51 Papy

Thanks JLP. I'll give it a try. Papy

Made my better half a bracelet out of chainsaw chains forge welded together. I did not heat treat. As I was cruising YouTube I've heard that heat treating enhances the pattern. Is that true? So much info out there is less than true to false. The pattern is nice after etch but not real defined. Ferric chloride was used. As this was a first I have to do a little tweaking. Papy

JHCC NOT an expert! I use the nut and rice coal from TSC. The trick for any success I have is a real clean fire. I missed a weld yesterday evening because I didn't get all the clinker and ash out. Got up this morning got the blasted stuff lit and burning about 6" deep and welded no problem. For what I'm burning now, the first hour is great anything after that I have to tear the fire apart and get the rubbish out before I can weld. I like the rice better than the nut coal.

Number four is a breaker bit off a large backhoe. The last pic is the hammer that pushes the breaker. Both the hammer and the breaker bit make great "anvils". Number four has 80% rebound. When prices come down on German and London pattern "real" anvils I'll get serious about getting one until then it works just fine for most everything I do. Thanks Charles

Finished the dead tree jewelry holder. Not sure I'm cut out to be an artisan smith. My wife loves it. She saw it on Pinterest and said she was "sure" I could make her one.

Chuck You might want to think about moving your vise out to the edge of your bench. That allows you to put a long piece of metal straight up and down...guess what I did today. Great smithy! Enjoy

Melw There is not a resporator that is spec'ed for beards due to leakage. All the guys at the plant had to shave when the new dust/air policy was brought out first of the year. Passed our OSHA air quality test a couple of months back. Thank goodness some of those boys looked pretty funny. Better to wear something than nothing.

True Happy Anniversary!

Dano You can also use a ceiling fan dimmer. They are built for small motors like what your using. I have been running one on my furnace exhaust motor for a couple of years with no problem. I still have a slide gate on mine too. Bought it at Ace Hardware under $10 US. Don't forget to spin the fan before you use it if the muddobbers are as bad in NY as KC. Papy

The eyes are always protected. I ware prescription glasses and in the shops I ware safety glasses that the company got me. Tongs might be an answer. There is no end to building tongs seams like you always need the pair you haven't built/ don't have. Thanks Thomas

Thanks Slag and Thomas. Guess I'll spend a little time with the magnifying glass going over chisels. Some of these came off the farm or have been collected over the last 50ish years. I don't want to do this again the outcome might not be so good. Papy

I have no idea where that punch came from but it's been with me for years. I didn't make it. Guess I'll have to make one and a soft hammer. Just seemed strange that it failed several years after I started using it for a hot punch. Thanks for the comments. Rather be lucky than good!

Not sure what I did or how this happened. But the piece that shattered hit my thumb...no blood no hurt I got lucky. I would like to know if this was preventable. I have been punching and drifting holes with this punch for a couple of years. I have had the punch for years. I wasn't half way through the boss on a pair of tongs. I was quenching after every strike. Metal was red/orange hot. If I was being stupid let me have it. Papy

Gary Great series I enjoyed the build. Looking for a affordable (i.e. Cheap) motor now. Papy

It's a little overkill and a long way from being fully trusted for a lot of weight but the better half already claimed for a bucket I made this winter...something about her flowers would do better on a swivel. Saw this on U tube and wanted to see if was doable for me.

Thomas that sounds like NO fun. Jennifer. I'm watching your videos (and others) trying to figure out how to do this craft. As soon as I have something to show I'll post it...but...don't hold your breath. I'd hate to have that on my conscious.

Thanks Thomas. I'm going to have to go back to work to rest up.

Thanks Judson. I always grind or sand metal clean before attempting to weld.

I did my first forge weld with borax as flux today. I welded mystery metal to mystery metal so I used borax. The weld was successful but I ended up with some black scale(?) very brittle on the metal and anvil. Is this normal or was I just lucky it took? All the forge welds before have been with known metals or RR spikes so no flux. It just looked strange and seemed like there was a lot of it. I stuck the cooled piece in the vise and rapped it a couple of times without any damage to weld. Thanks Papy

That's the best reason right there!

58er I have to ask...why end grain floor. It looks great (40 years I've had a wood shop). Should be nicer to stand on then concrete just never seen this done in a shop. Papy

Doglegged I have a post anvil like yours. I set mine on 2pieces of 3/4 plywood ( base ) and then came up with 2" scrap. I staggered the wood and not all goes full length. Then I started filling with sand. By the time I got done I have better then 100# of sand in the base. It is very stable. If this one fails the next wooden base will not be as tall. One benefit is I can use the "side" of the post to straighten pieces or as a fuller or rounding surface. I have not given up on finding a London pattern anvil but I'm not spending a lot of time looking. Hope this helps.

fry chicken until it tastes right then fry fish until it tastes right then keep it away from soap and water . Repeat next week...and next. Oh and those people that say fried food is bad for ya use Teflon coated pans. My cast iron came from my grandparents Papy

Thanks Jim. To many projects not enough weekend! Sounds like a good end of the day build.

Huh??? Thanks Jim. Like Das got a bunch of these...never thought about reusing them like that. Das I'm still turning green over the welder! Nice score.