Shainarue

This is more in like with what I was wanting. Not that anyone will ever see it, lol

I've been in a fairly low funk lately and haven't even wanted to forge since Friday. Last night I decided to whip out something simple that would help clean up the spray bottles we currently have grouped in a corner of the kitchen. I've been wanting to try that reverse twist pattern in flat bar and this was the perfect project for a fun twist. Well, a few critiques of my own work: 1. It's not even. I don't know how that happened. I measured, I marked, I VERIFIED (but obviously missed it, lol). One end has a shorter leg than the other, creating a slanted opening. 2. I think it would look better with the twists closer together. Or maybe even twisted 3/4 rather than 1/2. I'll play with that. 3. I measured the required length but it didn't occur to me to measure the depth required for dropping the spray bottle handles in there! So, it doesn't really work for its intended purpose. I'm going to mount it in the basement bathroom to replace the cheap plastic towel rod that's currently in there.

Haha, I should have remembered those!

Congratulations on the commission! Have you done a railing before?

I like that candlestick.

Good enough for me, lol I did try a quick search using site: iforgeiron.com and then "rigidizer" and "dilute" but kept coming across posts just instructing to use rigidizer, not commenting on whether diluting was good/bad/other. So I appreciate your working memory

One follow up question. "Wet the insulation with water" as in mist it with a spray bottle or douse it with a sink sprayer? I mean, I know it doesn't need to be dripping wet, lol. But wet all the way through or just the surface?

Just about every time I post, I try to imagine what Frosty would have had to say. Thanks for the advice, I'll try that tonight.

I have some INS-TUFF ceramic fiber rigidizer. The instructions do not specify to dilute but the two online kits I've gotten in the past that came with an unbranded rigidizer instructed to dilute 50/50 with water. Does anyone know if diluting affects the hardening?

John, that's awesome. Your son is fortunate to have a father who can make that for him! David, nice work. I haven't seen the spiral iron before but I'm guessing it's for heating things like a slice of bread? We had our Free State Blacksmiths Club meeting today and part 2 of the gas forge building workshop. He covered insulation, refractory options, and burner placement then set us loose to get to work. I didn't know I needed to bring a sleeve for the burner to attach to the forge so I had to finish mine at home. I didn't have any flux core wire so I had to use the stick welder, which I'm obviously still pretty bad at, lol. I guess I could have practiced some patience and waited to weld those on until I replaced the flux core but ... well, I'm not patient Hoping to get the rest of the accessories (plug handles, latches, side supports for the top portion, rail for the bricks when ends are open, and the extendable work rest) finished tomorrow. Then add the insulation and apply the 1st coat of Greenpatch 421.

Looking forward to the progress, John! Tonight I stripped the rust and paint from the vessel which will become a new 2 burner dual function forge. Then I painted it with heat resistant stove paint. Inside, I took nice pictures of the finished paperclips.

You have been smiled upon indeed! That is a heck of a score! Regarding the table - can you take a picture showing the full table? I'm thinking it'd be easier to just use the frame to make your own firepot but seeing the full table might get better advice from others in here.

I feel you gewoon. I only get 2 hours each night and if I'm lucky, up to 8 hours on Sat/Sun but that's assuming we don't have any other plans. It seems it's never long enough, lol Billy, I like that. It's simple and clean. Last night I tried my hand at brazing. I didn't want to clean the spatter of flux core and I don't have mig. I also thought my friend would probably appreciate the little splashes of "gold" throughout. I practiced on some scrap of similar sizes before taking a run at the actual trellis. Could be better - for sure - but it's definitely holding! Next up is to use the torch to spot heat the stems and wrap them along the structure, give everything a good cleaning with degreaser, then Ospho & wax. I would love to have this done by Saturday but of course, this is the week that I have appointments after work 3 of the 5 days, lol. So probably won't. The only full size pic I have - complete with a messy shop in the background, lol

Today I welded the paperclips to 2x2 plate bases. I cut some 4x1 board into square blocks, ran them through the router to fancy them up, torched them and coated with blo. Tomorrow I will paint the plates and affix them to the blocks. I finished the boot scraper. I decided to heat paint and clear coat. I gave the Sasquatch a good brass brushing.

Nice work on the hinges Billy! Irondragon, that's a nifty use of materials for your door handle. Rust-Away sounds like Ospho? If you've used Ospho, can you speak to how it compares? I have made considerable progress on the boot scraper. I'm pretty happy with the rivets and tenons. All that remains is to attach the little sasquatch, clean, and apply a finish. I also remembered to grab a pic of the paperclips with their various finishes.