wedwards

Irontwister,

You sound confused especially about the electrical part of your project. Stop. Take a deep breath. Think about what it is you want to accomplish, and take it one step at a time. As for hooking up the dimmer - talk to your journeyman electrician friend. He/she will know what to do. Good luck.

Bill

I've been trying to visualize your garage door. Is it an overhead door which when raised rests above the framed opening, or is it some other arrangement? Is there trim molding on the header? If the door itself or the header trim is restricting the height, can either be removed? If so it wouldn't give you a lot but maybe enough to slide the hammer through once it's off the pallet.

I like the idea of chaining a couple of horizontal beams to the hammer for lifting. If you can get them secured at or above the lifting point a couple of inexpensive 4 ton bottle jacks and supporting beams/timbers will work to get it off the pallet.

So the wrecker companies won't talk to you about coming out with one of their boom trucks to lift it off the pallet? That's a real bummer. When I lived in Albuquerque all the drivers were so safe those folks were begging for work. Good luck.

Bill

In a previous life I spent several months in Massachussetts and even then (in the early 60's) that would have been wierd. Do you need a FDFF to stand-by when you fire up your forge? I'm not trying to be a smart a--. I really am curious.

Bill

If it's the bottle valve itself and not something down the line you could still have a problem if you try and empty it yourself. Gotta watch how fast you draw the acetylene out. If it were me I'd not take the chance of either transporting it myself or trying to empty it. I'd have someone come and get it. Just my $.02 worth. Good luck.

Bill

OK, I figured that wouldn't fly, but around here you need a "welding permit", to use a torch or a welder, a fully dressed firefighter has to be there and be paid a minimum of four hours wages for *any* work involving welding or torch cutting.

Sorry about posting bad info.

WOW! Where in New England are you? Do the local welding/fab/repair shops and mobile rigs have to have the FDFF present there also? If not, one wonders if those shops had something to do with enacting that ordinance.

Bill

I'd like to get to your part of the country one day. The south and south east are the few places I haven't seen. I'm going to try and get to the ABANA conference in Memphis so maybe that will be a start. To respect the thread - I haven't forged through a winter yet so I don't know what I will do. My anvil is fairly small so the block heater idea will probably work pretty well. Thanks.

Bill

Kashmire,

I have only three so far and they they are very basic (necessary for me) and from my perspective, very good.

The Backyard Blacksmith - Lorelei Sims
Quarry Books
ISBN-13:978-1-59253-251-3
ISBN-10: 1-59253-251-9

Practical Blacksmithing and Metalworking, 2nd edition - Percy Blandford
Tab Books (Division of McGraw-Hill)
ISBN 0-8306-2894-0

The Artist Blacksmith - Peter Parkinson
The Crowood Press (Canadian, I think)
ISBN 9781861264282

The first two I found at Barnes and Noble. The third was a gift from a Canadian friend.

I hope this is useful.

Bill

I'm impressed that anyone living in a state with native palmetto trees would know what an engine block heater was. I bet it was a special order.

Bill

Donnie,
Congratulations. It doesn't get much better than that. Good job.

Bill

If it is the tank valve itself leaking think about calling your local fire department. You will have a hazardous material problem in a residential neighborhood (if your neighbors are anywhere close) and that is what fire departments do. Plus I bet they would get there faster than your vendor. Good luck

Bill

SCRATCH AWL: A pointed metal marker quickly found in a cluttered tool drawer by pain under a finger nail. It is often used as the "Son of a XXXXX" tool.

DIVIDERS: A measurement transferring device found in a cluttered tool drawer even more quickly than a scratch awl.

STEEL SQUARE: Two pieces of flat steel stock joined at an apex angle other than 90 degrees.

I have all of these tools and they work exactly as described. I'm sure there others that can be included in this list

DRILL PRESS: A tall upright machine used to propel metal stock from the hands into the chest and the beer across the room, spraying the freshly-painted project carefully set in the corner to protect the wet finish.

WIRE WHEEL: Creates a single bright spot on metal before throwing it under the workbench with the speed of light. Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned calluses from fingers in about the time it takes to say, 'Oh sh –‘

SKILL SAW: A portable cutting tool used to make studs and other boards too short.

PLIERS: Used to begin the process of rounding bolt heads. Also used in the creation of blood-blisters.

BELT SANDER: An electric sanding tool commonly used to convert minor
touch-up jobs into major refinishing jobs.

HACKSAW: One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board principle of transforming human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion. The greater the effort to influence its course the more unpredictable the outcome.

VISE-GRIPS: A finishing tool. It is the second and last tool used in the process of rounding bolt heads. Also one of several gripping tools used to apply welding and cutting heat to the palm of the hand.

OXYACETYLENE TORCH: Used almost entirely for igniting various flammable objects in the shop. It is particularly useful for igniting axle grease while removing a bearing race.

TABLE SAW: A large stationary power tool commonly used to launch wood projectiles to test wall integrity.

PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER: Normally used to break vacuum seals under lids or to open motor oil cans, the easier to splash oil on your shirt; but can also be used to strip out Phillips screw heads.

STRAIGHT SCREWDRIVER: A tool for opening paint cans. It is often used to create non-removable slotted screws and painful palm blisters.

