Jump to content
I Forge Iron

WillyP

Members
  • Posts

    54
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by WillyP

  1. Thanks for your input guys!

    I did not actually know that a bit smaller lump would be better, but now I do so I'll definately use that info!

    Matt, I agree, I need better air control. I am working on that. Any suggestions? :confused: I'm open. One thing I did do though is make the length variable on that grate by using another piece of pipe that blocks the air holes from the one end. In theory, I can use the whole 10 -12" of the fire pot length, or just a few inches.

    Now on the practical side of that theory, I have found that a bit of debris does get down the holes and sort of bind the stopper pipe. So far not too bad and since the stopper pipe comes right out it's easy to clean. And again, this is where a better air flow control would be ideal, since having only 3 open holes will require less air than 10.


    Frosty,
    I had it in mind that the air tube would eventually need replacing as I was welding it all together, and as it would happen, I totally forgot about it the second I popped my welding helmet on my head and lowered the sheild! :o

    Now providence is a great thing, concidering I had not even checked to see if my holes were facing in the correct direction, AND, as it would happen, that tube only ended up with a very small weld at each end before I lifted the helmet and returned to my senses! :D

    Some of us are dangerous in the dark!

    :D

  2. Well I was finally able to finish my charcoal forge project.

    Here is a few pics.

    With my test fire I just let a piece of steel burn right through as you can see in the pics.

    Welded the fire pot up from 3/8X6 Flat bar. The air is fed in through a 1/8 wall X 1-1/4" pipe with 5/16" holes drilled into it.

    The top is 1/8" sheet steel with some angle welded on as an edge.

    The blower in the pics is far too powerfull.

    The little blob in the last oic is the end of the rod that burned through.

    15058.attach

    15059.attach

    15060.attach

    15061.attach

    15062.attach

    15063.attach

    15064.attach

  3. Ian, I hear ya about the $$ being tight these days! But, I was SUPER fortunate - a week or so ago a guy that I know, and runs a small two man machine / fab shop left a message for me saying, 'since he has had no time to get rid of his drops, and right now scrap is worth nothing, I could come by and help myself to his drops!" Mind you some stuff is odd sized, but hey, it's free, and he is very happy that his bins are getting lower!

    Not sure how the price of scrap metal is doing where you are, but maybe asking a few questions to the right people might just net your daughter a bed frame.

    BTW I'm not saying we ought to be beggers.... You could always offer to make something decorative for the company, or for the Boss if you can't offer $$

  4. Creativity. Man has a desire to be a creator, even though at best he can be a re-creator; just as Solomon said, "There is nothing new under the sun."

    As a kind of non-creative person - I have the desire to create, and recreate things in a more personal (and better) way. It energizes me, gives me strength to go beyond where I have gone before. Stimulates the mind. Teaches me to plan things out, to look ahead of myself so I don't end up at a dead end.

    And I find it very satisfying to spend a day working with my hands and the various ellements already mentioned, and then go to bed dead tired, just to be able to get up the next day and do it all over again.

  5. :D

    Well it's finally done and sunny enough to take a picture of it.

    I really had to re-think this back to simplicity. I can always get fancy after I have a few more under the belt.

    After considering the stems of the flowers, I left them dead straight instead of making a more natural bent stem because to me is gave them an almost surreal (sp?) apearance. For some wierd reason I had a sort of Edward Scissorhands (or something) thought going through my mind.

    I made a little socket for the bouquet to sit in so they can be removed easy for moving the thing from place to place without catching the flower petals on stuff.

    I added one hint of colour at the top where the two uprights come together in the form of a Brass Wrap (Brazing Rod).

    I need to work on symetry (sp?) - I think next time I'll draw a pattern to follow instead of trying to lay one on top of the other.

    Comments and critiques welcome.



    Anyways, here's some pics at last.


    Willy

    14238.attach

    14239.attach

    14240.attach

    14241.attach

    14242.attach

    14243.attach

    14244.attach



  6. when the iron gets to a nice yellow bring it out and tap it on the edge of the forge (should stick). tap your iron with a light hammer on the edge of the forge. back to the fire to yellow and to the anvil to shape.
    This was a lesson to learn to recognize the temperature for welding and to learn not to be to heavy handed. the small stock cools very fast so a trip to the anvil can be just to much cooling.




    You've given me a good idea for sure. I'm using a propane forge made from a 20# Propane Tank; it's on a "cart" made of round tubing. As a stock support at the mouth of the forge I have a RR Switchplate; being an inch thick, and heavy enough to support a decent tap with a hammer, this is where I'll try my initial welding tap. It's close to the fire - so it's hot - and I don't have to turn to the anvil, it's flat and wide - so it's easy to position the stock.


    Thanks!

    Willy
  7. Well, here is the Flower (Rev.2 using a small guillotine tool).

    I made the guillotine tool thinking to use it in the vice... My big vice is too high for consistant blows with the hammer; I'm welding a hardie post to it later.

    I wanted a nice tight neck, and because the thicker flat bar ends have been used up, this one is made completely of 3/16". It does a good job of necking 1-1/8" (1/8 wall) tube down enough that a 1/4" drill shaves it nicely for quarter inch rod.

    Willy

    14177.attach

    14178.attach

    14179.attach

    14180.attach

    14181.attach

  8. Hey John B.

    I've been thinking about your suggestion. I have a question that will help clarify.

    Here is my thought. Imagine the intersection where 2 branches separate. I wrap some 14/16ga(?) shaped like a leaf around that joint, as snug as I can, starting a half to three-quarters of an inch below the joint, and continuing up to hide all the welding. Then weld the bottom, only around the immediate place where the covering leaf piece goes around the single branch. Clean it up some, then heat by torch and smooth with a light planishing (?) hammer to smooth/hide weld.

    Is that what you had in mind?

    Willy

  9. John B.

    You've assumed correctly.

    VERY good point :cool: It's obvious which of the two of us has done this before!

    Although those branches have just small tacks, I was curious to see how they might look. Of course when I passed it by Quality Control I was told they need to be a bit flatter to look nicer. (Quality Control = My wife and my Mom - Wimen.... they know what they will spend $$$ on, So I check with them)



    St. John,

    I was planning a wire wrap for at least the the top. The flat steel suggestion will work perfectly at the Y type joints.

    Thank all of you for your Help.

    Willy.... (building tooling today)

  10. Mike,

    I bought a big one like you described. about 8" in diameter, at least 1/4" thick.

    I cut it off a half inch below the point where the side become straight.

    And also as you said, I could not get the brass fitting out of the top. My O2 tank is empty and only one of my pipe wrenches was big enough and I didn't have a second pair of hands to help hold it up anyway. So I cut the fitting off flush with the top.

    Turns out that wasn't such a bad idea because after I take out the tube that goes from the top to bottom of the tank, I'll have a smaller hole for mounting/hanging, and the brass that's still inside the bell isolates it enough so that it still rings VERY LOUD.

    Willy

  11. Here is the one flower I was able to make.

    Pretty tough to neck it down without the guillotine. Thanks to Finnr showing where to find a tutorial, I know how to make it. Then I'll be able to get it nice and clean.

    First picture it's still attached to the pipe, and since I was not going to use this one, I cut it off and roughly made three little legs for it to sit on. (that's the second).

    I necked it down with the edge of the Anvil and my smallest ball pien.

    First one... I'm happy.

    14146.attach

    14147.attach

  12. Hi All

    Well not really MAJOR - but today marks the start of my biggest project to date.

    I've been working on a Trellis - Sort of shaped like a Cathedral Window with some Vines (and hopefully flowers ala BP0096. - Sort Of - My hammer work needs practice -

    It's kind of a FAB - FORGE Combo until I can learn to forge weld with consistancy.

    So far the frame pieces and vines are all tacked!

    I'm pretty proud of myself, :cool: considering other than some little Garden Stone Holders, and a couple firepit utensils... I'm unexperienced :D And at times, not very imaginative!

    I'll see if I can get a few pics to post of it while I take a break to eat.


    Willy

  13. CONGRATS!!

    I too am awaiting the triumph of the First Forge Weld

    I've begun trying at least a couple times each I've got the forge burning. In the past I have definately not had enough heat (not even close). Tonight though I was able to heat my steel a lot hotter than I ever was able before. I changed the burner (gas forge) a little and now I can get a lot more heat.

    Judging by the posts here, I think that I may have been a little to quick on the draw tonight. I heated the bars (1/2" rounds) till it looked as though they were "sweating" but alas; No Weld!

    I'm going to take that pointer of making a "pointed" rod as a check.

    Thanks for the Post... It's helped me for sure.

    Willy

  14. Hi All,

    Hope the start of your week has been safe and productive!!

    I found an old Galv. Trash Can today beside my storage garage. It seems that it must have been left behind by the neighbor who recently died. It's going to make a nice looking slack tub - if it doesn't leak! It's got a decent bottom - rusted but not rotted - and a good lid, the sides are really good, but the seam on the one side looks 'stretched' - for lack of a better way to describe it. All the folds are still fully intact, and I plan to tap it back to flat and hope that it's still got a seal, and does not leak.

    If by chance it does not seal, has anyone tried sealing these seams with some sort of sealer with success? Maybe an epoxy or something?

    This bucket is much better than the one I am using because of the wider opening, and it has a lid - And I just plain like it more than the little steel pail I've got now!


    Thanks - And have a great day!

    Willy

  15. The company is called TACO Communications. Address is 29 Sharp Rd, Brantford, On. Minutes from Oak Park Rd 403 exit.

    If you Google it, it's going to put the arrow in the wrong location... past the actual place... it's the place right on the sharp bend in the road.


    Some of the smaller machines could be transported with a 3/4 Ton --- I THINK ---- Physical size wise anyway.

    The largest of the bunch WILL require special treatment - either a larger truck or heavy trailer. The Boss there told me that it stood 8' or 10' tall.

    Some the other smaller machines are mounted on table top like frames. I believe a few are free standing just smaller.

    But really I only looked at these for a few minutes so if interested, it's best to call and ask for a peek.

    Willy

  16. Ruben, Brian, et.al.

    To look at this from a slightly different perspective may help - I hope anyway.

    I work in a Stamping and Fabrication Plant. In the Fab Shop, the Brake Press Dept. in particular, if a drawing calls up a certain radius'd bend, the operator then has the choice between many different styles of Brake Dies which all have the same radius ground into the profile. So the actual die itself may be 4 feet long, 4 inches thick, and 6 inches tall, but the "point" if you will will be ground to the certain radius. Let's use 1/2" for an example: then the "point" or the "business end" will be 1" thick.

    The angles at which the sides of the dies are machined have no bearing on the radius. See the attached pic of a Goose-neck Die - I am not 100% sure of the actual rad on this die because I just swiped it off the net but if it has been ground to a 1/2" radius on the "business end" it don't matter what the rest is like.

    Well that's how it works in with Brake & Press Tooling, Blacksmithing may be different, and as I am learning, I am learning that some folks look at a thing one way, and others look at the same thing differently. Yet they are both the same.

    Hope I did not confuse things worse.

    Willy

    14042.attach

  17. Hi All,

    I am not sure if this is relevant info or not.

    I've been driving my Dad to work lately because his car retired, and when I got there the other day there was about 10 or so small presses/riviting machines (like 10 ton and under - I spoke to the manager who was there smoking and he said there was one more larger press inside that was either a 10 or 15 ton press) standing outside waiting to be sold.

    The manager told me that some fella was interested in buying the whole lot of 'em, but he hadn't heard back - the fella had until the 15th of May I do believe - and after that if he doesn't come through they will be stripped of any good parts and sold for scrap.

    These are just the old single rev trip clutch kick presses (I'm not sure if that's good technical jargon but that's what I know them as). I think the larger press may be a partial rev air or hydraulic clutch.

    If these are of any value to anyone, I could drive to Brantford and take some pictures. They told me they would allow me to.

    Willy

  18. RE: The TSC Stores posts:

    The TSC here in Woodstock has gone through some pretty major facelifting.... To be honest, I liked it A LOT better before. The only thing that I go there for exclusively now is Oxygen, and SOME welding supplies because the Praxair Outlet Guy is real reasonable in his bottled gas pricing. You have to know what you're paying for though - SOME of the welding supplies can be had quite a bit cheaper at other places - I almost bought new a lens and cover there and then found the same one at an auto parts store at less than half the cost. The only other stuff I go there for is either sale stuff or stuff that I can't find elsewhere.

    The Woodstock TSC store seems to be trying to become another Can. Tire/Princess Auto mix..... Loads of Chinese junk in the tools dept. :-(

    Willy

  19. Hi All,

    Can anyone give me a general idea of what type of steel they make things like tire irons etc out of?

    I've got a whack of these things kicking around - left over from old cars I've had.

    They seem pretty hard - I thought they might make good punches/chisels/hardy tools etc.

    I used a piece of one to make a chipping hammer eons ago and it's still got a decent edge even though i don't think I've ever touched it since.


    Thanks!
    :D
    Willy
    :D
    p.s. speaking of using old tools as a source of material - what about using old wrenches etc?
    I've got a bucket full of em' - I keep giving them away to ppl who need the odd one, and I was just keeping them for scrap wieght anyway....

×
×
  • Create New...