Double Y

781 - what is the nickel 200 shim stock used for and where could I expect to find it? I have used metal shims on a car starter and wooden shims on doors and windows...but am unfamilar with the nickel 200 shims. Thanks for the replys, JL

I have just started doing some pattern welding. I like the look of the bright lines in some billets, but am at a loss to find nickel steel. Is there a common supplier of nickel steels? Or is there a common item that I should be looking for at scrap yards that have a high nickel content? Thanks in advance for your advice. Merry Christmas and best wishes for a Happy & Healthy 2011, John

Saratoga, I took some pictures of my press yesterday. It works very well, though I don't use it exclusively. I also have a 50# LG that makes my smithing pretty enjoyable as well. I pressed some billets of roller chain knife blanks the same day I took these pictures. It worked very well and I hope to add some pictures later of the jelly roll blacksmith knife...if the pattern turns out. The foot works well, however I got a thicker piece off to one side and ended up breaking the weld around the collar. I need to reweld with a better rod and get back to work. Here is a link to the pictures - http://picasaweb.google.com/doubleydesign/HydraulicPress#

Nice interview...

Saratoga - your idea is exactly how I run my press. Though I have the smaller Kubota. Mine is the 2500 so only about 20 some horse. The cylinder that I use is a Prince about 6 inches in diamater. It was the right price but really to long of a stroke. I block up the floor to it only has to travel a small distance. I didn't want the shaft to deflect and bend if there was slippage in the metal I am working. I have attached a pricture here, but it is pretty small. I will try to get a couple other pictures and share them in the next few days. I have some long hoses to attache the press to the tractor. I had these laying around from a roadgrader we have. The hoses were used to power the one-way cylinder to lift the V snow plow. I used the frame that attached the V plow to the front of the grader as the frame for the press. It seems to work okay, but I do get some flex in the frame of the press. The frame is 1/2 Z steel. I like the long hoses so the tractor can sit outside the shop and I can shut the overhead doors to keep the hum of the engine and the exhaust outside. Also the safety of having the tractor outside and away from any potential hot metal flying anywhere makes me feel safer! The valve I use is off a drill fill auger we had on an old farm truck. My father-in-law rigged up a simple foot pedal to run the valve. This is really handy to have your hands free. All in all, I am happy with my press running this way and have plenty of power for what I am doing. Let us know how you are progressing on the build. John

Thanks again for everyone's willingness to lend your thoughts and comments. I went to Radio Shack and picked up some Ferric Chloride. I used a recipe that I found here on IFI. 10% sulfuric acid - 20% Ferric Chloride - 70% distilled H2O. I etched this blade for about 10 minutes and then sprayed down with Windex. I then rubbed the blade with oil. I am very happy with the etch. Now to work on my forge welding some more! Thanks, John

Great score Mark! That thing is huge...look how it dwarfs the John Deere road grader! :lol:

Okay, I didn't get to Radio Shack instead I used the recipe for a vinegar etch that I found here on IFI. 2 quarts vinegar/15 oz lemmon juice/5 pounds table salt I boiled to mix and then set the knife in the brew for about 15 minutes. I took the knife out at about 8 minutes but it wasn't a deep etch so I dunked the knife again for another 7 minutes. I washed with soap and water and oiled with olive oil. Not the prettiest pattern, but it was my first try with cable and I am sure I over folded the cable. Thomas thanks so much for your comments. I appreciate your willingness to help. John

Best is different for everyone, I am looking for the "best" advice and I thinking I am getting it. So thank you for that. I will get some ferric acid and give that a whirl. Thanks for your comments and willingness to help. John

Okay I hand sanded till I didn't want to do anymore...to take out any deep scratchs. I heated to non-magnetic then quenched in warmed motor oil. I then heat treated twice. This is what I have so far. Will buffing take out the remaining scratchs or do I go back to hand sanding? The second knife is a piece of roller chain that I welded up a while back. Again just threw it in the forge as I was making some hooks last evening for another project. Is vinegar, lemon juice and salt the best etch? I tried muratic acid last evening and didn't get a deep etch. You can just see some patern as a shadow. Thoughts? Comments? Should I go back to rodeoing? Thanks, John

Thanks Thomas...I will give it a whirl and see what I end up with. The cable is mistery cable so it could be anything, though it sparks well when I tried it. How long do I want to hold the knife at temperature when tempering?

I am not a knife maker, but I had a piece of cable that I had been playing with and had welded into a billet...so I did some playing yesterday while waiting for some other pieces to heat in the forge. Here is my first attempt at a blacksmith knife. My question is now what? I haven't hardened or heat treated and would like a smoother finish. Oh yeah and would like to try to bring out any grain possible from the welded cable... Lots of wants I know! So tell me if I am on the rigth path. I will sand/buff the knife smooth - hopefully - then heat to non-magnetic and quench. Should cable be quenched in oil or should I use super quench? Then buff again and etch? I use muratic acid a lot so I have that on hand. Neutralize the acid with Windex. Then buff a third time? Then thermal cycle a couple three times to heat treat in the oven and then finish with a light oil. Will any of that work? Thanks for your advice in advance. John

Slightly better picture of the Stockman S

The color comes from a series of chemicals called "Rainbow Torch" I get it at our local Pacific Steel. Kinda pricy and the steel has to be 100% clean and polished for the colors to work out. I have used just heat to bring out the temper colors before, but it you do that and then have the piece clear powder coated, it over heats the metal and the colors all fade. This has to be colored, completely dried and then run directly to the powder coaters. You don't want any rust to start before they can get the powder on.

