LarryFahnoe

I wonder if a couple of those large diameter, low speed ceiling fans might be a good option? I don't know who makes them, but they have 5-7 skinny blades and are maybe 6ft diameter. I see them used in big box stores like Costco. They turn at a fraction of the speed of the standard household ceiling fan so you don't feel a down-draft but they must be effective at mixing the stratified air. Is the window by the door gone for good or yet to have the siding cut out? --Larry

1700 parts per hour makes me chuckle when I think of the time it takes me to design the part I want & then turn the cranks on my manual lathe to make it! I've never seen a screw machine in person but am certainly intrigued with the pics I found when I went looking for a Davenport 5 spindle screw machine. Are the CNC machines able to compete with these machines or is this a sort of protected niche market? --Larry

Okay, thanks Jerry. Will file the photo and description away & improvise from there at some point. --Larry

It is a slick setup indeed. Frosty, any chance that there is a PDF or otherwise available for that forge build? Would be a nice resource or reference to have should I want to build a small gas forge. --Larry

Conduit runs are looking GREAT Jennifer. A lot of work to do it to your level of satisfaction, but the satisfaction you achieve is worth it, well done! Earlier pics seemed to suggest that the small Ø runs were sort of splaying out the farther they went, glad to see nice tidy parallel runs now. I agree Gewoon, nobody but you (or someone with experience installing electrical) really knows the time and effort it took. Soon it will be time to fill those conduits... --Larry

Must be an early Christmas present that we need to ponder while we wait for the appropriate time to open it! Company appears to be in Australia so I'd guess the postage was a bit steep. --Larry

Beautiful work Latticino. I particularly like your somewhat simplified/regular pattern from the 7-layer bars as I think this is visually more effective than some of the more random patterns. --Larry

You've shown many nice things Shaina! I particularly like your delightfully playful snail. --Larry

Gotta love the last seconds of the blower's video...as though it was saying "thanks" for your efforts to put it to rights! --Larry

I'm more familiar with TIG, and a pinhole at the end of a bead with that process can be a sign of too much heat. Resolution (for me at least) is to back off a bit as you come to the end of the bead. Sometimes I also incorporate a bit of a swirling motion with backing off the heat. I wonder if that would be possible with your welder? --Larry

Your work is inspiring Jennifer! I can only imagine the look on the inspector's face and comments that they might make when they inspect your work. I'm still proud when I look at my vastly smaller accomplishment of a single and three phase distribution system for my little shop, and I recall the inspector saying that the work was better than many of the professionals. Here's to the good head on your shoulders and your raw grit! --Larry

David, congratulations on a seriously nice find! If my math is right, about 766lbs, so it will need a hefty stand indeed. You might look at Fireball Tool's welding tables for some ideas, though the system employed there is slightly different (non-threaded holes). The legs on the Fireball tables are extremely stout and work very well. When you make the stand I'd suggest making every effort to leave the edges fully exposed so that larger plates can hang down as in this pic. --Larry

Hi John, I'm guessing that is another one from Brynmorgen Press? Or that Tim McCreight has something to do with it. Between what I can see as current offerings and other, older offerings (from bookfinder.com) Tim McCreight has been involved with a good many books of interest to metalsmiths. You have been finding lots of interesting things following you home!! --Larry

Alex, your photos offer a wonderful glimpse of a land that many of us have never had the opportunity to visit, thank you. The sculpture intrigues me. Along with the difference in the benches, the differing styles of clothing suggest a young woman from the modern era visiting an esteemed gentleman from an earlier time. Is he a famous poet or composer? The green bough she holds adds a nice touch & as I look closer I see that it covers her book, so maybe he is a famous author? --Larry

Yep, that's the one. --Larry

Yes, Foldforming is another very interesting book and one beautifully presented. There are a good many appealing books in the catalog of Brynmorgen Press. --Larry

Sounds like something for Santa's list, thanks. --Larry

Thank you John, this looks to be another very interesting reference work. My copy of Steines' Moving Metal finally arrived but is in queue behind Quigley's lengthy Tragedy and Hope, so it will probably be a while before I get to it... I think this paper looks to be an excellent companion to Moving Metal and noted that it references Corwin's Chasing and Repoussé Methods Ancient and Modern which also looks to be of interest. Too many interesting reference materials!! Time is the issue though... --Larry

