Blacksmith Jim

I just heard that Stumptown forge is holding a class with Jack Frost on making some really great frogs. Kudos! If anyone is around for it I would love to hear how it goes. Jack is a great smith and his frogs and turtles are really amazing. One of those things you look at and realize is innovative and *gasp* unique! Now that he is showing people how its done though I 'spose there will be more out there. He did a demo at the last NWBA conference I believe. I suspect he is going to the next conference as well. Stumptown is located in Portland Oregon. I haven't been there but would love to hear from anyone that has!

I always assumed it was in reference to a house that was going to be torn down anyway. That they were saying something a long the lines of "Instead of hauling the debri off to some land fill type place, they would instead burn it and recover the nails." No clue though, I wasn't alive then :)

Use them! They are stronger, as irnsrgn pointed out. I've been stock piling all that I pull out of my house as I do work. I'm hoping to start re-using them at some point. Irnsrgn, what is the proper way to drive them in to wood?

Phil, Did you really forge weld 136 of them together? I would be very interested in seeing a picture of that!

Tongs are fun :)

July 24th and 25th. You should stop by! The town of Drain is beautiful, and we'll be in the park right next to a historic covered bridge and a 100 year old Victorian house!

Thank you all so much for the feedback! chyancarrek, It is the North Douglas County Fair. By no means a huge event, but it seemed like everyone had fun last year, and my wife and I are looking forward to helping out. They have various vendors in, and have had 4H and exotic livestock, as well as a pie eating competition and a greased poll climb. Good stuff! Here is my current plan: Fuel: Charcoal. This seems the most likely fuel for a smith in this region and period. Forge: Not sure about this. I have a large, home built side blast forge with water cooled tuyere. Maybe period for London at that time, but not here. So I'm still up in the air, maybe I will build a small side blast with no water cooled portion, or build just a break drum forge or something... Anvil: I'll be setting up about 200 yards from my house, so I'll just haul over my stump and anvil. Its a 120ish pound P.W. Quench tank: I am going to try and find a wooden barrel, and then mount my post vice off of it. Any ideas on where to find a wooden barrel? Air: I will probably use my friends hand crank blower. I know a bellows would be more period, but I don't see myself having extra time and money to invest in this. Clothes: I'll wear my leather apron, I'll try to find a wide brimmed hat that looks relatively period-ish. I'll be sure to wear my modern safety glasses. I'll probably just wear some cotton pants, either denim or not.. And I'll think I'll get one of those stripped work shirts, and I already have some suspenders. I liked the image that Don A provided. That last one that was linked. Display: I want to put up some information that people can read, and some images. I might make up a poster board or something. I can show in those pictures what the blacksmith was doing in these parts around that time. Maybe provide a few paragraphs of info. Display Table: Have some goods to look at and sell. Maybe have someone to help with selling while I am forging. Forging Items: I will stick to mainly nails and hooks I think. Twists in the vice are always popular. I will keep a hunk of beeswax around so I can finish / sell pieces right there. I need to make a nail header. I have not made nails before, but I'm sure I can figure it out. I'll keep all my stock to some 1/4 round and 1/2 square. Should be simpler that way. Area: I guess I should plan on roping off the forge so people don't get to close... I am inviting some of my friends to help, so may have more people forging / selling.. Critiques of the plan are welcome and encouraged! Thanks again everyone for your input, its been a huge help! :D

Howdy folks, I was asked to demo at a local fair this summer. My wife and I are trying to help with local community events, and this happens to literally be in our backyard. Turns out they were hoping to get a blacksmith to be there, so I was sort of coerced and volunteered. I'm usually pretty good about being safe and I'm sure I can answer some general questions, but I have no doubt many others would be better suited for this. I've invited several of my friends to show up / forge / help out etc.. This year will be Oregon's 150th Birthday. So the fair is trying to commemorate that time period and that event. In this regard, I would like to at least have an idea of what a Blacksmith would be doing 150 years ago. I think we're talking wagon trains and gold rush era's. I know some people on here have done a lot of research, so I was hoping to provide you with an opportunity to educate someone that would really appreciate it! What was period 150 years ago in Oregon? What did the smith look like? What kind of tasks did they perform? What kind of forges, bellows or fans were they using? Thank you for any feedback you feel like providing. I appreciate it! R.C.

I've been collecting pictures of forged candlesticks for a while now. This is by far one of the nicest that I think I've seen. I love simple designs, basic functionality, and a clean presentation. A+. Can't wait to try my hand at it. For everyone asking, it looks to me like the center candlestick holder has a tenon on the bottom that rivets together the base. At least that's how I would do it based on the pictures.

