BillyBones

Alexandr, thought maybe it may be yours since working on it for years, a labor of love. Twigg, maybe time to branch out? (ok, thats all i got, i am stumped for more) I like the welds myself. They look natural, that bottom one looks almost as if maybe the twig was broken in the winter and is starting to regrow. Or maybe it is an orange tree with a grafted on tangerine branch to grow tangelos. Frosty, not only the gloves but we would also hang our socks on it. Warm dry socks are also very appreciated in the cold climes.

Is that your house or a clients? Regarless beautiful home and beautiful iron work.

Drill gauge plate...that would be to easy. I actually kind of use the mics that way. If i need a 1/4" drill i lock them at .250" then run drills through it till i get the right one. The irony for me is that my tool box at work is in perfect order and stays that way. And even on my bench at work my mics, gauge pins, thread gauges etc are laid out nice and orderly. And if someone borrows a tool and does not put it back where it goes you shall feel my wrath. So most people just hand it back to me and let me put it back, the young jedi have learned through pain and trial.

My knee is well enough to get out for a bit again. Tried another drawer pull, think i may have the process down now. Definately going to have to make a jig for the rings. I hope the groove is acceptable otherwise i may have to go with a tenon on the back of the post holding the ring. And of course i show my ugly old drawer pull just as Alexandr puts up stunning work. Love that light, would that be considered a sconce?

In a pile. I keep small taper punch, chisel, center punch and a 3/8 drift, my most commonly used, on a stump next to the anvil. The rest in a drawer in the tool box all jumbled together. and if you think that is bad, come over and try and find a drill. In a drawer of about 500 all mixed together and of course in the darkest corner of the shop. The easiest way to find one is to look for some about the size you want then get the mics out and check them. The worst part of all is i get fed up with it, go buy new drills, always tell myself put them back in order, then one by one they wind in the drawer.

I hope you meant 1/16". So i obviously misread that and went with it. Just got up at the time and having my "morning" coffee makes me a little wordy at times. I work 2nd shift so 1 PM is morning to me. Like i said no expert i have not used propane in a long long time. My propane forge has become a home for spiders.

Been a while since i built a propane burner, but the 1/4" nipple is that what you are using as the jet? Or am i reading that wrong? I am no expert but i know what worked for me and 1/4" would be way to big. I used MIG tips that were, going on my old mans memory here, .060". 1/4" is .250" This is merely a guess on my part and i would like to see what the experts have to say. I would surmise that the 1/4" opening is not allowing enough velocity through the mixing tube. With out that velocity it is unable to "pull" the air through with it. One other question i have not seen asked, how much pressure are you using? You say a 30PSI regulator, are you running 30PSI or is it adjusted back. Again if memory serves you only need 8-12 PSI. If you have to increase the pressure that high that also increases the velocity which will explain why it is almost working like it is. Like i say i am no expert and i would really like to see what the experts do have to say about my theories.

As long as you take the cats too.

$5, heck thats more than i got in it. Burned a RR track? I have burnt some ties in my time but the track...

1/2" coil spring. Came off a Volvo if i remember correctly. They are a smaller diameter than what most American cars have. Pretty easy, took me maybe 2 hours to knock them out including time to figure out the process. Still need hardened and tempered, a little straightening and of course grinding. I will use a copper cap for the end of the handle towards the blade and i got a couple old broken hammer handles, hickory, i will use for the handle themselves. The person i am making them for insists they are Japanese style because they have a tang and not a socket. When i looked up Japanese style chisels ( i would not know Japanese style from Armenian myself) all of them had sockets. But hey, the customer is always right and if that is what he wants and wants to call them, who am i to disagree?

Got these wood carving chisels, knives, whatever you want to call them. The person i am making them for says "Japanese style", i said "Huh...Ok what ever you want to call them." But they are to what he wants. After doing that my daughters ex, grand babies dad, came over for me to help with his brakes. while doing that i blew out my knee. Anyway i watched a documentary called "Blacksmith" it was not about a blacksmith but a guy who cast statues out of bronze in Tibet, Nepal, Mongolia area. Pretty cool to watch even though it was not in English and subtitled.

