L.A. Raynes

USe 1/8" brass brazing rod. Cut it a little longer than needed & gently peen it over. Finish by hand filing smooth. Larry

I use Mapp gas & it works fine! Larry

Fantastic!! The best laugh I've had in a very long time!!! Thanks! Larry

What Frosty said. These pan forges need a lining of refractory or clay. After closely looking at your pics, it doesn't appear to have any of the aforementioned clay or lining . . . I'd clay it & fire it up again. Larry

J.B., The hardness re. grinding could also be alloys i.e. vanadium etc. added for toughness. Not necessarily the best as far as forging blades goes. It's carbon content that makes the difference in hardenability & edge holding. Larry

Thanks fellas, Scott, I'm from N.Y. I usually try to stoop in here once a day to see what's goin' on, but I'm mostly a reader (lurker?). I really like the blueprints section. Larry

Hi all, I've been interested in forging for quite a few years, & I've been reading & learning on here for a while now. I make mostly knives & have been making stock reduction blades for a couple years. Mostly hunters, etc. I'm brand new to forging and have done a few by guess & by gosh blades to date. 3 weeks ago I spent a day with Aldo from another forum & learned more standing next to him & watching than from all the experimentation & reading I've done over the past 4 months. I'm in awe of what you guys can do with hot iron & steel, & I'm looking forward to learning and returning some of what I've learned to others as my knowledge & skills improve. Again, greetings to all & thanks for sharing your skills. Larry