PRY BAR: A tool used to cause $50.00 damage to replace a $.50 part.

HOSE CUTTER: A scissor-like tool used to make hoses too short.

HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer now is used as a divining rod to locate the most expensive parts adjacent to the object to be hit.

UTILITY KNIFE: Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on contents such as seats, vinyl records, liquids in plastic bottles, collector magazines, refund checks, and rubber or plastic parts.It is especially useful for slicing work clothes, but only while while being worn.

SON OF A XXXXX TOOL: Any handy tool which can be thrown across the shop while yelling 'Son of a xxxxx'! . It is also the next tool needed in the project.

Feel free to add to the list.

Bill

I agree with the other posters that it is unlikely you will find any kind of a guild or professional registry from that era. Check the county court house where he and your GGM lived until he took off. There may be land and tax records there which could give you his first name. The tax records would probably be in the District Court records and the land records with the county clerk. Ask the clerk's staff for the "Grantor/Grantee Index" of the county real estate records. There may well be other information there as well. Ask the clerks what other records there may be. Good luck.

Bill

I'm glad the situation seems to be resolving. Hopefully it will continue in a positive direction. Good luck.

Bill

You know you're a blacksmith when you're: overweight; wearing your balloon top decorative cap; wearing Carhartt bib overalls or Carhartt workpants with garish suspenders; over 6' 2" in height; frizzing your beard with heat; strong and sinewy; wearing a shirt size 19-38; able to look through a keyhole with both eyes...at once!* . . .

Turley Forge and Blacksmithing School : The Granddaddy of Blacksmithing Schools

Frank, I didn't know that we'd met. Except for the narrow beady eyes part that fits me to a T. And I'm not even a blacksmith, yet - just embryronic.

How are things in Santa Fe? That's the place in NM I miss the most.

Bill

WOW!

Thanks to everyone for all the great advice!
Seriously....

One thing I forgot to mention, which I feel does have some relevance is the fact that my wife is from Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. . .

Iain

Oh Boy! Not only do you have a gender gap but a cultural one as well. I was going to suggest looking into a smithy/shop at a completely different location, but your wife's problem may not be so much that she and others can see what your are doing but that you are doing it at all. If that's the case all the communication and compromise in the world is not going to do much for either of you until the two of you can get over that hurdle. I guess it all boils down to deciding if her objections are the problem or only the symptom of a problem. There is a BIG difference. Good luck.

Bill

If you have upper venting don't be too quick to rule out a ceiling fan, maybe several depending on the size of your smithy. They can be reversed and they do a good job of moving warmer (or cooler) air either up or down depending on your needs. We have several in the house and switch them seasonally. They pull the warm air down in the winter and circulate the cooler air up from the AC in the summer. They make a big difference in the utility bill and they can be relatively inexpensive. A downside is that they do get dirty.

Bill

They don't want folks wandering around the scrapyard here either but the only one in town is also a steel retailer. Sometimes they will let me rummage through their drop bins and discarded metal bundling straps in the cutting shop. The other steel retailer in town lets me do this too. Try to find the people/businesses who sell scrap to them - auto repair shops, front end shops, construction and industrial equipment repair shops and so on. They won't all talk to you but there are a number who will. I've offered to pay what the scrap yard would pay but if you get to know the people they will often just give it to you.

Bill

Go for it. I think that would be a good chance to learn something about heat treating. Even if it doesn't work all that well the worst that can happen (as long as it isn't a broken weld) is that you may have to sharpen them more frequently. What do you have to lose?

One thing you should watch for is the blade balance after refurbishing them. You will want to take care of the bearings. A year or two ago I rebuilt a three blade John Deere deck and the blades were the cheap part.

Good luck.

Bill

I just took a closer look at the photo. On the upper right face it says ac only so polarity is a not issue. Also, along with checking the internal connections you might want to consider replacing the cables.

Bill

Do you know if that machine is AC only or DC only? If it is AC it is hard to weld 7018. You would need about 30% more amps than the same diameter 6013. If it is DC, they are usualy set up for reverse polarity, but you should be able to change the polarity either with a switch or by swapping the cables.

My guess is that it is an AC machine. If so, next time buy 7018 AC.

Whatever the machine is designed for if you have it set at an appropriate current for the rod you should get more than just a few weak sparks out of it. Check to see your current setting isn't drifting off, and that the indicator is actually registering changes in current settings. If those are good chances are you have loose or corroded internal connections. Hope this helps. Good luck.

Bill

From your first post it appears that whatever you do with the welder is going to ruffle somebody's feathers. It also appears that the welder is still at your MIL's house. Unless all potential family conflict over it is resolved ahead of time (and you are confident it is resolved) I suggest you leave it where it is and walk away. Otherwise even if you get it running nothing good can come of it. Don't ask me how I know this. Good luck.

Bill

I haven't tried it yet but it seems to me that the soft iron "mechanic's wire" available at the farm and ranch stores might work pretty well for that. It's not galvanized or work hardened, and when you bend or wrap with it, it stays pretty much exactly where you put it. Plus you get quite a bit for not very much $$.

Bill

That's good news. Thanks for the information. I haven't looked at the website yet, I assume that's where it's posted?

Bill

Congratulations, Drako. Remember, pay it forward.

Bill