eric sprado

Check with Steve McGrew of Incandescent Iron Works (just Google it)in Spokane. He is Rhino dealer and will have some NICE used ones at the Spring NWBA Conference.

Sam: Beautiful spearhead. Could we see the back side of the socket? Is it an open seam? Lapped? Welded?? thanks, Eric

Hi: Just to concur with John and LDW. As an old smith,saving energy is paramount for me! It should have been when I was pounding out horseshoes for long days for years. Use SOME surface of your anvil as a fuller and get that metal stretched out easier! I also use the well rounded far side of my anvil. I LOVE my cross pein hammer!! I use it on the top while the bottom side is against the anvil edge and the metal stretches quickly.Wish I had your energy! Your work is really nice and I see that you have good hammer control.. Show us some of the nice things you make!!!!!! thanks, Eric Sprado

The Army sold thousands of the old Cavalry portable forges(crank blower) as scrap in late fifties and early sixties. During the bomb shelter craze of early sixties a scrap dealer in Southern Cal.bought them and sold the blowers to people to circulate air in their bomb shelters.. Ridiculous of course... but they bought the things. I was serving my shoeing apprenticeship then and bought one.I altered the legs so it would fit on my truck tailgate.Still have it.Very burned out. It feels weird to be a person who bought a forge new and wore it out in my lifetime!!!

Steve McGrew in Spokane area of Incandescent Iron Works has a couple of his Rhino Anvils,slightly used, for sale...You can find his info over at NWBA web site...

Why are so many of you jumping all over that person??????The request was polite even if malinformed. I'm not used to seeing that on this site that prides itself on being so "proper"!!!!! "Let him without sin cast first"what????

Corin: Your post mainly said that you were here to answer questions.......Sooooooo: How about some info on your atmospheric burner... Orifice size and mixing chamber design. Thanks so much... Eric Sprado

I need long extension cords for outside jobs sometimes. I keep my heavy duty cords in a strong milk jug carton(the kind that hold about four gallon jugs) coiled up with the male end in first. I leave about six feet of the male end sticking out to plug in to wall. Female end uncoils from top. Easy to transport. Easy to put back in carton.

Is that clear? I can take a picture if need be but I HATE trying to post on this site!!!!

What a VICE!!!!! Looks like it came from Godzilla's Torture Chamber!!!Trade you come nice post vices for it........

Did you take part of one of the heats to square up the head? I'm having a hard time controlling mine. After about twenty it's getting a bit better. I'm using an 8# maul to squish.... I punched a 1/2# deep hole 1/2" in diameter and am putting in a 1 1/2" piece of 1/2 round stock. I put pictures of it over on NWBA site. Didn't know I was copying yours. Hope that's alright? Made mine from a piece of jackhammer bit.... Eric S.

It is in as good shape as the seller's spelling ability!!!

Lucky girl.... Maybe you'll get lucky too..!!!

Google "post vices" and you'll find a zillon pictures. That one looks a bit beat up for the price.If you're in Oregon soon I'll sell you a nice clean 4" post vice with spring for $50!!!!

I have a shelf welded on to a common hand truck at the same height as my 200#Hay budden. Simply slide it on to dolly,wrap a bit of chain around it for safety and roll it to my truck. a three legged anvil stand fits under the anvil and rests on the lower(ground level) dolly shelf.No strain on my crippled up 66 year old horseshoer,rancher,hay hauler back!

I think Phil meant "is there anything UNDER the vice leg?" That is what gives the post vice it's name and strength. The bottom of the leg is what absorbs your blows.....

I too heat a piece of iron in my propane forge and put it on the anvil-but I also put a fire brick on top of it and more heat goes in to the anvil.

Good idea. How thick leather are you using. Never broke one,but it always makes me nervous to think about it.Eric Sprado

It was an early day Halliburton Army Contract.

No need to remove the shaft. Lifting by C frame is great.I WOULD put down a pallet first. Then the tires. The pallet lets you get under it when it comes time to unload...

Voice of experience due to bad experience: When you heat it up to move back and forth.MAKE SURE you start in the open position when you quench and start moving the joint!! If you start with it closed you will roll your joint open and have to start the whole hinge rolling process over!!

Same here feller.... I have some extras that I don't advertise but would sell fairly to a student.Besides the selling thing,it's nice to know where someone hails from so smiths nearby can make a connection... I'm in Deadwood Or..Far enough out that you have to have your own tom cat.Eric Sprado

My old double atmospheric shoeing forge is not a Diamondback. I forge at around 6-8 lbs. but crank it up to around 14+ to weld. I used to weld horseshoes with it(20 yrs ago)daily using fourth inch and 5/16 stock.In my forge-when the metal blended in to the color of the forge it was ready to weld. TAP,don't smack to start with... The newer forges are probably more efficient so experiment with pressures...

OOH Boy. Doesn't sound good. I've dug thousands of post holes on my ranches and have never worn a set out. I did do a repair on one for an old friend in Montana in the early seventies and used a chunk of bandsaw blade from local sawmill. Worked fine. No tempering.I've always been in rocky country and use a spud bar to loosen up the soil and basically use the clam shell type digger to remove the dirt.I have had to re-draw the point on my spud bar a number of times. I think good steel with no formal tempering should work fine.

That's a pretty impressive reconstruction for a Lazy...... My main anvil is a 200# Haybudden. I'm left handed so the far side to me is really clean,but I need to do some surfacing to the near side.

Don't walk-RUN in the other direction!!!!!!!!