Ethan the blacksmith

Drawing out metal with 2 flat faces is very in-effective. You need to reduce your surface area contact, creating more pounds per square inch! an easy way to  do this is to draw out over the horn with a round faced hammer, such as a rounding hammer. If you don't have a rounding hammer, take an angle grinder to the face of a hammer.

You could use brazeal/hofi tecneque of drawing over the edge, but if you are a beginner, I would not recommend that.

Keep your steel hot and use the biggest hammer you can use!

Forge on...

Thank you all very much for the replies, I will be doing some more research!

6 hours ago, Everything Mac said:

Nicely done Ethan. It looks great. How did you get the square hole in there? 

 

I've toyed with the idea of making a striking anvil a few times but simply haven't got round to it. With my limited space it's a project that was just put on a back burner.  - What would you say are it's benefits over say, an actual anvil mounted low? 

 

Andy

Well I should probably make a video about this but anyway...

there are two ways of putting in a hardy hole: drill and drift( I have 2 more striking anvils in which I with have to drift) I will probably make a video of all this.

the second to get it water jetted, which this one is.

now for your other question: I learned the value of a striking anvil for making tools when I went to England. The striking anvil was all we ever used( apart from when we made bottle openers).

the advantages of a striking anvil are mostly about the hardy hole.

if you have ever hit an anvil on the tail, or horn, you will know it's very loud. Now imagine two strikers, swinging as hard, and. Fast as they can over the hardy hole, not loud at all......

i have seen to many anvils with tails and/or horns Broke of. There is little chance you will break a tail of on a striking anvil, because there is non.

lets say you are upsetting something in the hardy hole like a cupping tool, and you have taken multiple heats. This would start to run colors around the hardy hole, loosing some of its temper.

 Finally, striking anvils are made of mild Steel, so if a striker misses, and hits the anvil, it will sot send a hurdling chunk of steel into somebody's face.

so these are most of the advantages I know of for a striking anvil. Hope this helps.

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frosty,

this anvil really needs to be bolded down because it dances all over the place!

i will be making a couple of hammers soon, so we will see how it hold up!

Ethan 

I remember one on my first post on IFI was about advice for building a striking anvil. I have now put that info to good use. I got me 3!

for Christmas I got a 3" by 5" by 12" block of steel with a 1" hardy hole in it, and so last night we put a base on it. probably the best striking anvil I have ever seen. I am extremely happy and greatful! I got a couple hammer orders I got to get done, so this will make them a lot easier!

at the beginning of December I also got two 2" plates and I drilled a 3/4" hole in them. I will be drifting them soon, and I will post plenty of pics.

here are some pics of the anvil.

must say, The look quiet clean, especially for a first try!

thanks very much mr. D

I thought it was a peter wright, because of the following reasons: overall shape, The hundred weights stamped on the sides(means it is English), handling holes(means its a forged anvil), and the ledges at the feet.

This is what I mean by ledges on the feet.

Thanks you for the replies!

one of the better homemade power hammers I have seen.

a late merry Christmas to everyone on I forge iron!

I am looking to get belt grinder, not a little knife sharpening one, but hopefully a big industrial one, something with maybe a 4" belt or so. 

if any one would have a link to a good one, a recommendation, or knows of a brand/maker, it would be greatly appreciated!

a good fire pot size in my experience is about 3 inches deep or so and 7-8" by 10-11".

I will try to post a picture of my fire pot.

Hammers were 1055.

Top tools were something a bit softer, like 4140 maybe ......

And the punches were something like 5160.

Do they call that a dog's head hammer?

3 hours ago, latticino said:

Very impressive for one week of forging, even with an experienced instructor helping one-on-one.  You must have been working morning, noon and night.

I think we arived at the shop at 8:15 or so, and left at about 6:00. 

Good solid work day!

hello every one!

I finally got around do get the photos ready, and I shot a video showing the tools.

this was a 6 day class in Norwich, Norfolk, England. and o yes........I would definitely go back, and do it all over again. Alec Steele is a wonderful instructor.

Heres the vidhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33hnRA-TZLI

I also have some pics!

side note: in the video, I forgot to show the drift.

from my VERY limited experience with trip hammers, I have found that if there is to much were in ram guides or other bearings, there will be a bad knock, leading to more wear. if its not that bad, you can simply remove some shims, but if there are non, you would have to build up the part, make a new part, or in the case of babit bearings, re cast them. 

some one please correct me if I am wrong.

Ethan

frosty, what is the swell at end of the handle for? is it to keep your hammer from flying out of your hand, or simply decoration?

what size of coal are you using?

here is a good video on swinging hammerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_tLVdaxYyk

now, I have only been forging for a few years or so, and I have a lot to learn, but this technique works really good for me.

in really good shape

make that 3.

little smaller hammer than you usually make... haha.

by the way, looks even better in person...

I think that would work...

if you have the ability, forge a drift. the forging of the ends of the hammers will likely result in slight deformation of the eye in the tool. therefore you may need to slightly drift the eye.

Ethan

a fine catch!

to bad people are considering throwing this stuff away!

Ethans back from England!(a month ago) hahahaha

I have been kept busy with craft shows, classes, school, and more forging!

I will have a video up in a day or so, showing the 75lbs of tools I got back from 6 good days of forging. i thought and laughed to myself about how ugly some of the tools were that i had posted before going to Britain(such as the 4.5 rounding hammer), some have since been re forged.

Any way, i got a short video of alec steele and i striking on the worlds largest flater!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKAz34dcUr8

Ethan