Dutchmancreek

Charcoal "briquets" are made of crushed charcoal, starch, petroleum distillates, sawdust, coal dust, and many other things. They aren't really suitable for forging, and a lot of people don't think much of them for BBQ either. "Natural/lump" charcoal is what you want (for forging and cooking). The ceramic briquets are made for the bottom of gas grills to absorb and radiate heat...they don't burn. Steve

My anvil horn is on the left (I'm right handed) and it seems more comfortable to me that way. I started with the horn to the left because (as Simmonds observed) the old anvil I started with had damage on the far side. After I moved up in anvils I put the horn to the left (tradition?) although I work all around the anvil. I think that you should work from whatever side you feel best with. Don't let the guys give you any guff about having your anvil "backwards". Steve

Not too long ago my beard was reaching the "ZZ Top" range but Ive trimmed it down to a reasonable length now. I gave up on the pony tail look because the bald spot on top. Come to think of it, I kind of look like the avatar...even including the jug. Steve

Electricity just makes it happen a lot faster...and the light makes it easier to do first aid.

My problem with the vise jaws is that I sometimes forget that they get hot and I rest my hand on them. It's the handle that gets me. I also generally leave my hammer on top of the anvil and on occasion have knocked it off when doing something else....glad I wear safety toed shoes. I also keep extra pairs of safety glasses in a cabinet and make anyone in the shop when I'm working wear them. By trhe way, they don't always work...I was doing a bit of chainsaw wood carving (a six foot tall tiki/indian for down by the gate) and I was wearing safety glasses with side shields anda full face shield. I still ended up in the emergency room with a wood chip in my eye Steve

Actually, she cleans out her closet every six months and gets rid of things she doesn't wear so I got nothing to complain about there. She's just curious about the tongs and about all the various hammers, tooling, etc I keep piling up. She even was excited when I came across a super deal on a 300# Hay Budden, even though I already had two anvils. I think the fact that I keep out of the way in the shop and don't bother her in her art room helps a lot. Retirement means having the husband around twice as much. I've seen tongs that would qualify as legitimate folk art regardless of their utility and one of these days I'm going to make some "fancy" ones just for wall hangers (file work, inlays, etc). I got bored last winter and polished all the hammers that hang on the anvil stand so I guess I'm on the way. Steve

Ted, My wife doesn't mind...she just thinks it's curious. She says it's better than motorcycles or redheads at my age. Steve

I read on the "Show me your anvil" thread about putting a tennis ball on the end of the anvil horn. That's a good idea but I never seem to hit the horn even though I move between the forge and anvil to get to my swedge block. The problem I have is leaving the vise handle or arbor press handle sticking out...I'll run into it every time. In my previous life as an engineer, I insisted that all the inspectors and lab guys keep those handles in a verticle position when they were not being used. The handles were also painted flourescent orange for visibility. I need to paint mine here, but it just wouldn't seem to fit in the smithy.......I'll probably change my mind when (not if) I run into a handle again. Steve

My wife stopped by my shop this morning on her way to the goat barn and asked me what I was doing. I said I was making tongs. She said I was doing that yesterday morning too (I work in the mornings when it's cool) and didn't I have enough tongs already. I told her she didn't realize that you never have too many, and that making tongs between other projects was good practice. I made four pairs this weekend, and unless something comes up I might start on a pair of scrolling tongs tomorow morning. For some reason I just enjoy forging tongs. Steve

Salem, Indiana is a little too far for me......too many hours of driving. Steve

Julian....where in Southern Illinois are you? My shop and farm is located down between Goreville and Vienna. Is there some sort of hammer-in this weekend? If so, let me know and give directions and I'll try to attend. I'd like to meet other smiths around here. I'm the southern most member of the Illinois Valley Blacksmith Association and most of the guys I know are way north. Steve

