Pault17

Here is a try at putting a picture of a small spoon or ladle bowl I made after watching last week's tuesday nite class hope it works

Being a neophyte smith, I don't have teh funds or knowlege (yet) for using a bunch of the tooling you guys and gals talk about. But, I am a healthy scrounger. I found a block of steel (type unkown) that measures 7x7x4.5 and weighs around 25 lbs. I used a drill press and a 4.5 inch grinder to put three different types of spoon shaped dishes in it so far. I am trying to figure out how to put fullering grooves in it that doesn't go beyond my tools and current skills. Being a home inspector, I meet all kinds of people and recently did a home inspection for a gent that works in a really fancy machine shop. He has been supplying me with little cut-offs and drops of metals ranging from s-series and d-series, along with hot rolled, in sizes ranging from 5/8 round to 5-inch round. pretty neat guy. The shop he is in has some awesome tooling ranging from a monster 80+ year old gigantic machine-type drill press, to a 3/4 million$ computerized milling machine. They do water jet cutting and this cool thing with metal sitting in a liquid but usnig a little electrified wire that cuts just about any shape. When I was in the shop it was hollowing out the inside of a metal box. pretty cool. pax pt

Glenn, I have used the metal strapping for easy leaves on flowers and things. It heats up quick and needs to be worked fast, but I have had no complaints on the leaves I have made. I have also found (for now, maybe it's just a phase) that if you sand/polish the leaves down to bare metal and heat them up through the temper colors, you can make some pretty interesting patterns. carpe malleus pt

irnsrgn, you are absolutely correct. without honesty, Well I just have no idea what else there is. I offered my client money for all that he was offering and he just said that I was very helpful during his home inspection and this was his way of saying thanks.

Noo-b comments here. I work as a home inspector in NC so I get to see a lot of different places. Earlier in October, I looked at a house that was built in the really early 1900's: main house was over 3,800 square feet with no additions - big for the day. Well this house had several outbuildings, one of which was the "work shop". Mostly wood stuff, but in the far corner was very clean four or five inch 40-50+ lb leg vice. I mentioned to the buyer that he could probably get a nice penny for that on ebay if the thing was still there when he closed. He called me the other day almost a month after our inspection and said that he had talked to the seller, who said that he didn't want it and didn't know what it was for. My client said that when he moves in he will give it to me. Oh, yeah; he is also a machinist and fabricator that works for a shop that makes custom "things' from a wide variety of tool steels and other non-ferrous metals like brass and aluminum alloys. He said that he will start collecting random sized cutoffs and give those to me when he gives me the vice. He was also going to ask around the shop if anybody has any copies of machinist handbooks that they would like to get rid of or sell off. Chistmas seems to have come a little early. I am waiting to see if any of this really comes to fruition. carpe malleus:D

All, I spent 9 years in the VA Guard but never went "anywhere". I have a little brother who dropped his employment as an LEO and SWAT team member to become a trainer in BPC, a relatively well known police college in the middle east. He leaves tomorrow for the second half of his 1.5 year contract. We talked a little about what he does, who he works with, and what he has seen. Nobody should have to see, never mind live with the things he has seen and lived with. I know there is a different spot in the forums for this stuff, but please keep him in your prayers. Carpe Malleus, pt

speaking of 'carpe', I like Carpe Malleus

Many congratulations. we have given our parents seven grand children with one on the way. Get togethers are usually pretty fun. I'll get the kids praying for you and your daughter-in-law. although I know that "new" mothers can be rather protective. carpe malleus paul

Good Mornin'. I have been looking for people to talk to about blacksmithing, but everybody just says "ooh, you blacksmith? that's cool", but they don't know anything about it. I almost accepted an apprenticeship in spain about twenty years ago, but chickened out. Then about a year ago, I literally stubbed my toe on the toe of a little heavily worn 75-pound anvil. I dug around a little and found a 40+/- pound leg vise that needed a little tlc. I went online and, seeing as how I don't have a real space to make a "smithy", decided to start small and not too expensive. I built a couple of "bean-can" forges using a plumbers propane torch for heat. I have not been able to get it up to welding heat, but I can reach orange-yellow. I have been practicing making hooks, sconces, candle holders. I even made a little humming-bird nosing into a flower. Basically, anything that can be heated in a chamber 4 inches in diameter and 10 inches deep. Someday I will make a real charcoal forge and try to heat up some bigger metal.