LoafersGlory

I've been practicing making smaller things like spoons for a while now but this fire poker has been my largest project so far. Definitely got a few blisters!

Found an old 4lb hammer head in the bottom of a bucket at an antique shop. The owner gave it to me for a couple bucks. Anyone know anything about the quality of Rugol hammers? it was made in Japan.

Ok, thanks Steve!

I'm sorry if this has been asked in this thread already and I missed it, but is hardening a touchmark a thing? I'm guessing that using it to stamp hot metal will quickly normalize it but if it helps with the longevity of the stamp is it worth it?

Started working on my first touchmark! I really should have annealed before starting because my needle files will barely scratch this stuff. 

Very new blacksmith here, but I managed to make a little vertical hook rack over the weekend for a late Christmas gift to a friend and I thought it turned out well : )

I've actually been doing research since I posted that and I found this link that gives me some clues 

https://www.911metallurgist.com/blog/grinding-balls

They recommend that grinding rods consist of :

Carbon .85- 1.00%
Manganese .60 – .90
Sulphur .05 Max.
Phosphorous .04 Max.
Silicon .10 Max.

closest composition I can find on the heat treatment app is 1090

edit: thanks Frosty! I'll do that.

Hello everyone, fledgling blacksmith here. I'm lucky enough to live by both a few feldspar processing plants and a scrapyard that still let's people in to salvage. Once in a while they get these long tapered oval shaped rods anywhere from a couple feet to maybe 12-15 feet in length. The longer ones are probably 2.5 to 3.5 inches thick in the middle and taper to points. Someone told me they thought they were rods they use to crush feldspar in big tumbling mills. It seems pretty hard to a file and their use seems to say they should be made of pretty tough stuff. Anyone here encountered rods like these or care to take a guess as to what kind of steel they are?