Actually, it depends on the size you need. For larger work I made a pair using the standard "tong method" as shown earlier in this thread (all tongs are similar, just different jaws), but I don't use them much. The pair that I use the most are roung nosed that I modified from a medium large set of needle nose pliers. They're just right for finishing small curls. Larger stuff works well with one of several bending forks. Steve

"Anvils in America" has a chart on dates/serial numbers of Hay-Buddens. If you have the serial no. you can get pretty close to the date. I don't have a copy, I borrowed one from the Illinois Valley Blacksmith Assoc. to date my anvils. Steve

Welcome back Nice anvils...you might have to slap a magnet under the heel of the Hay Budden to hold the ring down a bit. Mine's like a bell with out a magnet. You just showed that the anvils are out there...you just have to be determined. Good Luck Steve

When you buy one of those Harbor Freight hammers remove the black paint and look for any cracks. I used one once and it broke in half. Here in the midwest, Menards sells a line of engineers and cross peen hammers that I have modified with pretty good success. Steve

When I make campfire cook sets and tripods for outdoor use, I normally paint them with black hi-temp BBQ paint. I know it's not traditional but they generally are left out in the weather. The wax based finish I apply to other iron items wouldn't stand up to the exterior use. Speaking of non-traditional, I made a fireplace set for a lady who asked for them to be finished in dark hunter green. They actually looked pretty good with her decor, and I doubt if she ever really used them much. Steve

Not a good pic, but here is my main anvil. It's a 300# Hay Budden. The second pic has my Peter Wright (131#) sitting on top. The forge in the background of the second pic has been replaced by the one you see in the other pic.

They've got fans who won't put up with criticism of the show. I went on the Mythbusters website to comment on their "tracer ammunition" starting fires episode. They had a lot of incorrect information that their "firearms expert" didn't correct, unless it was purposely designed to fail.(I spent 25 years in ammunition development and manufacturing and thought I would give them the correct info.) The other people on the website jumped all over me for daring to correct their heros. I've never seen such rude responses on a forum. Steve

Don't give up on the anvil thing....... - Go to auctions. Sometimes you can get a great deal and sometimes the prices can astound you. I went to an auction way out in the country when it was cold and muddy and the dealers weren't around and got a Peter Wright 131# for $75. Other times I've seen astronomical bids from a lot of people, mostly antique dealers. - Look around wherever you go. I found a 300# Hay Budden painted up and used for decoration outside a welding shop. The guy had traded for it and thought it looked good. When I asked he said I could have it for $150 if I had cash right then. Needless to say I nearly broke my arm getting to my wallet. - Make do... I used a piece of RR track, and then a large piece of scrap yard steel for a long time until I found a standard anvil. Steve

I see a lot of these being made but remember that there is not really enough carbon in RR spikes to make a good knife. They make good letter openers and conversation pieces and are good ways to practice and improve your forging skills. I made a small spike tomahawk out of one just for practice once and it turned out decent. Steve

Looks good, I have a dozen or so farriers rasps and I need to give it a try. In the past I just used mild steel for the body with a piece of high carbon welded in for a cutting edge. I like the pattern that the rasp gives, but always worried about whether to grind the teeth or not. I'll try it your way with out grinding. Steve

I built my shop attached to my other work shop, on a poured concrete pad. It has a metal, insulated roof and metal siding. Windows on two sides and wide doors on opposite walls for ventilation.

My hardy hole on my big anvil is 1 1/4" so it's a lot harder to make tools for it. I have to make them to fit the small anvil or make them small and put sleeves on them. Steve

I use both borax and EZ Weld for different things. The EZ`Weld has filings that keep the joint from slipping but can leave a rough surface after the weld. Generally, I think plain 20 Mule Team Borax does as well as anything.

I bought one of those Harbour Freight cross piens on a whim. Within less than an hour it broke right in half (the head). If you use these, remove the black paint and look for signs of cracks before you use them. There are much better hammers out there to modify. In the midwest, Menards has a line of inexpensive engineer hammers that can be changed into different configurations. Steve