Just my opinion here but shouldnt the pad have been poured before the walls went up? Looking at your property i do not think drainage will be much of an issue. Looks like a pretty good slope to a quick drop.

Looks like us Buckeyes are taken over the place. We can make P-nut an honorary Buckeye i guess. We need to get together all of us some time, when we are allowed to again that is. Anyway got the truck all welded up and back together. Used a couple long section of pipe, schedule 40, i had in the barn and some angle iron. Forgot to get pics of the finished job and had the bed almost back on before i thought about it. Thought yall may like to see my hillbilly riggin. After getting done i was clearing a space to put my compressor, had to pull it out of storage, when i found a piece of cable about 50' long i woud have felt much better about using than the rope. 2013 GMC Sierra. Good guess. JD, nice hook. The twist is nice and even and the bend is quite graceful. I was looking at a few acres just west of Waverly before Christmas but put that on the back burner for a minute.

Thomas, you used to live in Columbus, you should know.

Well got the bed off the truck and started welding it all back up. Here is the other side and the damage. Did manage to run over the plastic cone that hold the fuel filler neck to the body, which translates to broken in many pieces. Looks like i am going to be doing a muffler in the not to distant future too, or should i say the muffler shop will be. I hate exhaust work. I figure i should get with the times so i am now going with highway social distancing.

Hammertone paint is what you are looking for. There are many companies that make that kind of paint. Rustoleum is the largest in the states. Hammerite and Teamac also make that same paint. Hammerite usually comes in quarts and up for use with a brush, some seriously tough paint. I used to use hammerite for car trunks becuase it was so tough, you can hit it with a hammer and it dont hurt it when dry, really you can. The paint i used i never really cared what the finish was going to be becuase it was not going to be seen anyway. Never used the Teamac, so no opinion on that one. You can also try contacting your local paint supply store. One other thing, you can get a hammer like finish with regular paint by stepping back some and spraying it. I can not say for sure but i think it allows some of the droplets to "dry" before they hit and then cuase lumps that are painted over. My painting skills are subpar, they did away with the "No drips, no runs, no errors" commercials when they met me, so i have never tried it. I have seen it done though.

Please go to a Rural King or maybe a TSC store and get a vice. You can get a fairly good one for about $25 at those places and your flesh will thank you very much. A vice for the drill press can be bolted down and hold the work in place nice and secure. That is why the slots are cut into the table. Can be a pain moving the vice but better keeping all your digits intact. A small peice of wood inside it will support the work and prevent you from drilling into the vice. A couple of our drill presses at work also have a foot switch so that if something like that happens you just have to step away and it shuts off. That Padauk is some really nice wood. Not to be confused with the city in KY Paducah.

You will provably have to order a carbide bit. They can also be quite expensive. I work in a machine shop and its nothing to see drills that cost $50 or more. HSS can cut hardened steel if done right, but a good cobalt set should get the job done. Just go slow and steady and dont over heat it. A good cutting oil is your friend. Das, my impact has 1200# of break away torque. If that dont get the bolt out the cutting torch will.

5'? Wow, i think we only need 3' here. My dog died right after moving into my house. The neighbors wactched me build a box, dig a hole and bury him. They never actually seen me put the dog in the box and i did not get done till late at night. So i told the old lady to lay low for a while and not be seen...

So i forgot these earlier. I worked on the axe, hence the burns, and a prototype drawer pull. I will make a couple more to get technique down as long as they are ok for the customer. Real PITA getting that hole punched the same direction as the flange part. First one i tried punching it then spreading it only to mash the hole closed so far i could not re-drift it. The axe, i have an order for 5. The first one i made was kind of a boarding axe with a spike. My customer loved it. So i moved on and got 3 more done. While talking to me later he told me he wanted to use them for throwing axe's. Long story short throwing axe's that he wants have to meet certain criteria and they are not allowed a back spike. Now on to today. Have the need for a hook to put in the rafter of my barn. More on that in a minute. Needs function over form so i aint concerned about pretty. My first welded eye hook. After i got done with my hook, i did a little clean up on the axe, no pic, and finished the handle for a knife that was supposed to be a Christmas present. Blood wood, brass pins and a coat of linseed. The steel is just an old piece of coil spring. So about that hook. I have to put it on a barn rafter so i can attach a pulley to it. The pulley will be used to lift the bed of my truck off. Noticed a little more bounce than normal and seemed to be getting squirrely at times around corners. Upon inspecting the rear i found this. A few pieces of old pipe, some angle iron, and a welder should get him fixed up. Luckily tomorrow is supposed to be in the upper 50's. Oh and it is both that need fixed. That is the better one.

