JHCC

There will be ovens after the apocalypse?

I think this one is a side blast, Frosty. I'd stick with JABOD: "Just A Barbecue Of Dirt" or "Just A Basin OF Dirt"!

Major cleaning and re-organization of the forge part of the garage. One really big change here is that I decided to change the orientation of the anvil, so the horn is now on the right. It's taking a bit of getting used to, but it seems to make a lot more sense. The tray puts tools, punch lube, etc just by my left hand, and the (now) far edge of the face is in much better shape than the previous. Interestingly enough (and probably because the anvil is in a slightly different part of the garage now), I had to shim up the off hind foot of the tripod by about 3/16" and the front foot by about 5/8" to get the face level. Then I made a couple of bottle openers out of rebar (the better of the two as a souvenir for our college's departing president; the rebar came from the construction side of the new college hotel), a tool for tweaking spirals, a new nail header, and a couple of nails. And last, in the functional-but-not-pretty department, I finally got around to making the second mounting bracket for my post vice (bottom).

Solid fuel and propane are completely different animals. Don't even think about a forge that could burn either or both. Go look up the threads on building a 55 or JABOD (just a box of dirt) forge. Not expensive or high-tech at all, and you already have the hairdryer.

I had a friend years ago who insisted that blacksmiths get their metal to forging temperatures by bending it back and forth until it heats up enough to glow red. People do get some funny ideas.

I'm saying it's up to his spouse as well as up to him. As in, "It's good enough; it's only for my sister" vs. "Make it perfect! It's for my sister!"

Curved, eh? Interesting, and good to know. All the non-hot-cuts (i.e., fullers, cupping tools, etc), certainly.

And your spouse....

IFI member Technicus Joe (Joey van der Steeg) has a great little video showing the making of a forged-to-finish knife from round stock.

Well, there is the whole school of thought (exemplified by Brian Brazeal et al.) that you do want enough of a taper to lock snugly in place, but not so much that you can't knock it loose with a sideways whack with the hammer when you're done. In this way of thinking, the force that might otherwise split your anvil is absorbed by the workpiece as it gets cut.

I'm guessing he didn't have any International tractors....

Depends. What are you trying to do? Do you want to burn gas? Solid fuel? Oil? Induction? Corncobs? What kind of work do you want to do? Architectural gratings? Forks and spoons? Monumental sculpture? Most importantly: HAVE YOU ACTUALLY READ THE SECTIONS OF THE FORUM THAT DESCRIBE DIFFERENT KINDS OF FORGES AND HOW TO BUILD THEM? Basically, you're asking us, "I want a car. Should I get a Ferrari, a Honda, or a dump truck?" Well, it depends on what you need and what you want to do. I see that this is your first post, so please get yourself a cooler of your favorite beverages and snacks, settle in, and read every blessed thing on IFI that grabs your fancy. You will find that almost any question you can think of has been discussed already, and if it hasn't, at least you'll know a lot more about the questions you really need to ask. (You will also find that there are a large number of curmudgeons who are always more than happy to answer an informed question, but who have little patience with people who won't bother to do some basic research first. Trust me, you want to stay on their good side.) Happy reading!

Before I got my sleep apnea treated, my doctor said my level of sleep deprivation was giving me "all the debilitation of three shots of whiskey, and none of the fun."

Looking good! My only suggestion at this point would be to flatten the curve on your hot-cut. As it stands, you'll only be cutting on the middle third or less, and anything significantly off-center is going to slide out from under the hammer. Think gently rolling hill rather than Gothic cathedral.

One tidbit: if you rub a tiny bit of black shoe polish into the engraved pattern, it will stand out really well against the polished blade. Don't go overboard, though; you only want just enough to deepen the shadows slightly.

Not knowing the specific original alloy, plating, or finish, it's kind of hard to diagnose the precise problem, let alone recommend an informed solution. That said, you've got a few options. You could try a commercial polish like Flitz and see how that works (do a small test in an inconspicuous spot, first). You could go over the entire surface with a fine abrasive (for example, 0000 steel wool or pumice powder). Or, you could just leave it alone and say, "Oh, yes. That's the stain from the blood of my enemies." Whatever you do, put some kind of clear finish (like Renaissance Wax) over it, to protect it from further damage. Also remember, the oils in your skin are corrosive to steel, so get the blade super-clean and don't touch it before you put on the final finish. Surgical gloves are useful, here. Now, remember that I am not a blade guy, but did work for a few years in an art restoration studio. I'm sure that the knife-and-sword people will have better suggestions.

Always good to understand your own true desires and motivations and to act accordingly -- γνῶθι σεαυτόν!

This is Daswulf we're talking about: he'd do something creative and delightful.

Another aspect of the repeated folding and forge welding of Japanese steel was that it gave it a more consistent carbon content throughout, rather than with that content varying considerably in different parts of the original bloom.

If your fire-steeling is that impressive, we'll have to start calling you "Prometheus"! As for me, I made a mobile hammer rack. (Made from the salvaged base from a gas grill and some thin-walled square tube from an old gazebo frame.)

It's been fun, though, hasn't it? We haven't had a really stubborn newbie in AGES!

Not to be confused with @Charles R. Stevens.

The other option, of course, is to expect fish-mouthing and just grind it off. Brent Bailey does just that in his "Making a Pein" video; the cross-peen fish-mouths, and he just cuts it off on the saw and profiles the peen on the grinder.

Also, an empty helium tank from one of those party balloon kits will do just fine, comes in two handy sizes (8.9 ft³ and 14.9 ft³), and is unlikely to blow up.

Interesting video. Pretty wobbly anvil, he's got there.