Adirondacker

I haven't been here in quite awhile, but still remain interested in this art . I have been working on the forge and will send pictures of progress, I work at it when I can, but must admit it has been more off than on, I walk by it everyday so the next rainy day will do some more. I have to my credit began sawing out the timbers for the blacksmith shop, and hope to have it at least enclosed by snow? I have a question and need help with this. I have cut out a silhouette of grandson on mild steel plate 3/8" thick and polished down with 400 grit paper. This I mounted onto a pine slab so that it stands away from wood background. I used a clear spray on finish, but when dried left a funny looking pattern? I'm wondering if just plain old car wax would serve better, I like the looks of the raw steel and am please with the finish I got. An thoughts on what to do? Adirondacker

I'm offen accused of over building thats why a 6 inch slab,outside of footer will be deeper to support the building. No perma frost here but frost line is about 4ft. Soil here is mostly hardpan and rock so if left alone won't move. I might be able to use a sliding barn door will have to think about that as it might interfere with sawmill operation. The footer for power hammer I could fill in with wood for now until that time I get a hammer, do like the idea of trying it out before deciding where to put the footer, once its poured you have to live with it.(been there done that) to old to settle. They make a fiber board that is use for expansion joint so will use some thing like that to isolate the two footers. Half the fun is in the planning the other half is using it everything in the middle is just work. Have been two men killed here this month working in the woods with farm tractors, I use a 1956 ford 600 for skidding is set up with hyd winch and has a heavy roll bar but no roof so am in the middle of building a cab over this tractor, wife got me a lincoln mig welder so am going thru a learning curve as well as tips trying to get the hang of it. I just stopped to jot some lines as frustation was getting to me. Also have a 440 jd dozer with nothing over it, so thats next. Both men were late fifties early sixties had been around farm equipment just made a mistake. Want to go out at ninty shot by a jealous husband. Later Adirondacker

Thank you for reinforcing my thought process, I will isolate a footer in the event I someday end up getting a power hammer. I'll have to be careful on shop layout to keep that space free from something permanent. Frosty, you are welcome, Alaskan pours are handy, yet for some reason are frowned upon here in N.Y.? Here you either have to be on top of the ground or down 4ft. this shop will be heated so frost heave is not a problem, its going to be attached to garage. I will come up with 3 courses of block then frame walls with 2x6, door opening will be on the north side of building, I want ceiling height as high as possible, was thinking over head door but will be in the way when open so will have two hinged doors. As this project starts will try and post pictures. Adirondacker

Thanks for reply , I can frame in when I build for form boards and pour that piece later, you think about 4 ft square will be ok? Adirondacker

I want to pour the floor for blacksmith shop soon, will be an Alaskan pour 6" deep. Although I don't own one at present would like to in shop layout floor plan incorperate for a small power hammer. How thick a footer should be poured and about large. I know I haven't supplied a lot of detail,but can't at this time, shop will be about 14x10. Any thoughts or experience with this? Adirondacker

I also want to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. Adirondacker

In the fall of the year, the hint of cold weather causes a rush of getting projects started and finished before snow and lack of day light drives most inside. I'm no different and have not had time to form up the pad for my shop add on. I want this done before its to cold to pour concrete and have been pondering how to get this done and all the sawing for others trying to get their projects done. I sold a log trailer to a young guy up the road who needed it to haul some logs to me for sawing, he didn't have any money and would like to work it off if that was alright with me. Since I wasn't using the trailer and was looking to sell it anyways and he needed a boost, I agreed. I figured to have about sixty hours of his time that I can call on when I need an extra hand. He is self-employed so his time is relexable, so he will pour the concrete for me and I can keep sawing and working on my other projects. I also have a drying shed underway, and I had a guy come in looking for timbers to build a sugar house, mite appoach him to finish the drying shed in exchange for the needed timbers for his sugar house. Just love this barter business, with the ecomoney still slow there is more time than money so it becomes a win-win all away around. Maybe before Chistmas a blacksmith shop will be ready to move into? Gary (Adirondacker)

