BangBang

I paid 150.00 for mine with a 22 inch pan. I had to fabricate a new fan on blower and repair 3 teeth on blower gear! I was glad to get it and enjoy using it! They are getting harder and more pricey buy the day!

I made my second rail spike knife! Good hammer time and getting a little better! I plan to try some o1 I have in shop soon but feel I need more practice! The leather handled Nesmuk Knife next to it was made a week ago. The Nesmuk was made from a very old saw blade!

I found this vise int the basement of a local antique store about six weeks ago. They had a price of 275.00 on it at the time and I walked away! I since have looked at prices and decided to go back? The price was down to 225.00 so I offered 200.00 and bought it! Kelly iron was in business from mid 1840s till around 1946 when they were purchased bye Bethlehem Steel. I have no exact idea when this vise was made but suspect earlly 1900? It is very sturdy weighs about 85 pounds with 5 1/2 inch jaws! I was very surprised jaws were still in good shape! If anyone knows more about Kelly steel and these vises I would love the education!

Been busy last two days! I have compleated 3 set s of Rapid Tongs and started another Knife! I hope to finish up leather handle on my Nesmuck knife! I started to finish pomel the other day and old Craftsman 150 drill press quit! New cord cleaned motor got Granpas old drill press runnin again! I also picked up a very nice 74 ish Rockwell 14 inch Metel and wood cutting bandsaw! I spent a few days cleaning it up and freeing up the two speed shift lever that was gummed up from sitting!

I am a newbee! I made my own anvil out of rail track and 3/4 thick plate top, I bought 5 hammers at local antique stores and 4 bucks was the most I paid! Nothing fancy true temper, Vaughn etc. I picked up a chepo 3 pound cross peen at menards and a two pound as well for 20 bucks! So far I haven't had a hammer head fly off and take me out! I will not pay 100 bucks for a old hammer! I am learning , and never say never but wow! Guy on Craigslist had a hot cut, a 3 pound champion cross peen and two tongs with no price! I asked him how much 220.00 ! LOL I am sorry maybe my work will never come into its own with cheap tools and the rapid tongs I am finishing up, but holy molle! I guess time will tell and will see how it goes! This is supposed to be fun for me Not Poverty!

I lined my coal forge with refractory cement! Maybe if it warms up a bit I may fire the old girl up! I like the idea of a coal forge as it is much quieter than my propane forge! Both have the strong suits! Someday I will get a vent hood made over coal forge. I will wait till I retire and relocate for that!

This is my first gas forge I finished hardening kaowool today , I welded a short piece of receiver tube on bottom so it can be removed! The rest is self explanatory! Incidentally, height of front forge plate is 30 inches ,same as my folding saw horses to support longer steel if needed while remaining portable.

Well My forge is back together! Blower is working great! I have to line the pan and waiting for the coal I ordered for a test fire! I am very pleased with how it turned out! I turned a new crank handle today a peaned handle onto arm! Turns out while wire wheeling the pan it is a model 147 Champion which has a bit larger pan than the 145! Mine is a 22 inch pan! I am anxous to try it out!

I have had my atlas ten for over 15 years and it took me 5 years to find it! I bid on I do not know how many on craigslist and ebay? One was a old Rockwell quick change like i learned on in high school, I missed it by 20 bucks! I picked up local paper about a month later and bought my Atlas th 42 for 600 bucks within 20 miles of my home! Lathe is cheap part! I do gunsmithing too and 7/8 tru stock doesn't work for chambering barrels! so I needed steady rest, that was 220.00. I recently got tired of changing gears manually for feed select and threading! , I could have bought a complete quick change gear set uo 5 years ago for 350.00! No I can do better! WRONG! I finally got it set up this year and it cost more that my Lathe!!! But Its a good machine , I have learned its limits and I can hold excellent chamber tolerances! So it is mine and I love it! I also have a milling attachment, a Bison 3 jaw chuck, atlas 4 jaw and MY jem is a Buck 6 jaw adjust tru center! I am blessed ! But a excellent South Bend Heavy ten would be sweet!

LOL yea , thats a fact, but not so funny as they are not cheap anymore! Bringing large prices these days, when they are gone there gone! I have been collecting antiques for years now I am becoming one faster than I care to admit.

My boss bought a house on old coal strip mine in coal city Illinois! It was full of ravines and a huge waste pile next where house was built on now flooded lake! I was running a 963 and close to house! I took a bucket away to fill in ravine and when I came back he said look what you dug up , it rolled off edge of bucket! You can beleive what you want but pictures tell all anvil is real and so am I!

I have a local guy with a nice tiger Hand Crank Blower. He wants 300. which is more that I want to pay. I cannot speak for Tiger or otto Blowers, but I do have a original 1923 Hibbard Hardware catalogue! This book list allot of champion blowers and forges, Here are pictures of a few if any interest?

Started cleaning up original seamed tube legs this afternoon. They seam to be in excellent shape, but the way they bolt to the forge pan with one bolt seems rather weak and started to compress the tubing! Inside diameter of tube was about 7/8 inch. I had some solid stock cold rolled so I cut three pieces 1.5 inches long. I then put a bit of tapper on edges in lathe and drove them into tube legs at the top! Tomorrow I will drill bolt hole thru solid stock and fasten legs back to bowl of forge! I will feel better about leg integrity. I will post more as I finalize this project in the next few day!

Yes allot of fiddling! But the are not making any more of these forges! I choose to keep it original! I could have made a broach and broched the gear in my lathe, but i figured timewise good practice just to do it with files? I am a old school soul I guess!

I have exact same forge! The large straight cut gear also was missing three teeth and the Blower impeller was rusted out! I just filled in where three teeth were missing and built the area up with Braze! I preheated part in 500 degree electric oven!"My powdercoat oven" I also heated steel bucket of sand. Preheating is needed to keep from cracking the cast! I also buried part in sand after brazing and put back in oven! I then turned off oven and allowed part to cool over night! I then used a set of jewlers files and recut three teeth! Yes it too about three hours of work! I Have a working original blower now, and I prefer to keep it that way! My Forge came out of a old shop in Custer South Dakota! I Made the new impeller out of same thickness steel, all I had to work with was a few rusted blades for a pattern and the shaft hub! It seems to work good , now have to make a Hickory Handle! I will then clean forge bowl and legs up and get entire unit back together! I am pretty pleased so far as I bought entire unit from a local guy for 150.00! I felt it was a good deal even needing repair! I included , picture of gear repair, On tooth wasnt built up with braze as good as I like and I will keep a eye on it! I also included a pic of impeller I made and Railroad track anvil I made two weeks ago! I will have to make a back hood as well like the looks of yours . I would appreciate rough dimensions of it?

While not near as big. I dug this anvil up with a 963 in coal city yesterday! I have been looking for several years for a garage anvil to some light blacksmithing! What a find One side is marked Soderfors Sweden and the other side Columbia sweden 80 lbs 1924 #1 It cleaned up pretty good! http://i1116.photobucket.com/albums/k573/zimraphail/IMG_1033_zpsyyxbbsq3.jpg http://i1116.photobucket.com/albums/k573/zimraphail/IMG_1031_zpsb1l1qu6v.jpg