Blacksmith Jim

Things look pretty promising for the Peter Wright. The anvil is still available, and as long as it hasn't sold by noonish tomorrow, then I am going to make the drive and pick it up. It will total 6 hours in the car, which is a bit of a drag, but seems like a decent anvil at a decent price.

I think I'd really like to have small vent/windows that swing up and out near the peak of the roof, to encourage good venting. Then large windows that swing out at the normal window height. That way I can really open up and air out the shop if need be.

Thanks for the links to the steel building info. I heard a radio add for a steel building company around here and stopped to think about it for a few minutes. Seems like it is definately worth some time to research that option more. One potential down fall of the side is that it seems like I would miss out on have more customizations to the shop. Like big swing out (or swing up) windows on the sides for ventilation, etc... Just a though, the web sites looked good though! Thanks again all, I'm always thinking about new stuff when I view this thread.

Thomas, that sounds great! I haven't tried doing any dragon heads yet, I'll have to give it a go!

I plan on using mine for technical books at my office. I just started a new job so I don't have a big collection of books yet. The book ends should make good conversation pieces. I was also thinking about forging some sort of business card holder... Plus maybe some hooks to go over my cube walls to hang a jacket on...

I haven't checked into 3 phase power. I spose I should put that on my list just to be safe. I know I've read some stuff about being able to build converters for it. I'm not terribly concerned about moving. We kind of just went through a "Should we move or remodel to make the house what we want" phase. We remodeled. We now have a new bedroom, a new bathroom and a new garage. It's me, my fiancee and three kids living in the house. We pretty much plan on living there at least until the kids are out. The youngest is four so I think 10 years is a conservative estimate. We've talked about eventually looking for a place out in the country, but have also talked about staying where we are now for good. I do like the idea of the storage shelves being movable though. Good for 'just in case' and for re-arranging the shop layout down the road. Camping gear and holiday decorations and extra stuff gets stored in the garage. We have a small shed now for house hold stuff (paints, extension cords, bad mitten sets, etc.. That shed is way to small to smith in, and it's all wood anyway. I think it won't be toooo much of a problem to keep the new shop space reserved for tools and the associated projects. Thanks again! This is awesome stuff to think about now.

I've also heard some people talk about the explosive properties of a lot of small particulates floating in the air. That might be part of the grain elevator threats as well...

Those look great. I was wondering about getting enough weight to keep the books in place without welding. The ribbon would obviously take care of it I figured some big pieces of angle iron could also work well...

Howdy Folks, While brainstorming about projects to work on, some nice book ends sprang to mind. I could use them in at the office, and it would be nice to have something I made there. Has anyone done any book ends before? Does anyone have any suggestions for ways to make some nice book ends? Any pictures? Thanks!

I live out near River Road. I'm not too worried about power issues, I think they should be fine.

You guys ask great questions are helping me think about great stuff TenHammers: I don't really have much equipment yet. I'm relatively young (late 20's) and just starting to acquire things like good tools. A have a few things along the line of a good bench vise, etc.. I figure the shop will have workbenches lining maybe 2 walls. That way I can have bench tool workstations for grinders, etc.. I plan on building a small portable forge this fall / winter. I'll then be able to use the portable coal forge and anvil outside until the shop is ready. Then once the shop is ready, I'll build a nicer, bigger coal forge inside. As well as probably a propane forge, but first I'll start withthe coal I'm planning on taking a welding class at the local community college this next quarter. I'm pretty sure I'll want to pick up a welder to work with as well. I've thought about truck access and I'm not 100% sure about it. The shop will be in the back of the back yard, and as it is right now, no truck can drive back to it. So that leaves me hand carrying (or using a hand cart) everything. But.... I think we are going to require truck access to pour the slab, so maybe access will be available afterall.. What's the story with the big shop cranes? I've seen them in commercial fabrication shops. Are they prohibitively expensive? How handy are they? I can definately do porches and overhangs. The primary function of the shop will likely be acombination of Smithy plus house hold chore / fixit kinda stuff. I was also thinking that I might eventually start to get more tools for wood working as well, since I'll have a shop and everything.. But I don't think I would start acquiring wood working tools for a few years. Thomas: The whole "where did that hot piece of steel go" is also one of the reasons I thought that concrete and steel siding made a lot of sense. Much less fire safety worries. The roll up doors sound like a good option. And I can definately build an overhang and store my long stock out side of the shop. I don't think security will be too much of an issue. We live in a nice, quite neighborhood. I'll just have to be careful to lock the doors so the kids stay out of the shop. I'm not planning on doing any of the wiring myself, I figured I'd bring in an electritian for that But it is good to think about how many outlets I'll need. The one every 5' sounds like good advice. I'm trying not to think about things like "what if I get a power hammer" because that would all be a ways off. I don't want to plan on everything seeing as how I'm just starting. I figure I'll tackle some of those issues down the line if I stay serious about it. Phewwwww!!! Long post! Thanks again!