I still want to build my blacksmith shop and hope to at least get the concrete work done before cold weather sets in. By then things begin to wind down and will have time to get framing done and hopefull a fire lit. My son was at an estate clean out and was looking around an old shed and found a blacksmiths vise, larger than the one I have now. I haven't had a chance to check it out but appears to be in good shape, the leg has a bend but can be staighten, not sure about the jaws? also found a blower but haven't checked it out yet either, do know that it set up so will require some work, did not find any tools or an anvil. I did find at a garage sale last weekend an old blacksmith shop, but was so dark that I couldn't see, old guy who owns the place told me to come back at a later time an bring a light. Well that about it from here, summer finally got here so have to take advantage of it while it lasts. Adirondacker

I find that if you can get a torch on the the troubling nut or bolt and heating to a good red hot then quickly cooling to the touch works good, Sometimes have to repeat this but have never seen it fail. Old equipment with fine threads are big pain to get loose, this heat treatment gets the job done and during the reinstall coat with grease. I also save the old grease cartridges and clean them out keeping the unused grease for this work as well as applying to screws in wood projects. The other suggestion are good ones too and will have other means of breaking stuborn nuts and bolts loose in the future. Adirondacker

I recently when and spent a weekend with a blacksmith and observered how his shop was layed out. His forge was in one corner and postitioned so that outside light from the doorway was blocked, so he could see the fire better, as you stood facing the forge, the anvil was to your right ( distant to anvil and forge was the lenght of your arms streched finger tip to finger tip away) to the rear of forge was the vise same distant measurment. on the wall to the left and also behind was the tool rack and bench all within easy reach. Between the forge and the anvil there was enough room to easly get to his layout table. This arrangement was about ten feet square, the total of the shop layout was about 16 ft wide and 30 ft long with ceiling height of about 12 ft. on one side of the shop was a fairly large door that went out into a material storage area with large opening facing out to get merteral in and out easy. From the sounds of what you are thinking of building would seem a good place to start and if done right you can if need be add on without to much problem. I like my building to blend into one another, I'm going to build this summer on to my garage a 10x12 welding shop Can't go any bigger will be in the way of sawmill area but it will match the roof line of the garage as well as the style. Adirondacker

Just a short note, I attended a weekend given to me by my two boys to work with a blacksmith (Durand's Forge, Trumansburg N.Y.) Very skilled and artistic and I might add patient. Had a great time and found very quickly how much I don't know. Have now enough to go on and begin to do some smithing. Before I left I wanted to know from Durand what I should be looking for in line of tools and possible sources, he mention a few to get me started and then said if I could find a buffalo hand crank blower to get one. Monday I had a customer here getting some lumber and wife was telling him how we spend our weekend, this guy says I have a blacksmith handcrank blower in my garage and its in my way you can have it. So I now have a silent 200 handblower made by Buffalo Forge. All I can say is WOW. Adirondacker

Just my thoughts on this subject, nothing is ever as it seems and accepting this up front helps. One has to ask himself just what it is that makes this endeavor worth while, it more than just pounding red hot iron or more that just sawing 2x4's? For me its building a nich market, meeting people and teaching and learning. And lets not leave out creating and selling something one of a kind, the real marrow of all this. Some advice given to me that I will share "start where your at don't wait, things will start to happen and be willing to change when you have to, be open to other ideas and remember you have two ears and one mouth so listen twice as much as you talk. Lastly enjoy the journey. Adirondacker

I have had little time to be on forum, do drop in once and a while to check out new topics. Have been busy with sawing and sign orders. Snow is going slowly and like everyone else must now cope with mud. Am going to work with blacksmith end of the month and am looking forward to this. Will keep you posted on how that goes. I did build a small forge out of six inch drill casing and got it working pretty good but haven't played with it much. Adirondacker

Matt, Was watching a Champion propector forge portable on E-bay didn't bid on it as didn't know anything about them and was going to ask here but was too late. Anyway it when for $305.00, will be intrested in answer to your question. Adirondacker

My oldest son suggested to me last night to try fan out of bath room exhaust, he has one some will try that, should be able to use the housing also. Adirondacker

Thanks for ideas and suggestions, sq nails cut where as round ones split, when I installed knotty pine ceiling here I used flooring nails took awhile but once in place it stays put, finish nails would split the tongue. So will try out new forge today and staighten some bent nails. For jewlery what should be used as a finish on them? Littlewolf where in Upstate New York? Adirondacker

My son recently purchased some very old maple flooring that he will clean up and re-use in a house he is building. The nails are square cut, I would like to save these for some future use? anyone done something with old nails? I like the idea of reuseing something into something new. Adirondacker

