anon_smith

that's him.

Bruce: That gate was made by John Outlaw, that little old man with the hat, who you met at Madison. He's really talented.

Hmmmmm, where to start....., First off, I guess I should say a little about my background, I trained under John Allgood and Peter Ross at Colonial Williamsburg. I started my own blacksmithing business, and later expanded that into welding fabrication and repair, and yes, I have been to welding school. That said, I don't believe in subcontracting anything out, and I don't think I can ever remember doing it. My philosophy was that if I needed a tool for a job, and I thought I'd get more work that would employ that tool, I'd bite the bullet and go ahead and buy it. I have a friend that does a lot of fabricated gates and railings. He tries to include as many forged elements as possible (as the customer is willing to pay for). He's a one man shop and he went out and bought a bender for doing box tubing and pipe. If this is the kind of work you do, the bender pays for itself in a relatively short time. But, you don't necessarily need a bunch of high dollar tools if you work carefully. Take a look at this gate another friend of mine made: http://www.forgemagic.com/bsgview.php?photo=411&cat=&by=Lonesome%20Pine You know how he made those long, graceful curves in the top? he bent it between two trees. He bent the first one the way he wanted it, then carefully bent the others to match. But this is just my opinion, I'm a beginner myself.

I just spread it out as much as possible and let it go out on it's own, ....but what do I know, I'm just a beginner. Hey, is that the handle of a well made fire rake I see in one of the pictures?

Well, since no one else would give you a much of a specific answer, I guess I have to. The two most common ways to make the big bends are: 1. Using an acorn table with various stops in it. 2. Building a "quick" jig that you've tacked, clamped, or bolted to your layout table.

Bruce: A coal forge with a firepot is a vast improvement over one with out, and one heck of a lot easier to weld in. My first choice would be to buy a cast iron firepot. My second choice would be to fabricate one out of steel. I think if you do a search on fabricated firpot, you'll see some that others have built.

I know that everyone has an opinion, and I agree that it's easier to learn MIG than stick, TIG, or O/A but, it's a royal PIA to change from a mild wire to something like stainless as an example. I'd also rather not store a half used spool of wire when I've changed it out to weld something else (can you say "rats nest"?). If you are ONLY going to weld mild steel, then MIG is fine. If you are going to weld other materials, want more tensile strength, or do any hardsurfacing, I like a stick machine better. One other thing I have to say about MIG welding, I've seen more bad MIG welds from self taught welders. The most common mistake I've seen is lack of penetration.

Bruce: You had commented that you are building a gas forge. Gas forges have their place. Is there a reason you don't want a coal forge? A coal forge is more versatile. There are many things I make that I could only get in the largest gas forge, and these are not especially large items. Ed had poo poo'd your question about welders. He did this because he's trying to encourage you to learn traditional methods. But, I think a welder has a place even in the traditional shop. I use a stick welder and a TIG welder all the time for making jigs and fixtures (and gas forges!). They are indispensable for this. With regard to what to get. Ed would tell you if you were only going to have one, to get an O/A torch, cause you can not only weld, but you can cut and heat as well. I would tell you to get a stick welder, cause you can weld more different kinds of material (especially if it's AC/DC). With regard to brand, stick with Miller, Lincoln, or Hobart.

Bruce: don't listen to what Ed says, he's all wet. The words "seriously competent" have never been applied to my blacksmithing skill.

Bruce: I'm pretty easy to spot as well. Like you, my hair is two colors, brown and grey. Ed gives me waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay to much credit. I'm just a beginner, only a 1.875 (on a scale of 1-10). He's at least a 6.5. :D

Bruce: Make sure and sign up for one or two "green coal classes" at Madison. I think I'm helping out at one on Friday. Contact me off list (mobjak@yahoo.com) if you wish. I'm near Charleston SC.

You're really talking about the drip pan, not the candle cup, right? I use 1/8" inch rivets to hold the cup, drip pan, and the candle holder (or stand) together. I predrill the drip pans in the flat with a 1/8" hole, and find that they do not get deformed when I forge them into a "bowl" shape.

I don't know if I would say "a good anvil is not cast". There are some good cast anvils that have been made. A couple I can think of off the top of my head are Kohlswa and Refflinghaus.

Way too small. I think about 100 pounds is about the minimum.

...I have at least 100' of 3/8" high tensile chain :lol:

Is that a tire chain I see between the hammer and the tree? Tsk, tsk, tsk