Howdy Folks! I've been thinking about how I will set up a shop at home for smithing. I don't really have any adequate, enclosed space now. So I was thinking of building some! I figured early next summer (or spring) I can have someone pour a slab for me. Then construct a simple shop from 4"x4"s and metal siding. I want to have plenty of windows and vents and some big double doors.. I haven't done any real construction before, but I think it would be a lot of fun to do myself. Does anyone have any advice about building a shop? How large of a foot print should I use? (I was thinking 20'x30'??) Any good tips, tricks, suggestions, etc?

JHM 160#r JHM 260#r The 260#r seems a bit expensive for an anvil to start on.. A friend of mine purchased one a while ago for himself, but he's been smithing for a long time. Saving the headache of a wild anvil chase however... that might be worth 600 if its a decent new anvil. Plus the local farrier supply store that sells them is only about 30 minutes away..

I got a lead on a 120# Peter Wright. It's about 200 miles away from me, but I could drive there and back in a long day! I wouldn't be able to pick it up until the weekend, so I'm guessing it will sell before I can buy it! I also called up a local supplier of JHM Anvils. 160#r new is about 600 and a 260#r is about 850 or so.. I might just start to think about getting a new 160#r if I can't find anything in the next few months.

Just think of it! While you were forging you could have all the popcorn you could eat!!

I liked "Forging Ahead"!

Apparently it is an old silver half dollar, not a dime.

hmmmm still seems to work for me.. its cleanstream.net/mirrors/coin_ring/ It was posted on digg.com, so the server might have been bogged down.

I know its not quite the same thing as pounding on hot iron, but I found this little tutorial on making a ring from a dime interesting. I thought some of you folks might as well. It's located here: How to make a Coin Ring Cheers!

Ah Rich! I'm sure you could still roll around with the anvil and make motor noises... It just wouldn't make as much sense! :)

I just stumbled across this on craigslist. I thought it looked funny, so I thought some of you might get a kick out of it. It's an old vise / anvil combo.. Here is a link to the post about it: LARGE VISE & ANVIL COMBO..1914 PATENT

My dad was a Tool and Die maker before he retired. He has been very pleased to see me start to get into blacksmithing. Last time I spoke to him about it he told me "Blacksmiths were the first tool and die makers!" I wonder with how much playing with metal runs in the family. I have spoke with a number of smiths that are quick to point out that their grand dad was a smith as well.

I got a lead last night on someone in the area selling a 155# Peter Wright and a 55# Hay Budden. The Peter Wright sounds cool, but they want something like $450 for it. I can't throw that kinda scratch down now, but maybe next month... I've also heard from a few different places now that just buying a new anvil can be a good option. You get a nice tool, and it saves you the head ache of tracking it down for months on end...

It works for me, and I'm not a member.

Oh man... The local steel scrap yard, Schnitzer's Steel, has sales hours at the same time as my office hours... 8-5, mon-fri... I went today at lunch, and if I bust my xxx to get down there, I have about 15-20 minutes to shop, cut, and buy. Of course, there is no time left over for actually eating lunch, but what a small price to pay! I picked up enough stock to last me through my next 3 or 4 projects (a fire poker, some plant hangers, some dinner triangles), and still have a bunch left over. The best part is that all it cost me was about $12. It's kind of hard to tear myself away from the scrap yard though, I just want to browse and browse and browse. Since I'm still trying to find an anvil I asked if they ever get any that come through. They said they really didn't, but if they did it would get placed in the 'useable items' pile, and that in the past when it has happened, they get snatched up in under a day... I need to find a local place that sells on weekends... Anyone have any advice? Where do you find most of your supply?