the_sandy_creek_forge

Alex Bealer made a lot of things sound easier than they are.

I couldn't agree more!

I did a couple test pieces once when I was bored and waiting for a chisel to normalize or something. I sliced off some thin sections of pipe . Then I crushed up some of those little colored glass aquarium beads. I sprinkled the glass dust into the sections of pipe and heated the whole thing up with the torch. SLOWLY. I used a chunk of rod with a rounded end to gently pack the glass down as it melted. Most of them ended up with a bunch of little cracks within the glass itself, but it made a pretty cool effect when you held it up to the light.

If I might make a recommendation, check around and see if there is someone who is a glass blower in your area, and see if they'd mind if you stopped by to watch them work. I recently had a rather large globe made for a lighting fixture (that I will someday get around to making ). I straight out asked the lady who was making it for me if I could stop by and check out the operation. She was more than happy to let me watch her working in the studio (probably because of what I was paying for the globe...) It's really neat to watch and I walked away with lots of neat ideas for future projects involving hand-blown glass elements, and a better understanding of how heated glass behaves. She also mentioned a possible need in the future for custom made tools, so I've possibly got that coming down the pipeline someday as well.

-Aaron @ the SCF

Hey Frosty,
Think "SPRING SWAGE" use the angle iron, as mentioned, to make the ledges so it'll sit on the vise jaws, then make up a spring like for a spring swage. That way, they'll (mostly) line up every time and less chance of them falling off the jaws at a crucial moment.
-Aaron @ the SCF

Hey Mike,
If you go in to Google books and search for "1896 Illustrated General Catalogue of the Buffalo" you might find what you're after. The forges start on about page 256. I did a quick look through and didn't find anything with that specific number, but there's LOTS of pictures. I'd guess if they were making it in 1896, it'll be in that book somewhere. Worth a look to see (also worth a look through the whole catalogue, wonderful stuff there!)
-Aaron @ the SCF

I'll have to agree with Thomas on this one. I don't believe my little buffalo ever had an oil seal either. If it's dripping oil, it has enough oil. When it stops dripping oil, it's time to refill it
-Aaron @ the SCF

Glenn, sent you an IM. The troll hit one of mine too.

On another note, that hammerkid dude left a comment on a photo of my rolling toolbox, but as far as I can tell he seems to be an alright kind of guy....

-Aaron @ the SCF

I now insert a clause at the bottom of proposals, This price expires in x number of days due to the ever increasing cost of steel...

I don't even go that far. My disclaimer on my quotes now is to the effect of "quoted labor costs guaranteed for x days(usually 30). Quoted prices of steel subject to change depending on supplier's prices"

Last two projects (one I finished up a month ago or so, other one a proposal in the hands of the clients now) I've explained to the clients that steel prices are rising everytime my supplier gets a shipment in. Those two clients at least have been pretty understanding about why I can't guarantee the price of steel past what I was quoted yesterday...

-Aaron @ the SCF

I just wrote up a proposal on a couple steel tables. Two of them are 16x24 and one is 24 round, all are 36 inches tall. Real simple, four legs, single brace between each of the legs on the perimeter, flat for the edges at the top (hope that paints enough of a visual), and the clients are providing custom copper tops(plywood core copper sheet). Sadly the price of materials was over 25% of the entire quote on the project. If the materials where 1/2 the price they are, I would be well under budget for the clients. Unfortunately with steel prices what they are the proposal ended up well OVER budget and I'll probably lose the project because of it. I can't afford to drop my labor prices to compensate (the projects so simple that I'm not gonna make that much off of it anyways), and people are gettin to where they can't afford the luxury. Sad state of affairs indeed.
-Aaron @ the SCF

Reason for editing: I still can't spell even with a spellchecker....

Hey Sam,
Nice recycling job. As far as the bandsaw blades not working the best for handsaws, I BELIEVE one of Roy Underhill's books addressed how to refile a heavy bandsaw blade to make it better as a handsaw. Not sure which book it's in, so ya better InterLibrary Loan them all, just to be safe

-Aaron @ the SCF

And last but not least, the Final Product, my brand new, post-consumer content potting bench!


