Greebe

I too was thinking about this last night. I like the tire hammer design, but was trying to think of another way to operate it with some sort of clutch. Don't know how well the power transmission would be with a tire. Seems like there would be a lot of slippage. Also it seems like you would wear out the tire quickly with this system. I would be curious what the guys think that own these types of hammers.

Hey thanks again for the compliments. I was going to try to do some more work today, but just got home from a friends wedding. After spending all day doing the wedding thing, I think I am going to lounge about.

Do any of you guys have any recommendations for not injuring myself again? I hear that the Hofi method is good for people with injuries to their arms. I thought about looking into that. I want to be able to have many years at the forge.

Thanks
Greebe

Thanks for the comments. I used the knife last night for cutting up some apples and chicken for a BBQ. It cuts as well or better than the nice kitchen knives we have. I'm looking forward to getting to do some more projects soon. I hope the arm will hold out, because I really enjoy smithing.

Hey thanks. I want to try making another knife like that one, but bigger. Maybe go for a skinner or drop point style for something different. I think I will do the handle part that acts as a guard a little different though. I would also like to try making some feathers. I think that would be fun. I just need to ease into my hammer arm though.

I have had a rough time with blacksmithing this past year. I had a tendon in my right arm rupture in September of '09, which leaked fluid into my arm creating a large shooter marble sized bump under the skin. It took most of this past year to heal and I have been holding off doing any blacksmithing from fear of re-injuring this tendon.

I have been blacksmithing here and there since I was a kid, but still consider myself a beginner because I haven't been able to do much of it over the years from moving all over the country all the time. My wife and I now own a house so I have been getting a real set up finally.

Pretty much the only things that I have made at the anvil has been tools and hardware. I have made wood working tools for log cabin building and carving such as chisels, gouges, draw knives, drill bits and so forth. As far as hardware goes, I just have made things for around the house and cabin, like hooks, fireplace pokers, spikes and nails, things like that.

Anyways, I wanted to do some easy first projects to get back into the swing of things and to get my arm used to swinging a hammer again. So I decided to make a leaf and try my hand at making a knife from coil spring.

So far so good. The arm feels fine and the projects turned out OK. This was the first time for me to make either of these projects, and I only had a few hours to work, so I am happy with the way things turned out.

Anyways, enough jibber jabber, here are the photos:




Greebe

Wow. Great work.

Nice. Did you forge it out by hand or use a power hammer or press? If by hand how hard was it to work with?

Thanks
Greebe

Have any of you guys made a pierced eye tomahawk in the style of a trade axe pattern? It seems like most tomahawks that are the trade axe style are of wrapped construction. Just curious if anyone has made a wrapped eye pattern tomahawk by the pierced eye method and if it would even work.

Thanks
Greebe

Cool. I wonder if it would be easier to use firebrick? That way if you have a brick break you can easily replace it. Firebrick might be more costly though.

I just got finished repairing my little forge, and I can say that I am getting tired of refractories. I always seem to have cracking problems over time. I like working with solid fuels but I am getting tired of my forge. I need to just build a new one that is better I guess or go with propane.

Good luck on your forge. I will be looking forward to seeming how it turns out.

Looks nice. Seems like you would want the fire pot to sit lower or flush with the rest of the table though. Or are you going to put fire brick down?

Greebe

Cool. Thanks for the link. They seem kinda expensive at $14 a foot for 1" square though. I guess that only equates to about $6 a hawk though. Not too bad I guess.

Thank
Greebe

I was hoping to find some 1" SQUARE STOCK and pierce and drift the eye. Then hammer out the blade profile. I was thinking of chucking it in a 4 Jaw chuck in the lathe first and turning a pipe bowl.

My supplier didn't have any of 1040,45,60, so that is part of the reason I was hoping to find something else. Anyways I just placed the order for now. Had a large quantity of 4140 bar stock on that order for our flash hiders. I know how it work hardens so didn't want to mess with it.

Where would I find 1045 square stock?

Thanks
Greebe

So I have been out from injury to my hammer arm, but seem to be getting better. So I was wanting to have a go at a pierced eye hawk. I am putting in a large order for my machine shop for various metals and was thinking about getting some steel for making a hawk. What would be good for this purpose that would be easy for forge but hold a nice edge. I would prefer not to have to forge weld in a bit if I could get away with it.

Thanks
Greebe

I went downstairs and brought up the book, "Wiring Simplified" by Richter and Schwan. Here is their chart:

Motor.........120 volts........240 volt
------------------------------------
1/4 hp.........6 amp...........3 amp
1/3 hp.........7 amp...........3 1/2 amp
1/2 hp.........10 amp.........5 amp
3/4 hp.........14 amp.........7 amp
1 hp............16 amp..........9 amp
1 1/2 hp......20 amp..........10 amp
2 hp...........24 amp...........12 amp
3 hp...........34 amp...........17 amp
5 hp...........56 amp...........28 amp

I have a question concerning this chart. Doesn't amperage also vary with efficiency? So could an electric motor produce more power ( in the form of HP) with less amps if the motor is more efficient since amperage is how much the motor is drawing?