Well I tried the fan out of a computer, and as stated by Ian not enough guts. To bad there are tons of old computer around. I like the idea of reusing, did take a bunch if screws from it. Found a fan for six busks at local hardware store that should work will let you know. Adirondacker

I had posted on a small forge that I build, and was going to use a hair dryer, but have run into a tech problem with this ( burn it up) so I went looking for another source cheap. Could not find anything that suited the need or the pocket book. Was kind of talking out loud trying to figure what I could scrounge, when my son suggested the fan to keep computers cool, I have and old computer that I will take a part later today and see if I can make that fan work, Don't see why I couldn"t hook a reostat up to control the fan speed? If this works could have a endless supply of fans from old computers. Gary

I have been working in the shop during this bitter cold we are having. The sawmill doesn't run well below twenty to many hyd lines. Anyways I have been wanting to get started beating some iron so I made a small forge out of some 6" well casing, copper pipe, pvc and a hair dryer. Got it together yesterday but need some fire brick for the bottom, for now I will use some charcoal left over from a party last summer and try this out. I have a project in mind, We make signs out of heavy pine slabs with lettering and numbers handsawn out of basswood, I have an order for a house number on a pine slab, this will hang from a angle iron bracket. With just three numbers the pine slab looks a little bare, so I took some pictures of Crane Mountain from different angles till I found one that suited me, down loaded this and printed out. then I cut the profile of the mountain out and transfered this to a 1/2 piece of wood, then cut this out on the bandsaw, and sanded it down. My hope is to bend 1/2" sq stock into profile of Crane Mountain and mount this to pine slab, think will add a nice touch, can see this in my minds eye, now have to make it real. Just wanted you to know that I got going in trying to learn a new skill. Adirondacker

I started to make a story, but we had a power bump so was forced to go out a shovel snow off the tents, has been a steady snow and cold cycle going on since before Christmas, real cold tonite -25 so have been told, we'll see? When steam boats were on the bigger lakes up this way men could earn extra money from making charcoal, they would clear off about a thirty foot dia. piece of flat ground and remove all the sod which they saved. Then they build a huge pile of wood, mostly hardwoods then set that afire, when it got going real good they covered it with earth and the sod. Sometimes the would have three or four going all at the same time. Then they waited keeping watch day and night to make sure the fire didn't burn thru, when they saw smoke the shoveled dirt on it, had to keep it air tight. When it was done they bagged and sold to boat companies, was alot of hardwork but a man had to earn a living. I remember my grandfather telling of the local backsmiths making charcoal from tag alders, made best charcoal for their forges when they couldn't get coal. Just remembered another story, when I was a kid a lumber mill got afire, was a hardwood mill. There was a railwood sideing and there were several boxcars full of hardwood. After the fire they opened up the boxcars they were full of charcoal, my father got severel big bags full of it was best we ever had to cook on. Adirondacker

Thanks for replies, is encouraging and puts some motivation behind the interest. Divermike, I would be northeast of you, I'm close to Lake George and thank you for invite, have never been out your way so I just may take you up on your offer. Adirondacker

I have an Anvil given to me by my oldest son, it weighs in the nieghborhood of 150 lb and has a name stamped in it (TERXTON), anyone heard of this? The surfaces appear to my untrained eye as good, would have to have someone who knows look at it before attemping to true up, if its not broke no sense in fixing, I do know that it has a nice sounding ring when struck. I have a line on a brake drum off a school bus and have rounded up other pieces to build a forge with, winter here is cold and deep snow so between sawing and plowing has been little time to build a forge. Have found several hammers in the 1 to 2 pound size some are in need of touching up but are still serversable and just need new handles, will turn these down out of hardmaple, can't at the moment tell you what kind other than they are not ballpeens, couple have a wedge in the back that is perpentical to handle the other one has the wedge part in line with the handle? One last comment, for Christmas this year my two boys signed me up of a weekend class with an experienced blacksmith, (thirty years) would like to go during mud season, he has about 6 to a class so should be fun and will meet others of same interests, what I don't think to ask maybe someone else will? This is a good example of added value to his business and maybe some of you more experienced smiths could consider teaching others? Adirondacker.

Samw1, Good for you, keep at it. Don't know if they have a craigs list out you way, real good source for all kinds of things, Jobs, tools, material, ect. ck it out when you can. Adirondacker