Phil Dwyer

Hi Mike, Looks good. That's pretty much what I've made too, although I welded pipe together and fabricated ash dumps as well. So, that's 4.5 man (& machine) hours, plus power, rod and consumables. If you charged the very reasonable shop rate of $50 per hour you'd be looking at $225. Right now Centaur Forge is selling a similar fire pot w/ sliding ash gate for $156.37 or w/ ash dump for $168.25. Hardly pays to make them does it? It's one thing when your "saving" yourself some cash, it's another when you're saving it for someone else. Hope you can get $150 anyway. Yours is a lot less fragile than cast iron (like Centaur Forge's) and doesn't have any freight charges. Good Luck, and let us know how it goes. All the best, Phil

Try Hawaii, apparently blacksmithing wasn't practiced in "paradise" a lot either. Good score on the forge. Have lots of fun!

Hi Kale, You might want to make a regular habit of checking eBay and Craigslist. Sometimes you can get lucky. Folks on eBay regularly sell blowers and forges, as well as other blacksmithing stuff. Indeed, there is a whole category dedicated for it. Most DIY forges, but not all, will require welding. If you, or a buddy, can handle that, you should have no prob. Just start collecting steel. I made my forges from 1/4" plate for the table, angle iron edges and pipe for the legs. I welded up fire pots from 1/2" plate. I'm hoping to finish a fire pot out of 1/4" soon for a lighter more portable one for fairs and festival demos. All the best, Phil

Yep, what Frosty said. We use a torch.

What Frosty said. I like the way you curled the stem rather than just making it a straight-up long stemmed rose. Thanks for posting.

Here, here....what they said, a real inspiration!!! Now the kids have got to earn gas money, ha ha. We need to see some pix of it set up and some work they do, hint, hint. Guess we'll meet them a bit when they post a thank you letter for racer3j.

Josh personally chose not to enter into the drawing because he did not need another forge. There's no foul there, just freely rendered humble honor on the part of a youngster.

What o you know? Life's a trip, and this forum is one too. Post a notice from Devon UK and ask if anyone does such and such. And, a fella from around the corner answers you back saying, Yessir, what street do you live on? You fellas better keep us posted on your collaboration! Oh ya, I did a lot of mild steel chainlink jewelry, as well as in sterling.

Very cool! What was the line driven by?

Interesting pic Frosty. Are you using your knee there? Looks like you've covered a lot of ground in 10 years. (How's that amazing shop of yours coming along?) I've been encouraged to make, and use, side blast forges, as we burn coke in our high school blacksmith classes (LOTS of clinker!). Apparently side blast can put you above the clinker, rather than having to come in from underneath them. Many of the Brit-made side blast forges have a water tank on the side with a pipe tunnel/jacket for the tureye to fit through to keep cool and slow down getting burned off, http://www.calsmith.org/techniques/forges/Side%20Blast%20forge.pdf. It's a bit more than I'm ready to tackle, especially since my classes are only about an hour long. So I can clean most of the clinkers out between sessions.

Have you checked eBay? A lot of folks source this stuff there. You may want to check out these thread on Bladeforums as there's some good tips there too. Digital Thermometer - BladeForums.com pid - BladeForums.com what kind of thermocouple?? - BladeForums.com .

Racer3j, I want to make sure I understand your offer and its parameters. You have a substantial blacksmith related gift you are considering making to a deserving youngster. To qualify as "deserving" the individual: must be between 14 and 18 years old; have demonstrated an ongoing working commitment to blacksmithing; have a need, and ability to put to use, your gift. You are accepting nominations for possible candidates and would like it clearly articulated as to how the nominees meet the qualifying parameters. Nominations will be closed Tuesday, Oct 7, at 8:00PM Central. You are selecting the candidates based on said qualifications. You are not making the selection of the actual recipient based on the qualifications. You are making that selection via a random drawing from the list of qualified nominees. The "transaction" must be approved by the nominees' parents/guardians. I'm not sure if the above accurately reflects your intentions. Please correct as neccessary. This is quite an exciting and amazing "event." One comment, if I may. It seems the secrecy, or surprise, as to the actual details of the gift may pose a challege to your intention, as well as for the authorizing adults and nominees. In other words, I'm not sure how y'all will sort through the appropriateness of the potential "transfer" without revealing what it is. For instance, does the nominee, or recipient, indeed need and/or have the ability to assimilate the item(s), etc.? I suspect you have thought through all this. Please forgive my efforts at doing so. Your generosity is inspiring! All the best, Phil

