omegabrock

I really like the idea of this post and as a complete beginner, it gives some good perspective to the craft as a whole. Along with the bit about "what can you make with..." opposed to "what should you make with..."

An old fork lift tine. It was available. I'd like to get something better, but not sure when I'll be able to. 

First hook following the first project from the book a blacksmithing primer. 

Hmm...I could grind the bottom down a little more to keep the overall height where it needs to be too

Ok definitely something I can do. I ended up breaking down the other table I built for it so I still have about 1/2 of that wood. Maybe add 2 more of those brackets.

As it is now, the tine is resting on the ground. Would it be better to keep it there and just fill the gap, or add more height to the stand and actually bring it slightly off of the ground?

Well it may not be the prettiest but I'm hoping it's effective. 

Me and my wife have been together for 10 years...she knows how to make me happy lol

3 hours ago, omegabrock said:

My grinder is only a 4.5", but the tine is a good 1/4 inch too  thick 

I have no idea what I was thinking when I first typed that 

HA! No, I have read enough to know to not do that

Just now, JHCC said:

Please clarify: is this a chunk of steel that you're grinding to use as an anvil (good) or an existing anvil that you're grinding on (not so good)?

It's an old fork lift tine I got from a scrap yard. The way it was set up, I had it leaning on a small table I built. I only had a small area with good rebound to work on, so I decided to cut it off a little past the sweet spot and form a horn. Where I'm at now, I have the basic triangle shape but I haven't started forming it into Ann actual horn yet. My grinder is only a 4.5", but the tine is a good 5 inches thick so even cutting one side and flipping over and cutting through, there is still a little meat left. I've had to resort to a hacksaw to finish the cuts

I've been working on my anvil the past few days. It's been a bigger task than I expected because my grinder is small lol. Hopefully by this weekend I'll be hammering some more. 

That said, blades are probably going to be my main focus, but not my sole practice, so would it still be better to go with mild steel? I know all practice is beneficial, but would it be optimal to go that route now, opposed to learning how higher carbon steel moves and forms?

1 hour ago, notownkid said:

I can see you do not aspire to greatness being an elected official.  Budget that is like a speed limit posted but not followed by 95% of the people.

 

Lmao! 

10 hours ago, JHCC said:

That's because rebound isn't governed by mass; it's governed by mass under the hammer. In other words, the deeper the steel directly below where you hit, the more rebound you get (all other things being equal). In your setup as pictured, you only have an inch or so under most of the working surface, and the only real depth of material is under the corner.

I was thinking about cutting a majority of the extra off, leaving enough to make a horn and then flipping it around so it hangs off of the table. 

In theory, that should increase my sweet spot a little huh? If anything, it would limit where I could actually work, keeping my work space limited to the optimal area. 

Im just spitballing, so correct me if I'm wrong. I just don't want to make changes and end up in a worse position I am. 

Hmm. That's an approach I haven't thought about. Just use any type of metal? 

I ended up building a stand just big enough to hold my fork tine, but it seems the only place that has any decent rebound is right on the corner. 

That's definitely good to know! Thank you.  Luckily, the spikes I have were left in the house I bought haha

Oh yeah, definitely. Going to YouTube, almost every "beginner project" you find is about making knives from rr spikes. I learned very quickly here that, while they may be fun to make, they aren't something that is really made for practicality. 

i definitely can't wait to start making tools. 

Oh wow. I wouldn't have thought knives would take a harder steel than swords...but then again, I guess swords would need a bit more spring/flex to them so they wouldn't break on impact. 

And I think it might be better to keep practicing my technique with a milder steel haha. I have a xxxx ton of rail spikes I can use. I think what I would like to do is make a set of tongs. I just have a $6 pair of vise grips from harbor freight haha

Haha ok, I just came across another post about railroad steel. I didn't even think to search for that earlier

Oh wow, that's good to know. I'm really glad I found that thread earlier then haha. I'm not sure exactly what 1050 means but I'll check into that.

It seemed like it hit a breaking point around half thickness where it was a lot easier to form under the hammer. Then again, it could have just been that it was fully heated throughout the middle. 

So my current project is basically learning some hammer techniques. Waiting for everything to heat up, I scrolled some posts and learned a good bit about *how* to swing the hammer. That really helped the fatigued aspect. 

Anyways, this is what I started with. Just some old scrap hook I found. Maybe 3/8" thick...

first, straightened it out. Then I practiced drawing out, tapering and rounding. Last, I squared off part of it before the rounding and finished with a little grinding just to clean it up. 

Im happy considering I'm a complete newbie

Haha yeah as definitely is. I got a new bench grinder and she's planning on getting me more stuff for my *shop*

i ended up scratching the square workbench that condensed my workspace. Now, this is what I'm working with. 

Haha well I'm a light hearted guy that doesn't get offended when told my approach is wrong when I dot know what I'm doing, and I like to learn. 

That said, I got my diamondback forge that my wife bought for me and I started pounding on it, trying to learn some hammer techniques. It ended up looking like a knife so I went ahead and went with it. 

In terms of forges, I think the next thing I'll do is build a new chamber (?) and then transfer the burner I have onto it. That way, I think it will allow me to get a feel and compare how it works to the one I have and then, I'll take that other burner design and make that. Kind of like a step by step transition into learning how to build the entire thing. 

lol I'm not sure what's going on now

Good point haha. I may be able to find someone that can weld but that may have to wait until the first of the month. I've alsready gone over my monthly "fun budget".

what about scrapping the workbench idea and using the wood I have to make a simple podium style stand? I'm sure that would last until the first, but of course if it *could* last longer, the better

Or would I be better off just cutting off the heavier side and laying it flat on the workbench?

Well, I got a nice forklift tine that I am using as an anvil. I've made a workbench and want to incorporate them together because I like to see what I can do, with what I have. My question, before I cut up this tine more than I have to, does it need to be resting on the ground, should I make a wooden spacer between tine and the ground, or will the weight of it resting on a 4x4 (workbench leg) provide the stability it needs? Also, I don't have access to a welder

this is how it looks now, just resting on the 4x4 leg. About an inch from a 2x6 I have propped up.