tbrforge

Anyone know what has happened to the mailing list out of abana called "theforge" no competion with this site but I have grown fond of all the chatter there.

knee length waist apron very heavy leather.

Ed Thomas... well spoken.

I understand the problem with the gas heating a wide swath. as your piece comes out of the forge, localize, pour water where you don't want the heat and vice it up and upset it. To quote a wise smith (Steve Kayne) upsetting is just plain upsetting

peen it. your flat hammer covers too much area with one stirke. remember the basic hammer blows.

Nick, you are not alone. No one on this board got good the first, second, third, fourth.....etc. I remember being determined to make a good leaf. When I failed, I cut off the bad, tossed it into the yard( had an outside forge at the time) keep on going. At one point I looked up to see a small grass fire I had started from all the hot steel I had tossed. Make sure that the project you tackle is within your ability, everyone needs to stretch but we all have our limitations. I start each session on the forge with a "Kata" pure form, working the hammer correctly, making sure I am in the zone for the harder stuff that will follow. Don't give up. When your waiting for the steel to come to heat, think. visualize what your are going to do before you do it. Never met a good blacksmith yet that didn't have the patience of Job. Or perhaps they were just plain stubborn. Get back to the forge and keep working, things will come in due time.

you might also consider inline skate bearings, I use them often to make motorcycle wheel truing/balancing stands. small size cheap and available.

I would split the middle of the curve curl to the desired point and remove the excess material that will be at the split.

I plan on fabricating the handrail on site, weld and bend,weld and bend... First shop I had, I built "the boat in the basement" a truck rack out of tubular stainless. ended up removing the door jam and still had to squeeze the rack through.

layout wise, I have an appointement with Inspectors on Monday to talk code. Looks to me Like I need a rise of 9" giving me 12 steps. only going from ground floor up 10' I am going with 30 degree coverage on the outside of the tread. 1" sq tubing (weight concerns) 14ga wall for ballusters 1-1/2 round for handrail.

the math is not an issue, I work every project out on AutoCad. One of my concerns is the wrapping of the handrail. Seems as though the handrail is intergral with the ballusters and tread to give the treads the support needed on the outside of the radius. Been searching everysite I can and looking at pictures. No staircases around here to observe. I have never been accused of underengineering, but this sure isn't the porject to make assumptions on eh?

boy am I dumb, I just noticed that all the post carry info as to location. West virgina huh? G_d would I like to visit you with an empty truck and come home with some good coal!

the support thing has me a bit baffled. I downloaded a pdf file from a kit manufacturer, and I follow the idea of treads stacking. I don't like all the bolting and such with the kit, but suppose I can substitute welded connections. BTW loved your site Mark, I'm in Athens Georgia, where are you? you work with a glass artist? any luck putting glass in the "eye" of andirons? been trying that for several years with no luck just lots of cracked glass. the staircase will be tied into the railing at the top. the simple version is to use "Hog wire" (welded 3" sq. 3/16" dia.) as balluster. I'm not going to be able to get the guy to go with my artistic rendering. The minute I spoke of what I envisoned, he got that deer in the headlight look and said he couldn't afford that. Oh well, I'll TIG every thing so it will still be "artistically rendered" I will not compromise on my level of quality. I would like to "talk" to you about how your business evolved, I have 20 years experience working for others in the trade, but have only been independant (starving artist) for around a year. I need to get a web presence up and have a million questions to throw at you, but don't want to impose on your generosity or time so if you feel inclined I enclose my email address and a deep felt thanks for all your help. Terry TBRForge tbrforge@bellsouth.net

Mark, Concrete base floor, framed in at the top. I am submitting the quote in the plain ole vanilla wrapper ( no frills) and the artistic concept I have envisioned for the customer. This is for his Rolfing Studio. I was happy to read your reply because I quoted the railing @$80.00 per linear foot and was thinking of going up to $150/ft for the stairs. I'm going to research the books today. I am still a bit fuzzy about individual tread support.

Hello to all: I am quoting 60' of railing with a 10' tall circular staircase. Railing quote and execution is no problem, especially since the customer wants a replication of work I have done for others in the building. But....I am trepidacious about the staircase. I have been researching kits that can be procurred online as opposed to starting from scratch. Any comments, ideas or loud guffaws will be appreciated (well maybee not the guffaws) Terry TBRForge Athens,Ga

Hey all. The search for projects that are economical, attractive and sellable is a constant one. One tremendous source is the mutlitude of Heavy Experience on this list. Bill Epps knows what sells, and ask him, he will tell you. I started a book of projects years ago, when anvilfire first appeared. Every project that I liked is filed with a worksheet to make notes so projects can be analysed and actual cost can be determined. Also seems that the process of making a project, successful or not will inspire variations or new branches. Lets hear what everyone else is doing. (me: candlestick holders, cala lilies, free sculpture,fireplace tools, leaf key rings, business card holders)

silicon bronze filler rod is for joining dissimilar metals, not stainless to itself. I have experienced severe cracking as the joint cools, as I was looking for appearance only...(went to AC to solve that) Get a hold of some fluxless silver solder and try that, nice look, no where near the strentgh tho

Greetings to all: I guess I've lurked around here long enough that I should introduce myself. My name is Terry Walsh. I am a blacksmith working in Athens, Georgia. I have been in the metalcraft for over 20 years. I have worked with industrial lasers for many of those years. I work full time as a blacksmith now. As in days past, I do a bit of everything to pay the bills, which in turn supports the artistic efforts. I enjoy this site, as I don't belong to any organizations or clubs, the ideas and inspirations abound here. Terry Walsh TBRForge@peoplepc.com