All of the materials put into this workbench were either free (the pallets) or surplus from other past projects of mine (a couple handfuls of multi-purpose screws and some leftover Thompson's Waterseal). This oughta make a handy addition to my backyard gardening hobby.

Always remember, the common person might see a pile of junk, but the Frugal Blacksmith should see a resource pile for future projects!

-Aaron @ the SCF

Here's some of the pieces after being cut to length.


And here's the main sub-assemblies.


Things are starting to take shape at this point

Forward: I kind of set this up a little like a Blueprint, but since it has nothing whatsoever to do with Metalworking, I figured I'd just post it here in the non-metalworking thread.

Hey everyone,
Since we all tend to be about recycling now and again (there's lots of scrap steel out there after all) I figured I'd recycle something different last week for Earth Day. So, in the same vein as "any heavy chunk of steel can be an anvil" I present "Any pile of pallets can be...Something"

I took a walk during my morning break at work a couple weeks ago and noticed that some of the pallets in the pile behind the warehouse were pretty decent looking lumber. After a quick request to the grounds/building manager, I was more than encouraged to get rid of some of the excess pallets! So I loaded a nice stack on the truck after work.

(The bottom four pallets are the main material sources for this project. The one's on top are for storage purposes at the farm.)

I had my raw materials. What I needed now was some oaf with the correct assortment of power tools and hand tools who had a few free weeknights on his hands....

(Special thanks to my five year old who thought daddy looked SO funny trying to look tough...)

Now for the tricky part. Just for the record, tearing apart pallets is easy. Tearing them apart while managing to not mangle all the lumber in them is not so easy. But after a couple hours of surgical precision with a saw, hammer, and prybar, I had my materials.

(Not all of these materials ended up being used, but it's always nice to have more than you need so you can select the better pieces to actually use.)

Anyone else having infestation problems?

Mice are always a problem... but that's been covered here somewhere before...

We got a nice mess with mosquitoes already. Illinois River's been backed up, backwaters are flooded and making prime breeding grounds for all sorts of buzzing, humming, flying monsters.

On another wildlife note, I haven't seen Mr. Toad or Ms. Dove yet this year. Usually Mr. Toad crawls out from under my shelfs about late April/early May and manages to be underfoot for the rest of the summer. He'd been around for the last few years though, so age mighta finally caught up with him.
I usually see Ms. Dove getting her nest back together about the same time (she's particularly fond of the post tops on the north side of the shop). No matter how loud I get, she just sits right there on her nest. I figure she's either deaf or possibly the only creature in the world more stubborn than I am

-Aaron @ the SCF

Well, shoot . . . Anyone can see that's art! Look how beautifully they've captured the tension of our struggle to maintain balance as we ponder the unknowable universe . . .

:confused: Dude... that is SOOO deep.....

Looks to me like it might be the worlds largest scroll starter.... just heat up your 1x3 flat, slide it in the slot, a good square blow with the drop hammer and instantly you have a beautiful start to a battleship sized scroll...

Or.... a door stop.

-Aaron @ the SCF

As with Andy, this is also from memory

Iron City
4 or 4.5"
light-medium weight
missing spring and mount
$20 in or around 2004

Columbian (I think...)
4-4.5"
Missing Spring
Medium weight
$20 2007

Columbian
5-5.5"
Complete Decent condition
Medium-Heavy
$25 2007

Columbian
5-5.5"
Medium Heavy
Slightly sprung jaws. Screw and box OK.
Inherited (Ok... so that doesn't really count towards the price database idea...)

-Aaron @ the SCF

Oops... Where's my Manners...

Welcome to IForgeIron!!!!!

-Aaron @ the SCF

What are the best reasons to choose the arc (stick) type of welding over other types.

Because it's what I have in the shop. I also have oxy/fuel (not that talented or patient with that) and a little mig (which I have to fiddle with every time I use it, cause it doesn't get used much unless we're doing body work). So yeh... my best reason is because it's set the dial, flip the switch and weld.

-Aaron @ the SCF (loves his old lincoln buzzbox!)