I have a Miller Spectra Cut 375. It is a small hand operated plasma. It will sever a 1/2 inch but does a lowsy job. Looks like a beaver with dull teeth chewed it off. I use mostly 1/8 inch plate and the plasma make a nice cut with that thickness.

These are a couple pieces that were commissioned by a Branch President of Stockman Bank for the new Animal BioScience building at Montana State University - Bozeman. They have sponsored the "Stockman Lounge" in the building where these pieces will hang. The S is 3'x3' and the Bobcat logo is 2.5'x3.5' all built from 1/8 plate The two piece construction is held apart 3/4 of an inch, by 3/16 pencil rod posts. Both pieces were powder clear coated. The pieces will have hiden fastners and will be held out an inch from the wall. Like always these were hand cut - no CNC machine Let me know what you think, John

Thanks for sharing...great video

Well I think the dates are correct, but I will have them check that too before I recut the panel. Though now the Cemetery folks are debating if they want any name on the gate. Apprently another family donated more money. Which means they have the dollars to for me to redo the gate, which is good, but they may want to remove the name portion. Oh well, it all pays the bills. Just agrivating. Thanks for the comments, and yes all my pieces are hand cut. No CNC in my shop. All the best, John

Thanks for the comments everyone. I appreciate your comments. I got some upsetting news this evening. I had loaded up the Cemetery gate and was set to drive the 140 miles to Miles City Montana to cross load the gate to another pickup for the next 100+ miles...when I got an e-mail... The lady who had ordered the gate sent me a message that she had just shared a picture of the gate with the family of the lady who it was dedicated to. And the name is spelled wrong. Not just a little bit wrong, both the first and last name are spelled wrong. I built the gate and cut the name out the way she sent it to me. She just flat misspelled it. ARRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! It isn't my mess up and they have all agreed to chip in whatever it will cost to redo the gate, but WOW is this agrivating. I don't spell well - as you can tell from my typing! - so I am always double careful to check what the customers have sent me. This was just a flat mistake. So now it is cut and grind, wirebrush and paint! Sorry for the whining....I needed to vent without going out and beating on the anvil. Hope all your weekends are grand, John

I have used a post and sleeve construction in the past. In fact I have an install to do in the coming weeks that I have been working out hiden hangers. The art pieces are sheets of steel, so I have the chance to weld to the back side. I will cut 1" pieces of 1/2" square tube - I have lots of this from makeing railing and fence panels. I will drill and tap holes in the side of the tube so I can screw in a small screw. I will then weld the square tube to the back of the piece. After coloring the powder coating I will take the piece to the clients location. Holding the piece in location I will tap (lightly) over each spot there is a hidden sleeve so there is a mark in the sheetrock. I can then set the molly bolts and screw in the headless screws (or leave the heads on if they will fit inside the 1/2" square tube) I can then slide the piece over the exposed screws and then tighten down the screws tapped in the sleeves. Or...at least that has worked for me in the past and I hope it goes this smooth! Good luck, John

This is the tumbler I built. The shaft runs through all the way through the middle of the old 100# propane tank. I use fence stables for matrix and they seem to work fine. I cut a bunch of holes around the tank with my plasma to let out dust, but really should have larger (at least 1/8 inch) holes. John

Thanks Mark and Bob

Here are a few of my recently finished projects. The Steve Fork Cemetery gate is 11'6" and just short of 6' tall. The cemetery is in Garfield Co. (east central) Montana and is where my Great Great Grandfather, Great Grandmother and Great Aunt are all buried. The Beley memorial is a marker for a friend's Grandfather who passed this summer. He was an avaid packer and I took the silhouete from a picture of him. The outline of the mountains is the view of the Crazy Mountains in south central Montana from their ranch where his ashes were spread. The memorial is 2' by 2' The Heeg sign was a Christmas gift for my little sister and her husband that took them 6 months to decide on the design! The sign is about 3' by 3' The last sign is for my brother and sister-in-law in Canada. The overhead gate on the way into their ranch is 18' wide and 24' tall. This piece is 32" tall and 10' wide. I put a rim of 1 & 1/2 by 1/4 inch to stabilize the whole piece. The only true forge work were for the rings I forged and welded to the signs so they could be hung. I also forged a gate latch for the cemetery gate as well. Topping the whole works is a couple heads of wheat I cut out just for fun. Your thoughts and comments are appreciated. John

That is some outstanding file work! Nicely done