I for one Jerry. The Practical Machinist has been one of my primary information sources for many years because of the breadth of experience represented in the community there. Don Thomas, the originator has established rules to keep the site focused on professional applications which has in turn provided a good home for many professionals to exchange knowledge. It is a much larger community than IFI but is similar in the sense that there is a goodly collection of wisdom, often offered by a smaller group of lovable curmudgeons. Non-professionals are certainly welcome, but discussions of junk machines are squelched. Aside from the many machine specific sub-forums, there is also a very worthwhile sub-forum discussing transformers & phase converters, and another focused on historical machines. Lots there to fuel your interest in a vertical mill! --Larry

Goodness John, thank you for taking the time to offer those summaries! They do indeed help; sometimes bite-sized tidbits are the perfect morsel that help to build the mental map. Neat also to have the connection to Thomas Merton, I'd most recently run into him referenced in James Douglas' "JFK And The Unspeakable", more roads to travel. I would bet that the experience at your forge provided some interesting insights to the museum curator! I'm inferring that you work at the College? It was decades ago now that I took the fork in the road away from academia & towards industry (a career in IT) and I still wonder if that was the best choice. Quite likely economically, but that isn't a good measure of a life's worth. --Larry

A fascinating read John, thank you for posting the reference. Peering through the veils of time with the help of folks who have made the effort to read earlier works and synthesize their own thoughts is an endeavor that seems the road less traveled these days. To sit down beside one who has & in due course has pondered the lives of ancient craftsmen was a gift. Brings to mind a couple of reflections. First, the "noise" of everyday life and its impact upon craft, or really any work. How many times do I yield to the temptation to click on a link, or tune in to a song rather than training my mind's focus and energy upon something I'm working on? Many. My life is filled with such distractions & if that wasn't bad enough, then there is the tinnitus that further separates me from silence. The pleasure or satisfaction resulting from descending into the zone of focused effort is profound, but is often held at bay by the myriad distractions. For some, silence is a precursor to achievement. Presumably (I have limited church history) the imperative for silence was to lay the groundwork for spiritual reflection and insight, but I can't help but wonder about additional motivations. I have no qualm nor quarrel with self discipline being used to further personal/spiritual growth and/or one's work, but as the author alludes, it also is effective for management and control of others. The honoring of the cellarer Gerard on one hand and the many rebellions by both monks and lay brothers on the other. The thesis touches on the economic magnitude of the hierarchy of their monasteries. All good food for thought & I have to chuckle though as after reading the thesis, I still don't have a better sense of what distinguished the Cistercians from the Benedictines. Or for that matter the Jesuits who I have had a little more contact with. I wonder though, did Jacob go on to develop an interest in smithing, or was he already acquainted? I suspect the later. --Larry

Very helpful explanation, thanks Tim. I have a thermocouple on a small forge that doesn't read right, so this gives me another thing to check into. --Larry

I think you can probably learn something via comparing the specs on those two models. Frankly I'd pass on the H7760 as to me it looks like a very lightweight & under powered tool. Since you mention that you've used a belt grinder before, maybe compare these with the one you've used, how do they stack up? Keep an eye on craigslist or similar for the heavier more powerful industrial grinders. Or, perhaps Frosty may be able to share some notes, plans or pointers from the club clinic he mentions? Then you might just be on the lookout for parts & have the potential satisfaction of a better tool due to your own time and effort. The old term for it is "sweat equity". I am by no means an expert, but would comment that similar to the difference between forging mild steels and either high carbon or alloy steels, the effort to grind goes up as you work harder material. The big grinders have lots of power so that they can withstand lots of pressure so that the abrasives are cutting rather than just rubbing—think of forcing the stock into the grit (or tooth) of the belt to visualize cutting. Rubbing just heats up the belt and quickly dulls it. --Larry

or as Bob Weir sings "too much of everything is just enough" --Larry

Isn't that the way of things?! A sudden touch of fall temps (here at least) certainly inspires us all to get moving on various winterization projects! That's a neat little lamp (a scene with a farrier perhaps?) & will add a nice touch to the school which is looking great Jennifer! --Larry