a single punch/drift made from 1018 mild steel, a simple, yet laborous feat for a lone blacksmith with hand tools only at ANY rate.

I heat and forge the steel with the chrome STILL on. It forges right along with the steel until it desintegrates after it becomes so thin. I am CAREFUL with it. I have good ventilation, and I DO NOT HANG AROUND THE FORGE while it is heating. You GUYS ARE RIGHT, BUT I would still rather have my hammer. MY WAY IS NOT BY THE BOOKS, but it is what I would do. Gotta die of something eventually anyways.

yeah, you messed it up. I'll save it though. I'm not too LATE

I'm not a knifemaker anyway, I'm a blacksmith. I can count the knives I've made on one hand. I think the pov I was sharing is still applicable though. I'll say that in the grand scheme of things, I'm a beginner at blacksmithing, but am I right when I say that my current work is better than that of a beginner's?

Sam, I have no clue what you are speaking of.

Steak's best RARE

BAKE some of them brownies..

Roll the DICE...

Another good source for hammer stock is IHCP bar, aka hydraulic push rod. IHCP stands for induction hardened chrome plated. It is 1045/1050 steel. It is found nearly everywhere. Most, if not all, of the chrome plated bars that you see as part of a hydraulic system are IHCP bar. You know the chrome plated bars you can see that do the pushing and pulling on bull dozers? That's them. The bar that lifts up a dump truck bed, etc, etc, etc, that's them. I've made several hammers from this stuff. Now safety trolls you may have your field day telling me how dangerous the chrome MIGHT be. As long as you have good ventilation, it should be no problem. Life is short. I would rather have a sweet hammer than worry about chrome every now and then. I will admit, it would be different if you were making several hammers per week, I buy my hammer stock new from a supplier now.

Like a ROCK..

Polish it up and put it on the RACK.

TACK it down..

I feel SICK

There is a difference between trying to reinvent the wheel and being original. And yes, one's self can probably find a knife somewhere that bears resemblance to their original design, but so what?

Nice save MILL

Are you for REAL?

'ere's a TEAR in yo' pants!

I know nothing about comic books. Just hammers. :)

HWoolridge, it was slit with no material removal. The only loss would be scale and radiusing the face. Dodge, 19" haft. Simmonds, I will. Jake, that stuff was store bought and it did taste like honey, but it wasn't in the ingredients. Thomas, no, why? standingwolf, I got it from a friend who got it from a friend, but you can order it. Look on google.