Ha, I might try the tong wresting of titanium in the forge yet. Don't know of anyone with a plasma cutter, off hand. A while back there was a fella selling Ti to members of the bladeforums. There are quite a few folks selling the stuff on eBay.

The piece thats left is about 2" x 4" by 4.5". I'm not sure how I'd even hang on to it to get it in and out of the forge, never mind whacking away at it with a hot cut until shearing through it. A pair of tongs would be cool though, that's for sure!

Wow, now that's some experiences with Ti! Wish I had some equipment like that, but alas, my cut off saw is as whimpy as my band saw. I cut off another slice though. Did it with the band saw, which is a small one, as it only can handle a 1/2" blade. Went through three bimetal blades to do it. I may have gottten a good deal on the Ti, but the cost of cutting is sure running up the tab. I worry for the little 1/3 hp motor on the saw too. After this knife project for my Dad, I'm not sure I'll be doing much with the stuff, simply because of lack of proper equipment resources.

I'm making some too. And following Uncle Frosty's recommendation re Weygers book, The Complete Modern Blacksmith. There's great info and how to stuff in there. I've been rounding up 3/8" to 3/4" coil springs for our chisels. It's the same stuff I use to make hot cut chisels with. Yep, only heat treat the working end. I still haven't solved all the stone carving hammer needs yet. (I need about ten sets of everything for a couple of high school stone carving classes I'm giving next semester.) I guess it depends on what stone you're going to be carving. There's a world of difference between basalt and granite, at the hard end, and then alabaster, soapstone, limestone and sandstone at the soft end, with marble and jasper kind of in the middle. Also what scale/size rock will you be working? Will you being doing all your work by hand or using pneumatic and/or rotary tools as well? All the best, Phil

I dig that hat!!! About what size disk, dapping tube and punch are you using? Cool stuff guys, keep it coming! Thanks, Phil

This has been a fascinating thread, even though I'm not into reenactment. Never-the-less, I am very interested in seeing portable setups that could be used for contemporary community holiday festivals and arts and crafts fairs. Thanks for posting your portable setup too Chris. -Phil

Well guys, here are some humdingers...enjoy, Phil Indian Geo chain - BladeForums.com hdchaintut2 Making a 18" OAL chain san mai machete - WIP - Lots of pics - BladeForums.com Another tutorial - Damascus from motorcicle chain, powder D2 and 5160 - BladeForums.com .

Sounds like your the man for welding up a BBQ trailer. Let us see some pix when you get her done. Welcome!!!

So has any actually worked with the stuff? Howzit?

Here's a few... YouTube - Forge welding a knife from a timing chain - Part One YouTube - Forge welding a knife from a timing chain - Part Two YouTube - Chainsaw Damascus Forging

Hmm, maybe I should even speed up the saw a little more. I just went up from slow to medium. There's one more pulley I can move to. I have to stop cutting every ten minutes or so though. The 1/3 hp motor, as well as the block of Ti, get pretty hot. Anyway, that's some fascinating info. Thanks.

That's a good tip Chris. I've cut a fair amount of corrugated roofing in a similar way with a circular saw blade turned backwards in my worm drive. Noisy as xxxx, but it works.

Thanks for the tips Av. I did phone MSC/J&L up. The fella I spoke with said I'm pretty limited by my saw. There aren't many options for 1/2" wide blades. They do have a bimetal one that has a few less TPI though. Of course, its twice as expensive as the bimetal blades I got from McMasters Carr. Now I just need a few more bucks in order to place an order. In the mean time, I'll keep mucking along. And, see what others might carry.