JHCC

A couple of decades ago, one of the big hurricanes to hit Florida took out a large number of Cuban mahogany trees that had been planted a hundred or so years earlier, and an enterprising woodworker went out with a flatbed and a chainsaw to salvage what logs he could before everything got shredded by the recovery crews. Did very well selling the resulting lumber to fine cabinetmakers, since Cuban mahogany has been largely unavailable for a long time.

Good morning, and welcome to IFI! Please READ THIS FIRST, add your location to your profile settings, and put some photos of your anvil in the Anvils section of the forum. Lots of folks here who can give good advice on just about anything smithing-related; just make sure to do your reading first so that you can ask informed questions.

I'm reminded of the story of the fellow visiting a metal shop who saw an old workman polishing and polishing a set of bronze church doors. After a while, he asked, "Those doors look amazing. How do you know when they're done?" The old man replied, "They're never done. People just come and take them away."

Glad you're still with us.

Like the one Jeremy K made?

Hmm...I should plan something for my ca. 1830-1835 Mousehole's bicentennial.

That's really pretty, Lutz. The little filework detail is very nice, although I'd worry about it getting caught on something and snapping off. One question: I think this may be an issue with the photo rather than with the knife, but the bottom image seems to show a bit of gentle swelling in the middle of the spine rather than tapering evenly from bolster to tip. Is that just the photo?

If you buy from Harbor Freight, spend a couple of extra bucks on the extended warranty.

Scrapyard, eh? What did you pay? Do we all need to be a lot more jealous?

Dangerous question... If your grinder doesn’t have enough power to push the grit through the metal, it doesn’t matter how much control you’ve got over the speed.

New Samuel L. Jackson film: Snakes in a Forge.

Good info; thanks. My grinder actually is one of those HF cheapies. Funny how it keeps suffering catastrophic failure right before the extended warranty runs out....

I’ve thought about adding a deadman switch, so the blower would automatically shut off if I stepped away.

For example:

You want trailer? @jlpservicesinc got trailer! Check out this thread.

Also known as 1½"?

I'm a long ways off from being able to afford a 2x72 grinder, so my dabbling forays into knifemaking have relied heavily on my 4½" angle grinder. It just occurred to me that since that grinder has a universal motor, I should be able to plug it into my variable transformer (currently controlling the speed on my forge blower) and run it at a lower speed. Grinding would take longer, but would be cooler with less risk of ruining the temper. Anyone have any thoughts? Is there any reason (electronic or otherwise) that this would be a really bad idea?

Okay, then: keeps flying scale from burning the scalp!

Squirrel-cage blowers tend to be a lot quieter, too.

UPDATE: Erika posted this morning at great length. The TL:DR version is that Neil is doing a lot better, is passing all his neurological tests, and they are talking about planning for his discharge. At one point, she went to get some coffee, and by the time she returned, she couldn't get back into his room, it was so full of doctors marveling over his recovery. I am so happy about this. They only got married a couple of years ago (in their late forties), having spent their separate lives very much feeling like they were waiting for THE ONE. I was gutted at the thought that she would lose him after such a short time together, but it's not looking that way right now.

I didn’t know they even made ball peen hammers from cast iron.

Same here; good luck.

So, your only means of controlling the blast is opening the ash dump? Yeah, that’s not going to do the trick. Either follow @Glenn‘s recommendation above or install a gate valve between the blower and the tuyere. Both methods will work just fine. Oh, and get some ear protection.

In whose mighty company I shall not now feel ashamed.

Well, someone's spent a wee bit too much time downwind from White Sands!