When shopping for anything that uses a motor should you base how strong the motor is based off of amp's? For instance I know that 230 is more efficient than 115, but uses half the amperage.

Any electricians feel free to answer as well.

Thanks
Greebe

OK. So it sounds like I would be better off with a good belt grinder such as the KMG and then a smaller bench grinder for sharping my tungsten for TIG on one side and sharping my carbide tools for machining on the other.

I was planing on building a KMG style belt grinder this Sept. when I get moved into my new house.

Any suggestions then for a decent smaller 6" bench grinder to serve the above usage?

Thanks again
Greebe

How bout this one. It looks good. It runs $230 and can run on 230V which is nice. Plus I get a hefty discount on their products as I am a member of a certain association here in WV.

Some specs:
Wheel Dia 8 In, Max RPM 3450, 3/4 HP, Voltage 115/230, 7/3.5 Amps AC, 1 Phase, 60 Hz, Arbor Hole 5/8 In, Face Wheel Dimensions 1 In, Wheels Center-Center 16 1/2 In, Length 21 In, Height 13 In, Dust Collection, Exhaust Port 2 1/2 In, Includes Adjustable, Ratcheting Tool Rests, Adjustable Eye Shields With Hurricane Bolts, Spark Arrestors, 36 And 60 Grit Grinding Wheels, Single Point Dust Collection, 6 Ft Cord

Greebe

Hey guys,

I am in the need for a new bench grinder. I had a Delta 8" single speed that I sold recently. It seemed well built but for heavy use it was very underpowered. It was still fairly new with less than an hours use on it.

I was wanting to upgrade to something that I can grind heavy plate or bar stock with out having to back off every second to let it spool back up. The Delta, I literally had to grind for a second or two and then let it spool back up for a few second. So time at the grinder was twice what it should have been.

Any suggestions? Looking for a 6-10 in wheel size. I typically grind 1/2 plate and up to 3/4 bar stock.

How are the Dayton grinders? We had one at one of our state maintenance shops in Nome but I never used it.

Thanks
Greebe

This was my first project on my little lathe about two years ago. It is an AR-15 firing pin that I turned from O-1.



Greebe

Oh yeah the anvil is working out well. I need to make some hardy tools for it though and get a good solid piece of oak to put it on.

Greebe

Hey thanks for the recommendations. During the summer I was thinking that opening the garage doors would work fine but I was thinking more about winter use. The idea for enclosing seems like it would work but might be a PITA. I suppose I will just put a few CO monitors around as johnptc suggest and go from there.

I was thinking that a forced air cross ventilation system would work fine too. That would be easy enough to fabricate with louvers so that they can be closed off when the forge is not running.

Aaron--

Yeah I'm pretty stoked about the house in the works. It has been hard to find a decent house for a fair price. Homes are a lot more expensive here than we originally thought they would be. The banker said that it should take about 30 days or so to get everything done for move in. It is pretty nice place on 3 city lots. The owners bought the house next to it and tore it down to get the extra space. Plus finally I get my shop and the wife doesn't even care if I take the whole shop and not park the cars inside.

Anyways once we get moved in I will let you know and you can come over and take a look.

Later
Greebe

Yep I actually decided to order a few and them make a pair of them. I have both sides made and just need to punch and rivet them. I ran out of fuel while I was in the process and need to get the forge up and running again.

Thanks
Greebe

So I am in the process of buying a house with a large 2 1/2 car garage and was thinking of using a gas forge. I was going to start with a single burner and then go to a double if I feel the need for more heat, but I was curious what proper ventilation would be for one of these in a closed shop? How do you guys go about this issue?

Thanks,
Greebe

Sorry old thread. Didn't notice till after posting.

Greebe

Good thread. When I was your age I tried the same thing. I found out quickly that mid range was better.

I will also comment on the tendon issue. BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN YOU ARE YOUNG TO NOT SCREW UP YOUR TENDONS!!!

I was a crazy rock climber and liked to show off. I would do stupid things like one finger pull ups and other things that were very harmful to my body. Didn't seem to matter then but now I can tell you it does. I am only 29, but man my tendinitis really sucks at times.

For instance I woke up last night from horrible pain to my right elbow. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night with a dislocated shoulder. Again from being young and reckless. BE CAREFUL MAN.

Sorry to give you the OLD MAN grillin' but I wish that someone would have done the same for me when I was your age.

Take care,
Greebe

OK, I will try the O-1. I have machined it in a metal lathe but haven't tried forging it yet. How well does it forge and are there any considerations to take into account when doing so? Forge at yellow to white range?

Thanks
Greebe