pnut

I'm saving up some money to get some IR protective glasses myself. I'm careful not to stare into the fire or forge but I think I'm developing a cataract in my left eye. I don't know how much genetics have to do with it but my mom also had to have cataract surgery a couple times. Pnut

You could fill that box up with dry kitty litter and get to forging today. No need to wait for the snow to melt or building any fires to melt it. Two or three big bags should do it. Welcome aboard, be safe, and remember it's supposed to be fun. Pnut It's the right size for a JABOD with a six inch hot spot that will heat up to one inch stock. It's what I've used for all of my JABOD builds because it's the first piece of pipe I found. I'm still using the same piece today haha. As far as entry level anvils go VEVOR, Accaiao makes pretty good cheap anvils. I have one as well as a long piece of rail mounted vertically. I use both of them still depending on what I'm doing. Pnut

Sad news. At least he didn't take all of his knowledge with him. May his family find some comfort in that fact. Pnut

To further muddy the waters, who likes rods over stones and why? I personally like ceramic rods for keeping a blade sharp. Pnut

I do love when the conversation goes off on an interesting tangent. I find both subjects extremely interesting. Wasn't a meteoric Iron dagger found in an Egyptian tomb? I seem to remember seeing a picture of it somewhere. Pnut

I'd love to see your progress. I've put together a few KY long rifle kits when I was a scout but I've never scratch built one. A .25 and a .32. My sister still has the .25cal. I've taken many squirrels with it when I was a boy. Pnut

have you seen the video "The Gunsmith" from Colonial Williamsburg? its pretty interesting and shows some old school nachining techniques. Pnut

i hear them yodeling and singing nehind my house where the rail lin runs. i think coyotes have learned to use rail lines as thoroughfares through built up areas. i found a young one dead not too long ago. no discernable external damage so im assuming it was poisoned. Pnut

its a splash oil system so i thimk it might make a difference. The bottom gear is supposed to make contact with the oil and lubricate the other gears so having it oriented like you have it might not allow that to happen. As for what type of oil. I use a non detergent automatic transmission fluid because it gets cold here and anything thicker gets syrupy in the winter. If iI cant find that Id go with the thinnest non detergent engine oil i could find like 5-W20 Pnut make sure not to overfill it either or youll have a mess. You might want yo consider putting a tray of kitty litter under it to catch any drips.

Coincidentally when I stopped by my local fire department to ask about the rules before setting up my smithy and to find out if I could forge in the local park. I discovered that the LT. is also a blacksmith. I've been to his shop and vice versa. Luckily I found out that my forge is basically considered to be no different than a barbecue grill and has the same regulations regarding it's operation. The only thing that I had to worry about was noise. Pnut

They're not used but those 66 pound cast Steel anvils are about the best value you're going to find. I haven't priced them in a while but mine was 119 bucks delivered about 18 months ago. Pnut

You might want to consider a coating of Plistix 900 on top of the castable refractory. Pnut

It's supposed to be here in the greater Cincinnati area by this afternoon or early evening. I think it's only going to lay down a couple inches though. Stay warm and stay safe everyone. Pnut

With charcoal the tue pipe can be on the floor of the firepot but I prefer it to be raised just a bit so I can burn coal as well. The rocky things you found were probably from your fill material falling in the firepot. That's a pretty good looking JABOD you made. Pnut

I found this rotary tool at the local pawn shop for eight bucks (marked 15) and have pretty good luck with it. It's definitely an off brand but it seems to punch above it's weight. In case you can't read it 120V 1A 8,000-30,000 RPM Pnut

Drats, foiled again. If it wasn't for those dastardly single buyer contracts I'd have gotten away with it too Pnut

I know this thread is about heat treating the steel but since you mentioned it, I would suggest using a rod after you get it sharpened up the first time. We used a hook shaped blade while working on the mills at the rubber refinery and the only way I could get a good edge was with a rod. There was a whetstone mounted on a rail between the two mills but I had no luck using it to sharpen the hawkbill shaped mill knifes. Pnut

I think it's more dependent upon the workman using the anvil. Some people are much more conscientious about the care and feeding of their tools and others just look at them as a means to an end. I used to have to get on people when I had my assembly company when I let them use my tools. I learned that people will do things to your tools that they'd never do to their own. Pnut

I coated the brick I use as a door with Plistix on the side exposed to the forge. It's more durable than I thought it would be too. It fires to a hard finish. I also coated the entire interior of my forge with it. PM Glenn. He can help you out. Pnut

i have a ductile iron bottom fuller and it has held up pretty well. it seemed pretty hard when i was grinding the shank to fit my anvil's hardy hole Pnut

Welcome aboard, be safe, and remember it's supposed to be fun. Pnut

I use charcoal more than any other fuel. It's what I prefer for my location. Charcoal is a great fuel especially if you have a source of free scrap wood to make your own. Pnut

Here's the trench from my first JABOD and I used it until the box fell apart from being outside. It lasted well over a year. Pnut I have a grate that I throw on my JABOD to cook a couple cheesy mets as I pack everything up and the charcoal is burning out. It's become a tradition I suppose. Pnut How's everyone been by the way? I haven't had a consistent device to use to log on to the internet lately.

Thank you. It was a long night. Unfortunately it only got worse as the sun rose for some. Pnut

I happened to have a little styrofoam cooler that some medication was shipped in that worked great for this. I might build a wooden frame around it or box it up to make it more durable. Surprisingly enough it's survived for at least two years intact without any protection. Pnut