olfart

Back on the original topic of drilling cast burner heads, I found out today what happens when you try to drill too close to an edge with a masonry bit. When I get more castable mix and bust all this mess out of my burner body, the next attempt will be using either crayons or glue sticks.

Lookin' good, Anvil! Did you cut all the logs for the house?

I'll try to do a followup. He's carving a totem pole with a chainsaw, so it should be interesting. Thanks again for the help!

OK, I tried my hand at making a couple of log dogs today. The one I made from 5/8" rebar was a booger bear to work, and it ain't pretty. The 1/2" round hot rolled worked at lot easier. It ain't pretty either, but here's a pic of it. Maybe this will help the next guy who's looking for a log dog.

Thanks, Glenn! That Woodright Shop video was just what I needed.

A friend asked me this evening if I could make a "wood dog". I told him I probably could if I had a clue what one looked like. He described it as being maybe a foot long and a couple of inches turned 90 degrees and sharpened on each end. After changing my search parameters to "log dog", I found some on the friendly neighborhood auction site. The photo there doesn't give me any idea of dimensions, as there are just a bunch of them in a pile in the photo. Can anybody offer suggestions on dimensions for a "log dog"?

The monthly meeting of Four States Iron Munchers was today, and I went despite the heat (107 F), but didn't spend very long out in the forge shed. I did come away with a leaf veining tool made by Bill Epps, who's a member of our club. Google Bill Epps blacksmith and you'll find a lot of articles he's done. He donated the leaf veining tool to the club's excrement in the cranial adornment drawing, and I won it! Then we went outside, and he demonstrated making a couple of leaves with it. Heckuva deal!

Or maybe just a two-way bottle opener.

Until a line of thunderstorms comes through and takes out half of your best shade tree. Fortunately most of it missed the greenhouse. Guess I won't be staying as cool in the shade of that tree.

I figured Frosty tries NOT to stick to the lampposts (especially his tongue).

Uncle Sam's Army introduced me to salt tablets back in 1959, and I keep some in the cupboard all the time since then. A salt tablet with a big glass of cool (one ice cube) water revives me better than any sports drink. To stay cool when out in the sun, I wet a Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad (artificial chamois cloth) and drape it across my head, neck and shoulders, then wear a big floppy hat with mesh around the top to let the hot air out.

Or, if you don't want to cross the state line into Arkansas, there's also the Knife Group Association of Oklahoma, who probably could offer you a lot of help.

Gee, thanks! Now I have a Yellow Submarine bobbing around in my head.

Just... WOW! As much as I hate scorpions, I admire that one.

In my area of the USA, the prime mover seems to be the "Forged In Fire" TV series. At least that's what finally got me off dead center and learning about the craft. I've yet to make a quality knife, but I've made tools and useful items for around the home. Yesterday I made a small shovel and a part for my log splitter.

Oil is lighter weight than water, so any oil inside the barrel will rise to the surface. That's what the scum is on top of the water. The barrel also needs to be covered and/or dumped periodically to keep down mosquito and algae infestations.

I have a tee shirt that says, "A pun, at maturity, is fully groan." I think you all should buy one.

The sleeve on your hydraulic ram appears to be scarring the surface of the ram. If so, when it's converted back for splitting logs, that scar will damage the front seal on the cylinder.

This paper towel holder took me a couple of days to make, but I finished it today. It's a housewarming gift for our preacher and his wife as they move into our newly-refurbished parsonage.

My grandfather had a drugstore with a soda fountain when I was a child. Yep, a root beer float is a brown cow. A Coca-Cola float is a black cow.

For what it's worth, I welded up a similar press many years ago and swapped out the hand pumped bottle jack for an air assisted 20 ton bottle jack. I built top/bottom dies for it and added die plates so I can just slide the dies in/out. The press is much slower than a regular hydraulic forging press, but it works. I also added a small tabbed handle to the pressure release screw so I can release the pressure quickly enough to get a second or third squeeze in one heat.

Very nice design! The integral guard looks very well formed and functional.

Thanks. I'll put a couple of coats of boiled linseed oil with mineral spirits on the handles to give them a little more protection and bring out the wood's colors a little better.

These nice knives followed me home (one in the custody of my wife ). The top one I won in a club drawing last month. The smaller one was a Christmas gift to my wife today. Heckuva deal! A matched set of knives made by a friend makes for a very nice Christmas! The wood is Bois d'Arc (Osage Orange or Bodarc in this part of the world).

I've not seen nor heard any mention of it as yet, but I'm willing to bet alcohol was involved. No, not as fuel for the forge. Most of the really stupid things I've seen done were heavily influenced by alcohol.