Just to clarify, i was not trying to advocate buying one steel or another. Just if i have a question i ask the counter guys. Most of the time the question is "Can you tell if that is brown or orange paint?" old eyes and all... I use metal stamps to mark my material when i get it home, on both ends. If both ends are marked you do not have to worry about cutting the wrong end. I have also bought drops that are already stamped on one end. A word about the drops, many may not be coded. If they cut a bar (where i got my S-7, the cutter messed up about 100# of stock) in many pieces they will use a sharpie to write the alloy on it. At least at my local supplier, i am sure that each has their own SOP.

Nice work ya'll. Never fails, whenever i do a large weld, like wrapped eye axes, a bit of scale and flux always finds itself between my hammer handle and hand/finger. The pain is not so much anymore but man that smell... I think i may have been born with a hammer in my hand. Every job i have ever had has involved swinging a hammer to some degree. My typical weekend is fire up the shop around 10:30 or 11, shut down when i have to pick the lady of the estate up from her job at 9. The trick i have found is that i work on many projects at once. That gives me the ability to take a break and do something else. I am starting to feel a little fatigue, and here is something else, a little fatigue not to the point i can not lift the hammer, i go and maybe put the scales on a knife, or hit a piece with the cup brush, even *gasp* sweep the floor. My biggest problem is that i cannot sit still. I can not sit long enough to have a smoke and a pop to rest. About 2 mins tops before i am back up and doing something. I have literally said to my self "Stop, i am supposed to be taking a break." I have found myself trying to have a little lunch and then there i am putting steel in a fire with my right hand and eating a sandwich with my coal dust covered left hand. Also depends on what i am working as far as how long i can swing that hammer. I recently moved a 2 1/2" piece of S-7, after about 3 hours of swinging a 4#er it felt like 8 hours of mild 1/2" with a 3#er.

Most of my punches, chisels, etc. are made from old coil springs. I have 1 that i just made from S-7. Have used it once and love it. I cannot say that S-7 is better than H-13 or what not but i can tell you that those guys at the steel supply are usually very knowledgeable. Tell them what you are using the steel for and they can guide you to what is a good hot working steel or cold working steel among other things. Also the supplier i use they have a PDF that i keep on my phone for their color codes. There is no universal color coding for the different metals. Each supplier uses their own. But you can look at it and get an idea of what colors you are looking for and which to avoid. They also have a chart hanging at the service counter but it is a pain to keep walking back and forth.

I got me one of those 25# cast iron ASO's, works great...as a doorstop.

Spent 2 years stationed in Germany. When i was not out in the woods playing soldier or off in some other country shooting at the locals i did get to do some travel there. There are a few countries in Europe i wish i had went to but i did manage to get to a few. My trip to East Germany (now i am dating myself) was about the most depressing place i had ever seen though. When we would run our PT test we would do it along the river, the Mainz river, next to the castle. That was when i was stationed in Aschaffenburg. Beautiful castle i would suggest looking it up. Technically a schloss, Schloss Johannisburg to be percise. We just called it the castle. Built in the early 1600's. When i was in Kitzengen we had the leaning tower. But just outside post was a small town that still had town walls complete with battlements and portcullis. The town had outgrown the walls and what was inside was mostly shops and guesthouses. Had the absolute hands down best bowl of chili i ever ate in that town. Anvil, just read your response. No, no chocolate. It was filled with those little bottles of booze that have about 1 shot in them.