Hey Susan,
Since I just finished up a project using Gilder's Paste....
I used it on some handrail and some cabinet knobs. Once it has "cured" it seems to be a pretty durable finish. I.E. it took A LOT of elbow grease to buff out the finish using a clean shop towel. How well it would hold up under continuous wear, I can't say. I still sprayed the knobs and railing with an acrylic clear just to be on the safe side. The different colors CAN be mixed, although I am not sure if they make the right combination of colors to get the effect you are looking for.

Another option might be to bring a high polish on the jewelry and then bake them in the oven to draw a blue temper color. Not sure if it would be exactly what you're looking for, but definitely something different. This is a different color of bluing from what you get from, say, Birchwood Casey (sp?) or the likes. Just something to think about.

-Aaron @ the SCF

Sometimes new and improved, just isn't.
Finnr

Ya know... I had a professor in college (older gentleman who simply refused to retire...) who would go on rants about things that were "new and improved." The premise being if something was NEW it hadn't yet had time to be IMPROVED as something NEW would be the first of its kind ever made! He was also a big proponent of reel mowers, spam, and typing up tests and quizes on a typewriter. He'd probably still be using a mimeograph if the school had one sitting around...

Back on topic... For my files and cutting tools (lathe bits, shaper bits, non-coated drill bits) I've been using Singer sewing machine oil. I also use MMO for warding off rust, as well as the occasional squirt of WD40.

-Aaron @ the SCF

Andrei,
Nice turnout on the arc pictures. Did you UV filter it?

Hmmmm. Glarey and sparky but no nude woman reflected in the welding shield lens.
Frosty

"It was my hand holding a... um... welding stinger...I swear!"

-Aaron @ the SCF

I'm trying to remember where I saw a woodcarving of a variation of wood lathe setup.... one where a strong sapling was bent over with a rope and when you stepped on a board the sapling bend down.... normally, the rope would be wound around a beam which would turn, allowing the beam to be turning to shape....

I think maybe The Art of Blacksmithing by Alex W Bealer. Pg. 114. It's a heavy wooden frame, and it uses a lamination of planks as the spring. It just happens to be directly opposite the pictures of spring-pole and treadle style lathes on Pg. 115.

If you don't already have the book, I suggest getting it. A good "history of blacksmithing lesson" and LOTS of pen-and-ink style illustrations (what can I say... I love pictures )

-Aaron @ the SCF

P.S. I have the 1995 edition for reference purposes

Edited to add: A picture of it is also on the back of the dustcover.

Last I heard, central Illinois places were buying for about $100-125 a ton steel.

Man... it's been a while since I conversed with one of the scrap guys apparently! I caught one of them out at the gas station a few days ago and inquired about prices. Central Illinois is a bit more in line with the rest of y'all at 200 and up from there ... or maybe that should be a ... or a :mad: ? Not really sure.

-Confused... er... um... Aaron @ the SCF

Erik, if the place in Charleston, Ill is Lorelei Sim's blacksmith shop YOU CAN"T GO WRONG!! TAKE THE CLASS!

Ding!
It didn't click in my head 'till I read that. Double thumbs-up approval to Thomas' advice:cool:. It'd be a bit of a jog, but WELL worth the trip.

-Aaron @ the SCF

Erik,
I agree with what Steve said above. Also can't resist to throw this in since it is in your neck of the woods.

http://www.iforgeiron.com/forum/f13/meet-roy-underhill-john-deere-hammerin-2008-a-5367/

Welcome to IFI!

-Aaron @ the SCF

Ok AWESOME! Might you know where I could get a CHeap Used one(not abused)

Chris,
Not sure how "local" your local harbor freight is... but we got our 9x20 as a "returned item." Meaning basically someone had bought it, used it once, decided they didn't like it, and brought it back (without the faceplate:( ). We were asking about details on one and the manager mentioned they had the returned one in the back. Can't remember off the top of my head, but I am pretty sure we got about 25% off because of it being returned and all (without the faceplate:( ). Otherwise just keep watching the 'bay. One might turn up sooner or later.

Good find Frosty. The best part about those lockers is that they are, for the most part, mouse resistant. Handy for storing books and welding leathers and such.
-Aaron @ the SCF