MrDarkNebulah

I havent tried it myself, but I've seen other people use wood to make a swage block for spoons. They use the hot metal to burn out the bowl, and then as long as they keep it a little wet it works quite well.

Very nice.

Thank you all for the help. Am i blind, becuase i cant seem to find any marking anywhere, no numbers or stamped things or anything.

Thanks for the help guys. I stripped the paint from the top and cleaned off most of the rust. That made a huge difference. I dont see any marking on the anvil at all though. What makes you guys think its a Peter wright anvil? Im not trying to be doubtful, im just curious since I'm new to this.

Thanks for the help guys. Ill clean off that paint soon and get back to you guys on the rebound.

Well I got an anvil for Christmas. I do not have much information on it. I don't know when it was made nor a brand. It is 142 #. The rebound isn't great, but its the best i have, and my first anvil so it should work. Any information is great. I didnt see any marking or distinctions anywhere on it either. The ruler for scale is 12 inches.

Mikey did you ever get that chapter posted? Im interested in reading it. Im thinking about making a small gas forge for some indoor forging during the winter.

Yea now I'm curious as well

Where do you guys recommend me finding some decent mild steel? Ill need it relatively quick.

Thanks for the help guys. It might have been I didn't get it quite hot enough. I have a bunch of scrap stainless steel, would that work pretty well? And i would really like to have the ring version of the bottle opener, but if i cant get it to work ill probably go for the scroll design.

Alright guys. After a day of forging i have failed completely. And the worst thing is i don't even really know what I'm doing wrong. So that's why I'm coming to you guys. I have been trying to make a bottle opener, and i need to make one by Christmas for a gift. And it is not going well. Here is all the stuff I have available. My anvil is the big chunk of steel. I have a improvised hardy hole from the square steel in the stump. I have the set of Stanley stuff, and i have this punch/drift thing ive made. And i cant seem to get it to work at all. I cant even get the punch drift thing i made to get through the steel. Right now I'm forging re bar, but i plan to make the final ones out of a railroad spike. I'm having big issues here, so any and all help is really appreciated. Is it something wrong with my punches or drifts? Oh, and while trying to use one of the Stanley punches, it snapped off while i was trying to punch the metal.So all in all, not a great day. Thanks in advance for the help.

I dont care if it can be used ornot, thats a pretty awesome find.

Where in the world did you find a cannon ball?

Thanks for the advice guys. Frosty i never realized the whole glove things. Ill definitely start keeping a bigger thing of water around. You guys have all been really helpful.

ok thanks

Do you flatten the end at all before you start to open it up for the opener? Or do you just go straight into it after upsetting?

Hi everyone! i was wondering how i could make this cold cut chisel into something i could use with hot metal or whether it would even be worth it. . Thanks for all the help.

Im planning on making one out of a railroad spike, using the pointed end. Anyone done this before and have tips?

Thanks guys. Ill take a look into the class idea, that is a really good idea. I think there is a place that offers some weekend classes which would be perfect. Books are another great idea. Thanks for all the help.

As im sure you guys know, Christmas is coming up. My family is pressuring me for a list, and i am drawing a blank. So i thought i might as well get your guys opinions on what are some good tools a blacksmith that is just starting out could get. I have a 3# cross pein, and some other hammers. I have a big chunk of steel for an anvil, and I have a forge. Im lacking in steel, but cant found any real manufacturers around me unfortunately. I do need some tongs, anyone have any ideas on where to get them? Really what im asking is what are some good tools to start out black smithing with? Thanks!

I have a very similar anvil, except it is a cylinder. Any advice on a stand for it?

Sorry I'm new here, but what is this about?

So i dont have a real anvil, i just have been using a big cyllindrical chunk of steel. I want to make some bottle openers, and every tutorial I've seen uses the horn to help round out and extend the hole to be an appropriate size. I dont have a horn, so i was wondering if you guys have any ideas on how i can achieve this without a horn, it would be much appreciated.

So I finally went to the flea market for the first time. Here is what I got. All this stuff was $18. How'd i do for a beginner? Also, is that a hot cut or cold cut chisel? And any recommendations on what to make? Im planning on a few knives with those files, and maybe a punch with the square on, but any other ideas would be great.

Im planning on trying to make some bottle openers out of railroad spikes. The only problem is I haven't made anybottle openers before. I have watched a few videos on it, yet I dont have an actual anvil (I use a big lump of cylindrical steel) so I cant widen the hole like that. Any tips on it? Im hoping to make something like this: