BillyBones

khmiller, welcome aboard. If you would please fill out your header. Let us know where in the great big ol' world you are. General location, not exact address. Many questions here can be answered by region. I could say go down to Bobs hardware and get a good quality hickory American made handle, but if you live in Romania there are not many Bobs hardware stores there. Handling a hammer is one of the most talked about and argued about subjects there are. BT or TT, that is new to me. TT i have seen for abbreviating "Tru-temper" which is a brand name. My method is get a handle that is close to what i want then sand, file, cut what ever to fit the eye. I may be an odd ball here but the store bought engineers handle is a perfect fit for me, just remove the slick finish is all i need to do to one. Anyway if you have not yet, go to the "Read this first" and read it. Fill out the header. Get out to your shop and make something beautiful. Then post pics for us. Stay safe and keep it fun.

Kexel, i like that book end. I think it is quite elegant.

Torx is a trademarked name, the drive is actually called a "hexalobular internal", abbreviated "6 lobe". Sort of the way we call them Allen drive is actually called a socket cap, Allen is a trade marked name. But in answer to your question yes, they are universal. They are makred with a "T" followed by a number "T-40" as an example. There are however internal and external Torx. Most of the major tool companies now, Snap-on, Mac, Matco, etc, have made multi drive sockets. They are designed to be used on standard 6-point, external Torx, even triple square, basically one socket used on all drives. Now a note about whiskey. The word whiskey comes from Irish Gaelic "uisca beatha" pronounced "Ish-ka Baha". Translated it means "Water of life." The original mountain dew.

Give them to your opponent when your throwin shoes.

I believe the royal cubit is how the Egyptian left hand latch wrench incremented. I also think i may have a set of anvil horn wear gauges that are in cubits but i am not sure if it is royal or not.

Some good advice here, i put a lot of stock into what they say.

My granddad was also a carpenter. I remember my vice living in the barn when i was a kid. When we moved to Ohio it got a new home in the garage. Me and my dad are both mechanics so that vice got used for automotive work there. When i was in the Army my dad got stationed in Louisiana (my dad was also in the Army) and took it with him there. That was when i rescued it. I went to visit my parents and was in my dads work shop. The vice was laying in the floor between the wall and a cabinet. I asked him why it was not mounted and what he ws going to do with it. He said, just an old vice and he was going to scrap it. Back then all i knew was that it was a blacksmiths vice and knew nothing really of the mechanics of it, i just knew that there was a lot of family history and memories in that old vice and there was no way in the world i would let it go to the scrap yard. It is in really great shape to have 4 generations working on it, only part that has been replaced is the wedge. And that was only replaced becuase it fell out somewhere along the line when we moved last time.

Natkova, on of the things that jump out at me it that you made "left handed tongs". Which is ok if you are left handed, but feel weird if you are right handed. The top reign when holding them in your tong hand should be on the side facing your hand, not your thigh. The idea is that if you loosen your grip the tongs should fall towards the palm of the hand not the finger tips. The fix is simple, twist them the other direction. If you hold the tongs in your left hand twist clockwise instead of counter clockwise. I know that just confused you didnt it? Left and right handed refer to the dominant hand, hammer hand, not which hand you hold the tongs with. I have a set like that i made years ago for my first tongs. I still use them. Mostly when i just have nothing else that fits, i heat up the jaw and shape it to what i need. You may need a left handed monkey wrench to make that twist though.

Oh, my no, you did not at all. My apologies also if you took it that i took it that way. I had actually said a bit more but back tracked, then got distracted getting ready for work and just posted real quick like. Actually i meant to add that your friends wife sounds a lot like my mom saying something like that. Anyway again, sorry if you took me as short. It some times takes me awhile to put a post together, i am on about 10 mins already, but i got in a hurry and did not finish. See here i had to go back and make an edit. George, my mom researched a bunch of stuff that she can make for my dad. So a lot of the stuff he has to satisfy the cravings she makes. She is also a pretty darned good cook. I can not think of many snacks she has made but this weekend she made him chocolate fudge and it was pretty danged good.

My dad is one of those people who had bread with every meal, he ate bread with bread. He also used to snack constantly, he would literally get up from the dinner table, get a bag of chips and go sit and watch TV. The other thing he had to cut out that was hard for him was beer. JHCC, i know that does not mean i will not get it, just my chances are lower than someone who does have a family history of it.

My dad is diabetic, not sure if it is 1 or 2, from exposure to agent orange in Vietnam. He does not take insulin but he is quite vigilant on his diet and keeping track of his sugar. Walking is his daily exercise, or if to cold he has a tread mill. Diabetes does not run in my family, so that aspect i am lucky. What kills my people is high blood pressure. I have to take 3 different meds for mine, not to mention the crazy pills (PTSD), and 2 years ago i was taken to the ER from the doctors office when they checked my BP.

Every shop i have ever worked in had Wilton vices. They are brutes that can take a beating. The thing i was looking at is the screw box. The Wilton is enclosed while the Rigid looks like it has an opening. With the amount of scale and debris in the shop i would go with enclosed to keep said debris out of the vice workings. My first "anvil" was the striking surface of an old Wilton that i broke the moving jaw on. It involved a stubborn U-joint and a 36oz ball pein... anyway it did not last long till it was replaced by something more suitable.

Ceramic fiber insulin? Huh did not know it was good for diabetics. Just pulling you chain a little, once ya been here a while you will get used to it. Anyway i cannot answer your question but i can give some small advice, go to the "Read this first" thread and read it, fill out your header let us know where abouts in this great big world you are at. Dont have to be specific, region is fine. But you may discover that one or more of us are quite close and can lend a hand if needed. Also the search function here is, well it is, anyway the best way to search the site is your favorite search engine. Put in what you are looking for with "iforgeiron" after it, becuase yes your question has provably been answered many times already. Pictures, we love pictures here. They also give a visual that can be seen. Like i said i cant answer your questions but those who can, a picture, like they say, is worth a thousand words. Anyway, welcome to the club. Stay safe and have fun. And remember, catching yourself on fire is only a big deal the first half dozen times.

I am using some old leaf springs to make wrapped eye axes out of right now. I believe they are 5160, a little tricky to weld but once i got the technique down they are coming along nicely. You could also try a local machine shop, they may let you piggy back on one of there orders. Or they may have a piece on hand they would be willing to sell you. I work in a machine shop and we have on hand in the tool room 4140, S-7, H-13, O-1, A-2, etc. I am sure if i look hard enough i would find 1060. We do a lot of in house repairs so we do have a variety.

I served on an Abrams in the Army, being a tanker my side arm was the M1911A1. Once i learned how to shoot one i bacame convinced that it was the best pistol ever made, the reason i own a couple, but way to big and heavy for EDC. During my time in was when they phased out the M1911 to the M9 Berretta. Universally hated by us. Acurate yeah, but no stopping power. 1 round from my M1911 was way more effective that all 17 from that M9. There is a reason that the military has switched to the Sig. When they phased out the M1911 the military actually put them up for sale to the public. $400 each and that was in '93, if memory serves, however you are talking about a weapon that mine was almost 40 years old at the time, the only original part was the lower, and it had 1000's of rounds fired through and of course we all know how a GI treats their weapon. Frosty, when i was in you would be surprised at the number of people who did in fact own their own side arm. My post vice has been passed down father to son since my Great-granddad. When i was a kid i used to heat nails with a propane torch and make little knives by hammering them out on that same vice. Me and my gramps would use that same vice to hold the mold for making shot. It held the wood for the first bow me and him made together, wish i would have paid more attention there. Lots of memories in that old vice. My gramps was a carpenter by trade but could pretty much do anything he set his mind to, growing up on a poor dirt farm in a KY hollar does that to a person. He was also a tanker in WW2. My Granddad was and still is my hero. He passed in 84' and i still miss him dearly. I consider my self lucky if i am half the man that he was. Dont get me wrong my Dad comes in a very, very close second, and fortunately him and my mom live about 5 mins away.

The tension is in the air.

