WayneCoeArtistBlacksmith

You will certainly want to check out the Southern Ohio Forge Association (SOFA) which meets at the Miami Fairgrounds and come to the Quad State Round-up there the 4th weekend (get there Wednesday before for the best tailgate sales) in September. www.sofablacksmiths.org. Be sure and stop by my canopy for a visit.

I have Plistix at $10.00 per pint and Metrikote for $15.00 per pint. I have used both and ITC-100. I have not done any side by side comparisons but I believe that the main difference is that Plistix costs $10.00 a pint, Metrikote $15.00 a pint and ITC-100 is $69.95 per pint. My supplier is a builder of large kilns and furnaces. They used to use Plistix and switched to Metrikote. When I ask why they just say, "We like the Metrikote better." They now have to special order the Plistix for me.

I have a 155 and would have nothing else. I have had no problems with it. I regularly forge 1.5" stock and move the metal to the core. I have never needed service on it but have had it updated whenever they are available. I would have no reservations about buying the 110# Blu Max. Call Josh at Big Blu and discuss it with him. He will give you any information about that particular hammer.

Check out my DVD on my web-site and the videos all on the grinders page. There are some good tips there.

Attached is an article I wrote for the Alex Bealer Blacksmith Association and have provided to many other blacksmithing associations. I flatly refuse to sign any "Release" that says that I will release any and every body that might maybe happen. Most are so open ended that there is no time frame and if you sign the "Release" and then are on the way home and someone who had attended the function runs into your car you have "Released" him. As was said before, these "Releases" probably won't hold water but you can bet that if you get injured and have to make a claim the defending attorney, or insurance company is going to raise that defense and even if you win you are going to have the trouble and expense of opposing that defense. Persons using these over reaching "Releases" may, in the end, find themselves in the position of being hit with additional damages for causing undue trouble and stress to the plaintiff for the unconscionable "Release". When I attend a function that includes these over reaching clauses I just mark out what I don't agree to. I have never been turned away. Once when I was setting up at a conference one of the sponsors had been drinking and was spinning donuts on the pavement and over onto the grass around and around another camper's trailer. I was about 100' away, standing watching all of this and trying to figure out what to do if he lost control of his pick-up. Then I thought, "And they want me to sign a release saying that if he lost control and ran over me I would not try to collect for my damages?" BTW, I am a retired attorney. WARNING.pdf

Contact Josh at xxx-xxx-xxxx. They have a new double horned anvil, I think about 175#. Try adding a 3 legged steel anvil stand with a 2" thick or thicker plate and calk the anvil to it. This will effectively add weight to your anvil and give you a good solid, stable stand that you can get up close to.

While at Quad State he was talking about getting a school setup and started. He said that if he could get that done before he went on he would be satisfied. Well, he did get the school started. We should all die feeling that we died satisfied with our accomplishments.

To get the belts to fracture, try running very fast, use a piece of hardened steel and really lean into it. Think about trying to stall the grinder.

I got a call that Jim "Radar" Brown died Saturday night about 9:30. He was at Quad State this year and was parked next to me. He told me then that he had cancer and that the prognosis was not good. He was trying to sell his mobile blacksmith shop. He looked good and was his usual good natured self. I expect that I will have more information within the next few days. Nancy said that there will be a "celebration of Life". It is to be a big party with bluegrass music, etc. I will post further as I have more information. I do have a phone # for anyone who wants to make contact. PM me. Please pass this on to others who knew and respected this dear friend.

A log will withstand for 15 seconds.

Look at the tutorial on my web-site at the Forge Supplies page. Build your own and save a lot of money and get a forge that suits your needs. My tutorial is for a guide and you can modify it as you desire. Look into building a Frosty T burner. Do a search on IFI for Frosty's T Burner. There is a lot of info there.

www.usaknifemaker.com. Tracy and his staff are great to work with and he has good prices.

Check out my tutorial at the Forge Supplies page on my web-site.

A wax finish will probably do well. If the belt is used regularly the continued handling will probably deposit enough oils and rubbing to keep the rust away.

We will miss Don, I looked forward to seeing at conferences several times a year from Alabama, Georgia and Ohio. Don was probably a member of more ABANA affiliates than anyone else in the country.

Dave, if you would like to work on the finish on the blade bring it on over, Or I might be talked into bringing my grinder when I come to Sandusky soon.

