Gfreak

Have been super busy at work this week, But a buddy of mine got me about a foot long section of Railroad to use as an anvil.

and i've got a better idea for a forge that i'm gonna make tomorrow.

5 minutes ago, eseemann said:

Hot in Texas, say it ain't so!!!!

Haha no joke, it's actually been a fairly mild summer overall. When it's bad is when it's closer to 110 degrees out, only in the mid 90's right now

3 hours ago, eseemann said:

Even if this $10.00 anvil turns out to be a cast iron ASO (Anvil Shaped Object) it will still be better than nothing. Keep your eyes open and look for the chance to nap some steel and remember to act that your folks would want you to act and you will find good things come to you. My rule that when I am done with a thing I was given for free I give it away with the instruction that the next person do the same. Steel it is one of the most if not the most recycled metal in the world. The same goes for good will and love to and from the pro and hobby smiths in the world. The more you keep your eyes out to help out a new guy it contributes to a cycle good that IMHO makes this world just a bit better every day. 

If you go to the forklift or heavy equipment places to look for something I would not be a bad idea to bring a bunch of bottles of Gatorade or sweet tea as well. It is got and the people will need something to drink.   

 

Ernest

Of course, always a good thing to live by. Good Idea 'bout the gatorades too, and it's definitely hot 'round here right now.

Good to know 'bout the lining, guess I'll just take it out of it then.

As far as the rebound test, that's cool. Never thought about testing something like that.

Thanks a bunch eseemann/thomas. i did look it up and there's one a bit closer to my place than the one you linked. But thanks a tona nyways for the effort.

yesterday I talked to a friend and he said he'd give me an old 50lbs anvil that he had for $10 so i'll probably use that to start with.

I made a small forge yesterday that seemed to work pretty well. It heated up well enough.
Question though. How important is the lining of a small forge? I've read varying things on it.

What I used to make this was: an old Steel bowl (probably about a foot and a half in diameter, and about 8-10 inches in depth) Lined with a mix of sand/plaster of paris. with a 1/2" steel pipe stuck into the bottom side of it for air. used a shop vac to blow into it.

I'm curious if the lining that I used will last, as i've read somethings that said it was fine, and others that it would crumble and break after a few uses.

It heated up well over 1000 F I believe, But the thermometer I had on hand, had a max temp of 1000 so it's hard to say for sure.

Turns out there's a railroad crossing right in front of my friends shop, he said he could probably get me something as they're always doing work on it. Imma go over there today and see what I can pick up.

As for Dozer repair place, I can't think of any off the top of my head, but i'm sure i could find one if I drove towards the coast

Gotcha, i'm not sure if i'll be able to find an old railroad piece, but I can definitely find an old sledgehammer and set that in something. I might be able to get a broken axle from my old coworkers actually. Good to know 'bout the ibeam though, thanks!

9 hours ago, Glenn said:

I suggest that you do not leave. (grin)

Hang in there and read the new posts as they are posted to the site. You will find a wealth of information added every day and will  understand the flavor of the site and the personal exchange between the membership.

Those that were originally perceived as hard shelled curmudgeons are most helpful when you show them what you did and ask for assistance. They just want to know how far you have progressed so they do not have to start explaining how to make dirt in order to dig a hole in the ground to make a forge. After all a forge is nothing more than a hole in the ground raised to a convenient height so you do not have to stoop over.  For instance we can now start to explain why you need a 2 pound hammer instead of a 10 pound hammer to forge with, and why London pattern anvils are only about 200 years old. For thousands of years, old time blacksmiths had to make do without such a wonderful tool, and did quite well.  In fact 50 years ago there was no internet and somehow they still managed.

I didn't so much mean "leaving" as in I'll be posting again later on and just reading haha.

This weekend i'll be trying to get everything together to make a forge. As for an anvil, there's a guy selling pieces of I-Beams nearby. Would an I-beam work for that?

I have a set of ball peen hammers from my time as an auto tech, and a friend is giving me an old short sledge that he had.

