danielsmith

Mark Aspery's books are really great. Clear step by step photos on how to make tongs, bottle openers, all kinds of stuff. His website is www.markaspery.net very highly recommended

thanks to all who have replied, i will let you know how it goes!

Hey everyone, I wanted to slot punch a hole in a bar that is approximately 2" thick (2"x2"x 6"). this is in preparation for a mortise and tenon joint. Can anyone describe the tool need for this? do i use a flat bottom punch or one with a slight point on the end? any advice would be helpful. dan

thanks to all that have replied, i will have to tell you what i have come up later. dan

hey rutterbush, i have two tricks i do for right angle bends. if using 1/2" square, 11" long, I would put a center punch mark at 10 3/4". put it exactly in the middle of the stock. then make the right angle bend with the center punch mark on the side. It should be lined up in the middle of an imaginary diagonal line drawn from the inside corner to the outside corner. this should give you 11" from outside corner to bottom. the idea is subtracting half of the width of the starting stock from the total length needed. check out "elementary forge practice" by John Lord Bacon. It has some great ideas on forging. the second trick i do is to forge a corner with plenty of stock to spare and then cut the piece to length. is that cheating?

I converted my garage into a blacksmithing shop. i have a basic setup with a propane forge. I would love to be using a coal forge, but I am worried about the smoke. Does anyone have any advice about controlling the smoke? Has anyone else been in a similar situation? I don't want to irritate the neighbors. thanks dan

Hey everyone, I wanted to see if there were any cowboy spur makers out there? Does anyone have any advice on resources to make some? thanks dan

just remember, there is a reason blacksmiths always appear on the cover of those romance novels.

One method I use is to soak the piece in muriatic acid. you need to have a piece that is small enough to fit in a 5 gallon bucket (or something with a lid). soak the material until all of the scale is eaten off. the time for this will vary based on the freshness of the acid and the temperature outside. the hotter the temperature, the faster the acid works. take the piece out and place it in baking soda and water to neutralize the acid. i try to leave the work in the neutralizer the same amount of time it was in the acid. then rinse off the baking soda. the work is now exposed to the elements and will accept gun blue very nicely. protect it with your favorite finish. A WORD OF CAUTION- do not breathe acid fumes. either wear a respirator or work under some ventilation hood. the fumes travel on water vapor in the air, so wait until it is nice and dry out before opening the lid. geez, all of this seems like a huge process. dan