I'd just mount it and forge. Looks good. Nice anvil. Someone lucky enough to own Postman's book can probably tell you the age.

Frosty, Yea, I've seen and read some of his stuff. It looks pretty amazing. I was emailing off list with a guy from the 'box, he suggested talking to Jim too. I may if I get to that point. I think I'll play with a stack of quarters a few times first. I did pick up a jewelers saw recently though, and look forward to putting it to use! I also looked at Mokume rings when my wife and I got hitched recently. The ones I saw were great, but out of my price range at the time. I once mentioned upgrading rings at some point, she didn't seem that excited about the idea for some reason As always, thanks for the feedback. R.C.

Howdy folks, I'm hoping to play around with making some Mokume soon, and was wondering if people had advice for some good metals to use. I've looked at a lot of pictures, and obviously silver and gold work great together, but I don't want to spend $$$ for just figuring stuff out. I'm planning on using quarters to start with, I'm sure they will keep me busy for a while. Are there other good common metals that look OK? I guess I'm mainly going for contrast so that the pattern can be seen easily. Thanks! R.C.

Looks like a mouse hole. I ain't no expert though..

If it works for you, then go for it.

maybe if the guillotine has a handle on it, I could easily pull the whole thing outta the vise and quench quickly....

Yea, I imagine with shouldering, fullering, drawing, etc.. I shouldn't have a problem. But what I'd like to do, is cut into the bar 1/4" deep and 1/4" from the side. And run that cut down the bar about 6 inches. Seems like it might dull the cutting edge if I don't cool it somehow ...... The old computer heat sink idea is kinda funny to picture :P

Howdy folks, I just put together a guillotine tool a few weeks ago, and am now thinking about all the fun dies I want to make for it. Some are pretty simple and basic. I'll use them for necking down, and for forming tenons, etc. However there are some I am thinking I would like to make to use for cutting lines into and veining pieces. I'm thinking about things like putting in lines along a square bar for twisting decorations, etc.. So, in use, I would use the die along a 5 or 6 or more inch section of the bar. Obviously my die would only be a half inch wide or so, so I would have to hit it alot as I move the bar along. Not to mention getting all four sides. Now with my hand tools, I water quench them every 3 or 4 whacks (assuming its not an alloy like h13 or something). What do I need to do for the guillotine dies? I was thinking of using some leaf spring (got a bunch of it) to make the chisel bits to weld up into a die. How do I keep it cool? Do I need to remove the dies and quench? In some of the big open die forging videos I been watching on YouTube, they often have a helper there spraying the dies with some liquid, presumably to keep them cool. Do you guys spray down your guillotine mid work? Thanks for reading. Any advice or thoughts are greatly appreciated. R.C.

Nothing like some pop media Steam hammer references from the 80's! For some reason this resonates with me a lot lately.... YouTube - Intaferon Steamhammer Sam

Not at all Terry, it was really interesting to hear you background. Thank you for sharing.

Have you looked at the plans for a side drawn stack? They seem to work really well in the pictures I've seen and the testimant I've heard. I have personally used a few set ups that have adjustable stacks, say 6-8 inches or more in diameter, that can be pulled down close over the firepot. These adjustable stacks feed into a bigger hood further above. They also seem to work well, but I have seen them fill the shop with smoke too if they are not tended as well. Personally I like the design that is demonstrated in photos of Hofi's shop. He has a side draft, that has a square tube going back through the wall, then round stack that goes up the side of the building along the outside.

TASMITH, how did you find your job? What kind of background were they looking for when they hired you? How did you find the conditions and compensation to be? Thanks! The big hammers sure look neat :)

Ideally you want your cutting plate to be soft. So that it does not damage the tool that is cutting into it. I see a lot of people using aluminum. If you use a truck leaf spring, you might chip or damage your tool.

Look around for the one where they work on an anchor. Shot at the same time period. Really amazing stuff!

There is a certain year abouts where they switched from wrought to mild steel for the nails. I am in the process of restoring a 100 year old Victorian, and they used square nails extensively in the place. A few seem like wrought, but most look like mild. I am saving all I can find, with the thought of re-using them in the future possibly.. You could send them my way if you can't find anything better to do with them :P

I'd look at getting some of the welding blankets that they sell. They are made to keep things from lighting on fire. Also less permanent and easier to install then drywall...