brother terry

I did some research and found some safety glasses suitable for uv and infrared rays distributed by ULINE. Search ULINE .com. They are UVEX Horizon safety glasses with a flip up shaded lens for general vision safety. They are designed for welders and they are shade 3 infrared protection. They sell for $40.00. They also have side shields to protect your peripheral vision. I like the idea of being able to flip them up for better visibility when looking around the shop. Especially in dark corners. I use a face mask for protecting my respiratory system so taking them off and on is a pain.

Yup. We have several variations of log tongs in the north woods area. Those look like an older version of what's on the market any place that fireplace tools are sold up here.

Thanks Daswulf, Yes that does help. A lot. When i pulled this stuff up and on top of my flat stock, it cooled and turned into what looks like lava rock. Started pulling the stuff out and had more than i had coke and coal in the fire. I think I'll start with a clean forge. I use Charcoal that i made from oak to get my fire a good start, pushing the coal close to it to coke up. Hopefully when i go out there today i can get welding heat. Yes KRS, I've seen that sight. He's an amazing young man. I've watched a lot of his videos along with many others from other craftsmen. The videos don't actually show someone pulling out hot clinker, but thanks for the input. Thanks Glen, the stuff that i pulled out yesterday and cooled was brown and bubbly, like lava rock that i used to use way back when i was a landscaper. Now i know what to look for. I do appreciate this sight. I've learned a lot from just reading what you guys have to say. I wish there were some blacksmiths up in the northwoods of Wisconsin that i could visit and see what they are doing. A few farriers and a guy who seems real busy with work he does all over the country. I'm not really interested in shoeing horses so that's out. Thanks again guys for taking the time to answer my questions. I've got three kids that want to learn the trade and they are looking to learn from me so i've got my work cut out. My youngest is 27. Not such a kid anymore but when you're 67 anybody under 40 seems like a kid. Lol.

I really need to know what I'm seeing in my fire when I'm heating steel. How do I Know what"s coke or a clinker? I stir up the fire to get things hot and find what looks like bubblegum. It's white hot and sticky. If I put my steel in it to get it to welding temperature it Gets hot but never hot enough to weld. I've watched a lot of videos and they all talk about coke and clickers but nobody points out what they look like. I can pound steel and shape it but welding is just out of reach. Made a pair of tongs with charcoal that I made myself and they work but they aren't pretty just usable. The demos I saw never told me to make two pieces at the same time doing each step on each piece so obviously they don't mach very well. I read a post that one of you guys posted and it was big help, but I still don't know what I'm seeing. I've Burned up about 60# of coal so far and I've got three tools so far. Persistence is my middle name. I'm in conquer mode. I'd appreciate any understanding you guys can give me.

Wow! One would never believe you all are of the brotherhood of blacksmiths. If some one wants to chew Juicy Fruit gum let him. If another wants to chew Double mint, that's his prerogative. Some people like straight bows and some compound. What's the big deal. I think you all beat this dead dog long enough. I'm new to blacksmithing and join this group because I thought I could learn how to work my fire so i could make a weld with my home made forge. And I want to do that because I thought it would be fun. No other reason. I want to make my own tools because I want to. You guys have a lot of talent as I've viewed from your pictures. I want to learn how to do that. To me it's an art form. I've been creating things with modern tools for a long time. And I did because I want too. I already know how to bicker. If that's all you guys can do then I'm afraid I wasted my time. How about spending your time and talent teaching us new comers how to get started. And lets all work together to make this forum a place where people can learn from your experience. If a man learns how to do a trade better than anyone else and doesn't share his wisdom before he dies his knowledge was wasted. But if he teaches others what he knows, he changes the world.

I take it nobody has heard of using honey on burns. I've been doing it for years. Just squeeze a little on the burn and wrap it up. Works better than anything i've ever used. Best to ice it first if you can. But either way more often than not it will stop a burn from blistering. Raised six kids and saw a lot of burns on this farm. Learned it from an old timer who used to farm up the road from me. It works.