JHCC

Continued work on the vise restoration/rescue. Managed to get the screw mechanism out, and quite pleased at the shape the threads are in. The two big cast pieces (the base with its jaw and the movable jaw on its slide) are still stuck together, so back in the electrolyte bath they go.

I haven’t done the split ring, but I have made a number of pairs of split-rein tongs.

For example, spit. I use the "heavy duty safety goggles" (also known as "splash resistant safety goggles") from Harbor Freight, which are inexpensive, have a good safety rating, don't let flying scale or grinder grit in around the edges, and won't break the bank when they inevitably need replacement. I had sprung for some prescription safety goggles with the appropriate bifocal lenses and HATED them. Oh, well. At least the insurance company paid for most of that.

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

No. It won't. Don't bother.

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

Welcome!

If that's a normal holiday drive for you, you have the money, and it checks out (both by videoconference and in person), I would seriously consider it. It's a BIG anvil and possibly more than you will need (ThomasPowers likes to talk about how he uses his 175 lb anvil more than either of his BIG anvils), but definitely worth a second look and maybe even a third.

I was just listening to a lecture by a materials scientist at MIT talking about precipitation hardening of aluminum and how the engine block in the Wright Flyer was made of precipitation-hardened aluminum. A great example of the cascading of technological advances: the wide availability of aluminum made possible by the development of the Hall-Herault process leading to advances in the metallurgy of aluminum that enabled the Wright brothers to use an engine that was both light enough and strong enough to create the right power-to-weight ratio for powered flight. Nothing about whether or not it was strong enough to make a knife, though.

That's a really good point.

No worries. Track clips are good steel; I've even figured out a way to put the unusual shape of the FAIR anchor to good use: A very useful 1/4" round top-and-bottom fuller set!

Welcome to IFI! If you haven't yet, please READ THIS FIRST!!! Not sure what you mean by "pike anvil" or how that relates to casting an anvil horn; can you elaborate? Do you want a working horn that you can forge on, or are you thinking of something horn-shaped that would be part of an artwork?

Yes, if you can check it in person, that would definitely be the best. Before the link got deleted, I saw that the listing said the ring and rebound were excellent; maybe you can get the seller to do a ball bearing test while you watch via Skype or FaceTime.

YES, WE ARE SURE!!! Wire brush (or light wire wheel at most) and put it to use. Work around the gouge. In time, you may even figure out a use for it that will make everyone want to put a gouge in THEIR anvils!

Welcome to IFI! If you haven't yet, please READ THIS FIRST!!! I don't know what the anvil market in SA is like, but that would be quite a good price in the US, even including shipping. I'm not familiar with Robey & Co anvils, though, so I can't speak to their reputation for quality. The condition looks decent in the photos; the sway in the face is not a problem, and actually beneficial for straightening and shaping longer workpieces.

Mike, those are track anchors (this specific version is called a FAIR anchor). They clip on the underside of the track, dig into the ballast (gravel), and keep the track from shifting lengthwise.

C’mon, Frosty, show a little backbone!

Very nice. Please keep us posted on how it works.

I hear that’s the key to success. Shocking, I know.

Vise in the electrolysis tank.

A lot of industrial jobs also had pretty horrible life expectancies as well, especially before better safety practices were implemented. For example, the grinders of Sheffield cutlery had an average life expectancy of about 45, as the particles of grit and steel would lead to a condition known locally as "grinder's lung". Women and children who worked in spinning mills often came down with "brown lung" from breathing cotton and wool particles, and miners' "black lung" is well-known too.

I don't want to talk about destructive testing.

Also, look at Lou L's page of:

I hope that one day my good hammer control can rise to the level of Jennifer's bad hammer control.

Axles are generally medium carbon, good for hammers, anvil tools, and the like. If you can bust apart the CV joint, the ball bearings can come in handy, and their retaining ring makes a cool bracelet.