tantofolder

Thanks 3lbhammer!! Hoping to get some work done today.Unfortunately, it will likely be preliminary work to prepare for some of the next steps.I think I need to put the twist in the 3/4" bar before I do anymore altering of the split.The twist is one I saw in a book, attributed to Samuel Yellin.I have tried it a couple of times on smaller stock and have not gotten it quite right. One reason is I need smaller divots in the square edges,so I plan to weld(temporarily) a smaller stock bar to my spring fuller(which is currently 1/2"-5/8").I also want to test the twist at least one more time.Anyway,all of this will be food for thought even if it doesn't turn out exactly right.I'll be storing it away for future reference. This thread is more detailed than I had originally planned.Maybe I should have placed it in the Member's Projects category.Thanks for the support!

More details would be helpful.Is it an electrical blower? Can you remove the shaft from the housing?Photos may help too.Have you tried liquid wrench or pb blaster? Maybe a propane torch to help loosen it?

Awesome!! Now to make a larger version for a cafe table.....a piece of glass for the top,and two matching chairs. :D

Looks good.......and beefy too!

I think it looks great so far!! ....and it is amazing how uniform they are for freehand.Seems a shame for the top to be covered with potted plants. :D

Looking good!

Here is a quick update on my progress.I was able to do some work on the pipe portion of the legs.Part of my idea was to have one side of the split 3/4"stock poke through the back of the pipe leg.Originally I had planned to forge this with one of the splits,but decided against it.I decided to use both splits inside and plug welded and to make a seperate hook to be welded inside.I won't know until I start to position the splits,if this will look natural or not(as if the split is tapering and then poking through). Anyway,I cut the top of the pipe at a level angle when the hoof was positioned flat.I knew there would be more material for the front,so I cut in a way to allow for a small scroll,then punched the back from the inside.I had hoped it would tear the metal,and it did.I got some gnarly tearing action. Here are the hooks.....I found out after I cut them,that they needed an angle to look more natural with the eventual split portion.I hope it's enough. And here is one welded. More later.

Stunning!!

Eddie, As Frosty mentioned this type of steel is "deep drawing".This makes it perfect for repousse/chasing.That type of work is labor intensive,but this is the material you want for it.

A true integral.....great job!!

Ron,I can't remember for the life of me where I got that thing.It is good,hard steel though...I couldn't drill through it,so I set my stick welder on high and melted a hole in it.I have another idea for you though.I will PM you or tell ya at the next Guild meeting. dcraven,I have to use this thing or Frosty will never let me live it down. :D I'm not sure when I will get another chance to work on this....maybe a couple of hours after work on Friday.My next chance after that will be at least a week. :angry:I did do a bit of work on the pipe leg prep,but will wait until I have more to show. I hope to have pictures which are a little more interesting next time. Thanks for looking!!

That looks like the one from Crofton, Maryland craigslist. It has been for sale a couple of weeks at least.I think the price is fair,but it wouldn't hurt to offer a bit less initially considering its been up for a while.Good luck!

Well I was able to get some work done today.....2 days in a row!! I took the 3/4" bars and heated a little less than 1/2 of the split ends.This is about how much of it will be placed into the pipe portion of the legs.I didn't worry about getting it perfectly round,but just wanted to have less grinding for fitting it to the pipe interior. Next I blended the corners a bit,then heated the full split section so I could spread it open.I used my hot cut for this,which is really a tooth from some Caterpillar machine with a hardy shank welded to it.I put this in the vise since it gave me more length for spliting. Here are the leg sections so far. The next step is going to take some time.Getting the angles right,fitting the two pieces together,welding,etc..Part of the joining of the pieces will require some more forge work on one side of the splits and the pipes (for aesthetics),but I will just show that rather than trying to explain it for now. I am also planning a twist for a section of the square stock that I haven't perfected yet on practice tries,but I am close.

Thank you Ron!I made a bit of progress yesterday,so here goes. I had been needing to do some work on my bandsaw which I hadn't used in a least a couple of years. It is a Wellsaw Model 58BD which is a horizontal metal cutter,but can also be used vertically.So I got a new blade,but had to build a work table for the vertical position(it did not have one when I bought it).Unfortunately,I didn't realize until after welding it that the work table(12"x12") was not perfectly square to the blade(looking down at the table).So I wont be able to just measure for placing any jigs I make on the table.Maybe later I will cut it loose and reposition it.Here is a photo of it: The upper portion of the legs for the forge are to be made from 3/4" square,but I wanted a nice transition into the pipe portion.Here are 3 foot sections of the 3/4" stock,a little longer than I need but I wanted to be safe. I decided to split the 3/4" square on the diagonal and spread it open where it will join the pipe.This is what I needed the bandsaw for.The jig is one I had made before for drilling holes into round stock on a drill press.I welded on some tabs,so I could clamp it to the work table.It held the stock fairly well.You can see here how off the table placement is. I split each bar 7"....well almost, before my blade broke on its weld.I had to use a hacksaw for about an inch. Hopefully,I can get out to the forge today and start shaping these ends.The tough part will be getting the pipe to stay at its angle,while getting the 3/4 bar plumb.Then I plan to plug weld the bar into the pipe.Anyone have any suggestions for holding this stuff in place?

Great sculpture!!......you've done this before. ;)

Awesome......hope my first is as nice!!

Yep....beautiful.

Great job on the knife and sheath both!! Both look of really good quality.

Cdworks,If you have a Tandy leather near you they are pretty good about sharing info(both process and product).If not there's not much to it.Get a leather dye and apply with an applicator(leather dye is made to absorb into skin and you don't want it in yours,bad for the liver I think).Let dry then, apply a sealer.If you can't get a good sealer you can use an oil(like neatsfoot),but expect to do alot of rubbing as the the dye will tend to want to come off on your clothes if you don't rub it well.Thats about it really.I am sure others have methods too,these are just my experiences with it.

Welcome to the forum scruffy.You could always make something structural from it (like forge legs) and shape them like big knives. ;)

GROOVY!

A spike should be fine for the garden tool.Look up dcraven here....I believe he has made garden tools from spikes.I would use a better steel for the hotcut or punch though.Automobile coil springs are good and easily accessible choice.

Nice score!!

Well I like it! Looks like the fit and finish on the handle is well done.Thanks for the photos.

Beth said it:"simple and beautiful".