JHCC

Worth noting that switching options are going to change depending on whether you're using this for solid fuel or for a blown gas burner. My electric blower has a deadman switch that shuts it off when I'm not standing at the forge; I would not recommend such an arrangement on a gas burner.

That's right: we have members in Ohio AND Kentucky!

Sounds like fuzzy logic.

The electrical stuff is beyond my ken, but one of the easiest ways to moderate the blast from an electric blower is to use some mechanism that limits the flow of air from the blower to the tuyere. The simplest way to do this is to leave the blower and the tuyere unconnected, but with the blower pointed towards the tuyere's intake; by changing their alignment and the gap between the two, you change the amount of air that can make it in. Another option is to put some kind of valve that blocks the airflow, spills out the extra air, or both. One of our members used a conduit fitting with an adjustable cover to allow the extra air to escape, and I myself built a gate valve out of scrap lumber that worked really well. Depending on the motor type, you can also regulate the blast by putting an adjustable cover on the air intake. Motors that rely on airflow to keep cool are not good candidates for this option.

Be that as it may, please stay within the law. Welcome aboard!

It's a gas!

Looks good! Glad that they're working out for you. I still find myself grabbing mine off the rack all the time. I've made plenty of tongs since then, but there's something about that pair that just feels right.

Do a number on your throwing hand too, if you weren't wearing gloves.

Welcome to IFI! If you haven’t yet, please READ THIS FIRST!!!

Did some grinding on the dagger.

Ten cents each on the last day of the public library’s book sale.

There used to be a video on YouTube (now removed) of some genius attempting to harden a sword by sticking it in lava and then quenching it with about a quart of water poured over it. It didn’t go well.

There are always the hats.

"If a good blade you would win, you must forge thick and grind thin.”

(And yes, that’s what it’s actually called.)

Forged the blade for a ballock dagger. NB: it’s straighter than it looks. There’s a visual distortion from the light and the sway on the anvil.

Not yet. Need to get more gas for the forge first.

Made from a 3” x 5” chunk of 7/16” thick armored car leaf spring: It has openings of 1/2”: 3/4”: 1”: and 1-1/4”: All the openings are 1” deep.

Great work, alexandr, as always. Having lost all my knuckle hair to the dragon’s breath, I decided to make a pair of pick-up tongs: The bosses came out a little undersized, but not excessively for the light duty they’ll be doing. May need to tweak the curves of the jaws a bit more, but this is what I could get done before the forge ran out of gas.

“Rickety and fire don't go well together.” — Mikey98118

Maybe on the way to Quad-State?

While I personally have no experience with this myself, I've seen a number of setups where the dies would simply slip horizontally into a holder that would keep them from shifting around. Always struck me as a good way to switch things out without having to find an Allen wrench, worry about distorted threads, etc, etc.

Degrees of hotness are of great interest to blacksmiths!

Very true: the price!

That's how I felt when I got my 2x90 belt grinder. It's a wonderful feeling!