AggieBlacksmith

Howdy smiths,

I saw this posted locally for $65. I know very little about bellows except that they are big collectors items and usually sell for alot. Some nut job made this one into a table, and even though I wouldn't use it if I bought it I'd probably try to resell it. Does this look like something that I could make money on in its current state? Should I buy? Thanks

As far as connecting with a blacksmith in your area, I would try looking up different facebook pages (International Blacksmithing, Blacksmithing for Beginners, etc.), posting on the page, and asking if there are any smiths near you. Also, it wouldn't hurt to go by the local farrier and make friends. You could introduce yourself, tell him where you are in your craft, show him pictures of your setup, or even ask if he could get together for a pint so you could as him some questions. I'm about 8 months into blacksmithing and if I've learned anything, its that

1) the blacksmithing community is comradery of great and generous people,

2) it NEVER hurts to ask

3) if you have a scrap yard near you where you're allowed to pick around and buy stuff, DO IT! It varies in different areas, but you can usually find hammer/axe heads, small vices, and other cool scrap. Also, IF you are wanting to invest more $ into blacksmithing and IF you have a scrap yard near you, I would look into trying to buy/sell scrap pieces from the yard. For example, I found a pipe threader at a scrap yard near me (I had to clean it up alot), but I bought it for $20 and sold it a month later for $1200. That's a one in a million find, but there's plenty of other odds and ends that you can grow an eye for, sell locally, and make more $ for blacksmithing stuff.

4) as far as youtube channels, I'd suggest Alec Steele, Christ Centered Ironworks, Purgatory Ironworks, Black Bear Forge

So many other odds and ends of advice, but man keep going! I'm learning right along with you. 

Thanks! I'm happy with it. I've started to wire wheel it and it's bringing the life back already. 

As far as the BLO, does the anvil need to be heated at all for it to dry and not be sticky or literally just dab and wipe?

Howdy all,

I need some help with this anvil. I bought it today and did EXTENSIVE online research, and the only references I could find to it were on this forum (which were vague). I'm looking for any history/insight that any of you might have into the how old this anvil is, who made it, and any other bits of knowledge you might have. On the anvil itself, the words (barely readable) are as follows

Lewis

Warranted

Best

Tiedin (Is this a last name? Am I misreading this? NO results on google for tiedin. Doesn't even sound like a legit word to me)

Thanks

Thanks all, I bought! It's a 250 Lewis anvil (if any of yall have heard of that brand).

Will do, I'll check the weight. Could you give me the quick rundown on the ring/rebound test?

Howdy folks,

been looking for an anvil and I MIGHT have hit the jackpot. This guy says he has a Lewis anvil (doesn't sound like he know's exactly what he's got), and he's selling it for $1 per lb. I need some better pictures, but from the ones below, can y'all tell if it's too pitted/chipped on the top to be worth the buy?

thanks

So let me get this straight...the best course of action would be:

Use a 3 terminal power cord...connect EITHER of the two black blower wires to EITHER of the white/black wires...connect the green wire to a screw on the blower chasis...plug the 3 terminal plug (that those the wires converge into) into the foot pedal...and then plug the foot pedal into an outlet.

Sorry, like I said, I'm electrically challenged.

Hey Robert, I'm probably gonna call Fasco tomorrow and get tech on the phone to see what they recommend. Here's the photo of the inside of the box. There are literally no markings inside and again, both wires are identical in every way.

That's the problem though, the 2 wires on the blower don't distinguish between hot and ground.

No problem. So you literally just run the third wire to a screw on the outer casing? Also, with a 3-terminal, would wires from the top 2 terminals on the each wire to the 2 blower wires and then the wire from the bottom terminal on the plug fasten to the the casing?

What exactly do you mean by a fashioner and how would you attach it?

Thank you Wayne, that's exactly what I was looking for! So just to be sure, the blower needs to be wired to a 2 terminal, non-polarized 115v power cord?

Howdy smiths,

So here's the short of it: I have a Fasco B24220 AC blower and I want to wire it to a foot pedal which will plug into a standard outlet. My trouble is, I'm electrically challenged. Any advice on electrical specs/wire/foot pedal I can buy to accomplish this?

Here's the info on the wires connected to the blower (which which happens to be a NON POLARIZED AC MOTOR?): CSA CL1251 OR AWM I A/B 1258C 600V Ft-2 E29326 AWM 125*C 600 V Style F 3173 18 AWG Suitable for Switchboard Wire. 

Thanks and Gig'em!

Micah

Just now, Tubalcain2 said:

the lack of a real step is kinda odd, but other than that it looks like a serviceable anvil. Just do a rebound test to be sure it is really cast steel and not CI.

Thanks! is the 1053 steel with 55-62 hardness anything to worry about? Is that a good anvil steel?

After months of looking on Craigslist/offerup/etc. I see a post by someone who says they'll be selling some anvils in the area. He's selling 135lb anvils, cast from high carbon 1053 steel, tempered to a hardness of 55-62. 

Does this look like a good buy?

littleblacksmith, Hey man! heh, yeah that's Steephollow. Before yall's demo in February I'd been looking for a good forge setup, and I really liked theirs. I'm a bit of a perfectionist, and since I'm having to start out with just a RR anvil, I figure I could make it up by making a long-lasting, decent-looking forge to start with.

I've been to Bryan I&M and I sure haven't seen anything near as big as what I'm looking for. Am I missing something? Also, thanks for the heads up on the coke! I'll be coming by hopefully this semester to use some for my first heat. I'd love to come by your forge sometime soon as well. 

ThomasPowers I appreciate it! I live in College Station, TX and I'm about 3 hrs away from the NTBA so I plan on going by and asking. I'm more of a touch it, see it kinda guy so I like getting my stuff from local stores and shops because I can see it up close. Too often I've ordered things offline and its ended up being different from what I was expecting. Even though there's alot of non-US members on the forum, it looks like probably the majority of members are in the US, so I'm hoping for some responses that recommend local shops and stores where they buy their metal, hardware, etc. from. 

I'm also seeking out local blacksmiths to see how they got their materials.

I'm in the processing of creating a new forge and I want to know what YOURS is made of. Any recommendations on where to buy fire pots, blowers, sheet metal, etc.? How's it working for ya? Also, for those with a forge but WITHOUT a welder, did you have your forge pieces welder for you?

Thanks!

(below is the kind of forge I'm going for)

Hey Henry, just reading back through you thread and I saw that you said your sheet metal only cost you about $28. Could i ask where you bought it?

Hmmm...maybe I'll just sell it and use the money to buy a real squirrel blower. Thanks yall!

Thanks for all the insight! This is the info I was able to find on it. Does it look do-able?

Howdy! I was at the scrap yard today and found myself a Holset HX35 Turbocharger. It looked a whole lot like a squirrel blower, so I bought it! Only after researching it did i realize that it was primarily used for cars. HOWEVER, before I toss/sell it I wanted to be sure: CAN I USE THIS AS A SQUIRREL BLOWER FOR MY FORGE? Thanks!

What exactly is the TPAAAT method? I've seen discussion surrounding it but nothing defining it.