JHCC

Don't know, but I've had a wicked itch in the middle of my back that I'd like to take it to.

It looks like my local TSC has both rice and nut in stock. I've never worked with anthracite; any suggestions which would be better? (NB: I'm working a rivet forge with a lever-cranked blower, doing small-scale hobby work and toolmaking.)

Driving down I-90 yesterday in stop-and-go traffic, I spotted something lying on the left shoulder. Traffic sped up just as I reached it, so I couldn't stop to pick it up, but I did see it was a coil of about a dozen yards or so of steel cable.

There is a passage in Richardson's "Practical Blacksmithing" that discusses forging a garden rake with a similar process to what's shown here.

"The fool hath said in his heart, 'There is no need to read the old IFI threads'." -- First Letter of Saint ThomasPowers to the Curmudgeons. "Woe to you, Newbies and Greenhorns! For you watch a few YouTube videos and think you're going to make a sword; you refuse to learn the basics and think you are masters. That, and you don't put your location in your profile. Verily, I tell you, you will end up in the outer darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. And overthinking." -- The Gospel According to Saint Frosty, Chapter 3

Interesting in those two videos how the head of the hammer barely gets above the head of the striker.

I have a retaining ring from the inside of a ball joint that I'm hoping to turn into a bracelet for my daughter.

I have one of these beasties in my own garden; nice to see how they're made. (And that's an interestingly modified anvil at 3:46.)

Story of my life, living in a college town. All those high SAT scores, and no-one seems to know what DON'T WALK means. Getting back to the title (if not the subject) of this post, my mom likes to say that the only things worth doing are "making things" and "making sense".

Adjust the head straps all the way out and squeeze them on over the wrap.

Whenever I'm going to do anything likely to make me sweat, I put on a kaffiyeh/shemagh/masarh. Does a fantastic job of soaking up the sweat, plus it makes the neighbors think you're a terrorist. This is the method I use.

Something like "((O x D x C)-S)/L", where: O = How many you already Own D = How badly you Desire a new one C = How much ready Cash you have on hand S = Spousal resistance L = How hard you're Looking Probably leaving out a couple of important variables, though.

When I was working as a theater tech, "HEADS!" (never "Heads Up!") was the universal warning that something was about to fall on yours.

Boo-ya!

You can get wool or silk base layers; "Smartwool" is one brand, but there are others.

Yeah, definitely a "Better to apologize than to ask permission" situation.

Also, as with any strenuous outdoor activity, two critical things: 1) Keep your core warm. Long underwear, especially. The more your core stays warm, the less your body will pull blood flow from the extremities and the less your hands will get cold. 2) Keep your skin dry. The more you sweat, the more the cold air will chill you. Wear a runner's base layer that wicks the moisture away from your skin, and then layer on top with wool for both warmth and fire/spark protection. Cotton holds moisture and is NOT your friend in the cold.

"What good is eternal warmth without cold to give it spice? " -- John Steinbeck

does that mean I can forward railroad spikes in a torpedo heater? ;)

I used to forge outside in the winter in central VT. Of course, I was young and stupid hardy.

Anyone who knows I don't have a welder.

I like that you can change the diagonal from NE-SW to NW-SE depending on whether you're splitting or cutting off.

It is rather upsetting.

So far, so good. Haven't cut anything really big yet -- we'll see how that goes. It's pretty loose in the hole and bounces a lot. Hence the clip: it just snugs things up a bit.

Made from a salvaged jackhammer bit. It didn't have enough metal for a squared-off shank, so I upset it to fit diagonally in the top of the hardie hole and jury-rigged a spring clip to keep it from bouncing around. Another view: