keithgartner

thanks, having sticky goo on your metal all the time is incredibly anoying!
Sounds like you rushing things and trying to forge with green coal instead of coking it up.
Go to Blueprints and read up on fire control.
Keith

Farriers anvils have a larger and flatter horn, and a narrower waist, less mass in the center of the anvil. But they are fine for a one person general shop. They just aren't made for a striker to hit with a sledge hammer. The 125# Cliff Caroll should have turning cams on the side, which are real handy for scroll work. I would buy it.
Keith

Use the chops saw you bought at the farm supply, cut the wedge, squarely 1" longer than you want the height above anvil, ( about 2" so cut three )Now the harder part, move up 1" from the bottom and cut in from all 4 sides the amount it takes to leave the size hardy post you want, ( don't have to worry too much about over cut ). Now clamp in some type of vise and cut your square out from bottom up. BE CAREFUL.

Mine leak, but only for about a week after I fill them up. Suprisingly they dry and shrink within a couple days of being emptied. Fix: Empty it, turn upside down and tap around staves, not bottom boards, with a rubber mallet, right it and fill again. How old was yours when you bought it. I have a cooperage in town so mine was new and had minimal srinkage, when I bought it.

I googled, Catalan Furnace, this was the first of 60,000 hits. Metalworking Furnaces - San Juan Capistrano, California - Engineering Landmarks on Waymarking.com

It's beautiful. The drywall screws just take a little away. (very little)

Glad you weren't hurt! I had a "new" grinding wheel years ago, and since then, whenever changing wheels on ANYTHING, 4", 6", 8", bench grinders, angle grinders, cut-off saws, get out of the line of the wheel and run them free for ONE FULL MINUTE, and this does not guarantee anything, but it helps. People also have a tendancy to pick up tools, drop them, not say a word and put them back as found, I have came back from restroom, etc., picked up an angle grinder, ( that I was using a minute ago ) switched it on and had the wheel break immediatly.
SAFTEY IS HARD WORK, BUT WORTH IT.
Keith

Mount'neer, I would have balked, just like you, on having the dealers friend come up to price the vise. ( Don't like being conned ) I actually paid $105.00 for a 4" post vice, at a farm auction, here in southeast Missouri. It's in good shape and less than 1/2 of new.
Keith

Hi Tim;
Form pins are made of mild steel, and as such would be great to practice with. Try long tapers, making the round ones square, straight and the same size the entire length. When I started out I thought this was rediculous, but when I found out I couldn't do it, I started practicing. You will gain hammer control, and laern to flip stock 180 & 90 degrees. Work on projects at the same time so you don't get bored, but practice a little bit every day.

Again someone who doesn't want us to know where he lives. If he were my neighbor, and I knew it, I would invite him over to make a new one or redo the old one. I wonder if they are all "wanted", or in the witness protection program.

My post vice, a 65 lb. 4", no name on it, is in good shape per say, screw, pivot pin, jaws are flat and smooth, the jaws are only perpendicular at 1" open, this is by design, they are made to hammer on, not known for holding power, you must build jigs or tools to hold some material in the vice to keep it from moving.
I can put a 3/8" bar in one side of the jaw and tighten till the vice flexes enough for the other side of the jaw to touch, and when released it will spring back to paralell.
I use mine for holding some hardy tools, drifting or punching when my pritchel or hardy holes aren't big enough.
I also have a saddle made to close on R.R. spikes to keep them from being driven down through the jaws when punching in faces etc. on trolls/wizards, without having to chase it around the anvil.
There are blueprints for vise tools.

What works for you, works for you. there is no right or wrong, (boy I'm gonna catch-it for that), unless it comes to saftey. That said you are probably 1) using a cold chisel, slitting chisels are really thin, 1/16", and sharp, and hard, 2) hitting too hard on the first swing, just mark the cut line with the slitter, with the first heat, then hit a little harder with the second, and third and..........
I like you (it sounds) work alone, and traditionally that was not the case, there was someone there to hold, or strike things.
The reason to learn traditional methods, is for demo's in front of the public.

I have a couple P.W.'s and have researched them a bit, and my guess is, that the logo (cross in shield) was carved in by the purchaser, as were the B's stamped into the base. The center number of the weight stamp has been carved away, when making the vertical cross line.
The weight is in British Standard. The first #, 1cwt = 112 pounds, 2nd. # 1/4 cwt. = 28 pounds, 3rd. # is pounds. My main anvil is stamped 1 0 9 = 121pounds U.S.

I would buy it, try to get them down some, $ 150.00 is better, especially for resale, but $250.00 is ok if you're gonna use it. Just my opinion!

How often do you hammer iron? If you just get in the shop on week-ends or less, and don't warm up as Dale suggested, and excersize the muscles you need for smithing, that could be your only problem. Is your anvil between knuckles and wrist when standing erect? Are you getting steel hot enough to move with-out excessive hammering? Are you swinging with your shoulder?

Welding heat would be, bright yellow almost white. The size of your forge is cavernous, especially for one burner, choke it down to about 6" dia, with Kao-wool, or something similar, use the bricks as the floor.

I worked machine maintenance for years for a concrete contractor, I sorta pushed him into fabricating railings, so I could get the " ATTA BOY " 's on the finished product. It is still that way today, when I'm finished and sombody says " cool", or how'd he do that.

I don't see how there is a forward / backward, to it.

Anivls bring different prices in different parts of the world. What part are you in? That said $ 250.00 US sounds fair.

Peter Wright, Age ?, CWT 1.0.9, US pounds 121, Bought at farm auction Steelville, Missouri, USA in 2006 $ 155.00,

I had always taken a SOP,(seat of pants) approach to smithing, as it is my hobby, and I made a tool as needed. Anyway old style tire tool/jackhandles, have worked for me as eye punches, chasing tools, etc., they have enough carbon content to harden and temper a bit, and they are fairly durable. Also the 5/8" dia. fits my hand well. For slitters drifts and punches, I use steering components, ( drag links, tie rods ).
All that said I'm starting on a set per Brian Brazeal, from a coil spring.

I have a 24", stamped steel, Buffalo rivet forge, and blower, I BBQ on it all the time.

As Glenn stated above, NEVER use liquids to start a forge fire, as they can ( and will ) migrate down and through the tyure, and out the ash dump, on to the floor. This may not have happened to you yet, but if you persist, eventually your fire will start where you don't want it.

I have arthuritis and I was putting an eyebrow in metal (or wood), on the left side of hammer blow. It was tiring and painful, to change my wrist angle, so I started shaving my handles to move the hammer axis about 3 or 4 degrees to the right, by taking off material, at 8 and 2 o'clock, hammer head down looking at bottom of handle. I now hit squarely with my natural swing. I have also done this with coushined grip hammers. I have used, drawknives, planes, belt sander, angle grinde w/flap wheel, to shave handle, they all work for me.