Is there going to be a breaker box in the shop? I put one in after the 2nd time i tripped a breaker then had to go in the house, down in the basement, in the dark corner of the basement and try and figure out which one it was. Then after flipping the wrong breaker, going through the house and resetting all the clocks. (you would think i would mark the breaker, but oh no, like normal have to do it the hard way) I did have an electrician help, well i mostly watched while he did it. Since then i have not tripped any breakers either.

Sweet score, i got one similar that i use at work but with out the flexible shaft.

That is exactly what i did. I even built my gasser to fit inside of that same grill so i could keep it out side. It then became a coal burner for a while, kind of a hybrid JABOD brake drum forge. It still sits by the shop and could be fired up with just a few minutes of work.

Where does one find these minions at and how much are they by the dozen? I would not think holding on a sledge head anvil would be different than any other anvil. Good tongs, grip with your 3rd hand, and strike. Some times a tong clip helps. If you mean a bolster on one, i would just make one that would go into a vice.

My only water leak was from stupidity. I had to change the toilet valve so i went to the basement to shut off the water. Told the wife while i was doing that to turn the faucets on and flush the toilets to get the water out of the system. I finished, shut off all the faucets and went to the basement and turned the water back on. Then went to my parents house for a while. When i came back home, the wife had failed to inform me that she had also opened up the faucets in the upstairs bathroom. Fortunately she stayed home while i was away and caught it. Just lost a couple ceiling tiles in the bed room. But all my plumbing is a mix of copper and PVC, so it is not to old. And the pipes from the water main were replaced about 10 years ago. That is a huge thing here. I noted this in another post but we have an ordnance here that we are not allowed to plant maple trees in the town. Back in the 40's and 50's almost all the new housing had swamp maples planted in them. The roots are devastating to water and sewer pipes. It is quite a common site to see peoples front yards tore up having the water mains and sewer lines replaced. Not to mention all those danged seed pods clogging up the gutters. We had a guy call a local radio station saying that he went up to clean his gutters and in the standing water was minnows and was wondering how they could get in his gutter. Spoiler, it was not minnows it was mosquito larvae. When i was in LA our washer and sink drained into the creek next to the house. The plumbing from the house to the creek sprung a leak under the drive way and made a sink hole.

I only have about a 10' run of knob and tube. The knobs are still there but the wiring has been updated to Romex. All the windows were replaced in the last 10 years so they are all triple pane and modern. And of course one of my first questions, how old is the roof? 5 years, so i got time to save my pennies for a metal roof. Having done some research the door plates seem to have been popular from late 1800's to around the 19-teens or so. Thanks to the mods for editing my post.

I did not thinks so either Thomas. The house does not date that far back either. The doors them selves are not that old of a design i do not think either. (Gonna say "either" just a few more times) A lot of homes have that same style door here that were built around 1880-1910 or so. But this is also the only hardware of this style i have seen. Most are just a simple metal plate with no décor. The more i cleaned them my plates are looking more like bronze, not copper. Also if you look at the detail there is enough inconsistency form one to the other to lead me to believe they were hand made, or at least partially and not just stamped out on a machine. I do have some door locks that design does date to the civil war i know for sure, but just cuase the design goes back that far does not mean they were made in the 1860's. They are the box style that goes on the outside of the door rather than being set into the door. Pretty cool this old house. I have push button and rotary light switches and some old knob and tube wiring still. The house was moved to its current location in 1900.

How about just contacting Starrett and seeing if they have replacement springs available. Those are technically called Yankee spring calipers, just incase you do not know and do contact them they will know what style caliper you are referring to. I always liked Starrett's measuring instruments. Seems easier to read than Brown and Sharpe or Mitutoyo, at least for me.

16 penny nail, thats what i always used! stick it in and bend it over. Got to work on my doors today. Did get some forge time but got frustrated, so i switched gears. Took off the hardware, at least 3 of them, the 4th is going to take some work. once cleaned up they will be pretty nice i think. They are stamped 1840 on the back. Dont know if that is a date or not but with the age of the house it could very well be. Started stripping the old paint and finish off of them. Man, they used some tough stuff back in the day. I am pretty sure the doors are maple, pretty common around here, also becuase the floors and the other trim in the house are maple it would make sense. So here are the brass plates, 2 have been cleaned with soap and water. And the one side of the door stripped, washed and somewhat dried.