7 hours ago, Glenn said:

You need to know that we have answered the *I want to make a sword* comment many times. We grow weary of repeating information that took a long while to assemble into a presentable format only to have the next fellow ask us to write the thesis again.

We now ask them to read the knife section, books, learn about blacksmithing, and then come back and tell or show us what they have done or accomplished. Armchair blacksmiths are quickly separated from someone that builds a forge and actually puts in some hammer time. We can then answer specific questions. We will usually match their interest with information, offer suggestions and encouragement as they have shown us they tried.

We want you to succeed, and your success is directly tied to your safety. Blacksmithing is hot, heavy, sharp, and dangerous. YOU MUST learn how to avoid getting injured or killed in order to succeed. That is why we push safety. We all have scars from the lessons we learned.

And I appreciate it, I really do.

I'll be back then. Thanks!

6 minutes ago, Steve Sells said:

I wonder if you let your students decide to skip white belt because they read a book and watched a DVD and do not want to waste money learning stances and punches, because they decided they think that they can walk, breath and punch good enough already right ?  before you answer, know that I also hold a Godan in Jujitsu myself. there is no way any responsible person would allow a student to dictate how they are trained.

 

 Something to think about. I am done

 

Did you miss the part where I said that I see and understand the points y'all made, and would be starting in the knife section? I understand if you're concerned about safety. But I still feel like you're way to hostile for someone asking questions, and then agreeing with you when you post in response....

And thank you @thomas, will defintely check that out.

16 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

Well Gfreak if you were in the USA you could look into the classes the ABS American Bladesmith Society offers; If you are in the UK I could dig out a couple of names of smiths that teach blades; Can't help you for the rest of the world.  But give a shout out where you are at and we can probably find you some help.

i'm in Missouri City Texas, southwest a bit of Houston.

I understand what y'all are saying about safety. both in using the weapon and in the shop. Eventually I'll be wanting to make something sharper yes, but not right away by any means. My current profession is a Martial Arts instructor, so I know exactly what can happen with badly made weapons.

Before that I was an Auto tech in a shop as well, so i've seen things there too and know general shop safety. Was just asking about things specific to this.

Thank you for all the direction in terms of resources, when I get back from work I will definitely be reading through all of them.

I also don't want y'all to think i'm taking this lightly from a safety perspective i'm doing research now and i'm not planning on actually trying to get started until the end of the month. I know how things can end if you jump into something without knowing how to keep things as safe as possible.

I'm sorry, I mean any other sources other than what had already been mentioned in this thread.

And as far as dangers, what specifically are you talking about? Wouldn't many of the dangers of sword forging be present in knife forging as well? I'll look for classes, but i can't say that i'll be able to afford it right now..maybe in the future.

Ok that makes a lot of sense. Thanks for the kind responses everyone i'll check out the the knive forging section when i get off work tonight.

And yes I had read the pinned posts Steve.

still along those same lines, is there any reading material that y'all would recommend? Because I know how online information can be, especially regarding something like this.

Hey guys. I'm wanting to learn more about swordsmithing and the like. And was hoping I could get pointed in the direction of some good material for learning how to start forging blades.

Now to get this out of the way, I know it's probably a better path to learn on small blades; knives, trinkets, general blacksmithing etc... but pure honesty here, i'm not too interested in making those as this is going to simply be a possible side hobby. And I don't mean for that to come across as disrespectful or egotistical. I'm fully expecting to make some absolutely terrible blades many times before i forge anything worth holding lol.

Now, I can't spend a ton of money unless it's in small batches over time (i.e. would rather learn from books/dvd's than taking classes somewhere to pay for it). As i don't make a whole lot of money. I love what I do, but my chosen profession isn't exactly the most lucrative (atleast for now...we'll see in the future where I can take it)

As far as the forge, the one I was looking at making involved the 55gallon drum, and making it charcoal fueled.

So yea, any advice or starting points for that would be great!

Thanks