I have made quite a few Rail Road Spike Knives and have won the past two "Best Rail Road Spike Knife" contest at the Batson Blade Symposium. I always quench in SuperQuench. I also make knives from half a horse shoe (which are A-36 with a maximum carbon content of 29 points).. My wife carries a Case Equine Special and I have to sharpen her Case more often than I do my RR Spike or Horse Shoe carry knives. I do forge to shape then do finish grinding then heat treat. Robb Gunter, the inventor a SuperQuench, in demonstrations will make a chisel from mild steel (A-36), harden it in SuperQuench then use the chisel to cut the parent stock. It is pretty amazing stuff. Now I am not saying that my RR Spike knives or Horse Shoe knives have as good of blades as the knives I make from 5160 or 6150 but they are better than lots of people think.

There was a recent thread where the poster used non welding to build a forge using the Frosty T burner. Look it up and it will help you build a forge without welding and save a lot of money. It will also give you some experience in making your own tools.

If you are trying to get the two sides alike, forge the whole thing as close as you can to the desired shape. Scribe a line down the center. Pick out the side that you like better. Lay the forging on the table and trace around the desired shape. Turn it over so that the less desirable side is over the tracing to determine what needs to be changed.

I started out about 13 years ago and had a 1000 gram Swedish that I used for several years, then switched to a 1000 gram Hofi style hammer, using the Hofi/Tom Clark style hammering. After about 2 years I got a Big Blu 3.5# Hofi hammer. I had to switch back and forth for a couple of months because the bigger hammer would ware me out. Then I got accustomed to it and was using it exclusively. in October of this year I got a 4.75# Brian type rounding hammer and have worked right into it with no problems.

Today I Googled "Frosty's T burner and came up with this: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://anvilsandinkstudios.com/T_Jet_burner_concept.gif&imgrefurl=http://anvilsandinkstudios.com/burner.html&h=1572&w=1123&sz=28&tbnid=-v-oaGOxqeaZwM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=64&zoom=1&usg=__s5rzBFrtSb2_yE-8Qt9gA-H0sNo=&docid=SPbMU3tkH7DhcM&sa=X&ei=l1CLUomrN8qzkAfs64CIDw&ved=0CDUQ9QEwAQ You can look at the concept drawings then click "Visit Page" then click "Frosty's Narrative". I hope that some other responses come up so that we can have even more information on this.

Many associations meet monthly at a different shop each month. The host is in charge of lining up the demonstrator and making sure that he has what he needs for the demonstration and to arrange for coffee and lunch. This is good because each month attendees get to see a different shop and how things are done there and the burden of hosting is spread around. If this is the way that this group decides to do it I will host a meeting at my shop. I'm about 90 miles from Columbia and almost in Ky. I'm on the southern tip of Big South Fork NRRA. I have a large well equipped shop. If some want to camp they can either stay in the shop or camp on the grounds.

I have a 155 Big Blu Max with a Harley Davidson muffler. I hear no exhaust noise and when hammering the sound is similar to hand clapping when hammering orange hot metal. The hammer is on a 6" wooden base with he anvil caulked to the base and the base caulked to the floor.

Read my tutorial at http://waynecoeartistblacksmith.com/Forge_Supplies.html. I can help you with the supplies so that you only have to buy what you need. I suggest that you use a Freon bottle. You can get one, probably for free, from you local heating and air conditioning company. This will yield a forge with 1" of Inswool and 1/2" of castable refractory (Kast-0-Lite) of about 350 cu in which is what you need for forge welding with a 3/4" atmospheric burner if you want to forge weld. The altitude where you live will also effect the heat output. It you are above 3,000 feet you may need to go to a blown forge. Let me know if I can help you. You can call or e-mail me with any questions.

I can think of a lot of other ways to blow $55.00. Almost any chunk of steel would be better than that. Find a scrap to use until you can afford a good anvil. For a 100# anvil expect to spend about $300.00. If you find one cheaper so much the better. Join your local blacksmith group and learn more about anvils and blacksmithing before you start spending your money. Members in the group will help you and may be a good source for a good anvil and other tools. I know that when you first get the bug you really want to get started but take it slow. I wanted to get everything when I started and soon found out that I did not need all the things that I thought that I needed at first. Actually after a couple of years I started selling off a lot of those things that I thought that I needed.