elkdoc

With a blower like yours you could rig up a blast port that blows across the opening where you're sticking your work in the fire. Kind of like how some folks direct the heat away from the port in a gas forge.

Good boy, Archie! There's nothing wrong with gloves, per se, but I can't stand them. More than anything I wanted to give you a hard time. Have a great Christmas, buddy! Happy pounding!

Purty picture there, Archie! 8) What're all those gloves for? :wink: :lol:

Here's another gem that was pointed out to me recently: Don't use a "pushing" motion on the hammer, as in pushing with each blow from the elbow. It'll blow your elbow and shoulder out. Learn to use gravity and to control the motion and full arc of the hammer's motion. Less wear on the joints.

"Heat is your friend" There is no "pile of shame" - Every screwed up piece is a learning opportunity.

Very, very nice work! I especially like the wall candelabras/sconces. 8)

Independent garages are the best. Have you checked with the 18-wheeler repair places? I've never been in one that didn't have worn out kingpins, axles, leaf springs piled up someplace to haul off.

No biggie. We've all been there. Accumulating tools is sometimes frustrating, but you've gotta keep above the law.

Poor idea, Archie. :shock: I find it hard to believe that you can't find a piece of track or some other hunk of steel that is even better suited to your purposes for free or for less than $10 at the local scrapyard.

Strine brings up a good point. For folks that have given me pieces of equipment or even materials, I usually give them something simple I've forged. If they gave me materials, I usually forge some kind of gift from a bit of the materials they gave. The gesture is always appreciated.

For straightening or flattening on the short axis, nothing beats a good wooden mallet. They'll bend and apply pressure withouth marking the blade.

Congrats on the score! Sounds like just the thing to plumb up to a coal forge and a gas forge simultaneously, if you've got 'em. Mr. Woolridge's comment on the slide gate assembly is spot on. I set one up on my forge and it's the only way to go. I forged a leaf on the end of a long piece of 1/4 round, and it makes a nice handle to slide the gate with while it is mounted under my forge.

looks as though we're on our way to a "chile pepper bob". Very cool!

:shock: :lol:

Thanks folks! Strine, that was perhaps the most interesting reading I've done in awhile. Alot of geophysical concepts that I was aware of, but never seen together and from a survey accuracy standpoint. My plan remains this: Next time the forge fire is hot, I'm going to punch a hole near the top through the side. Then, I plan to mark the center of the top and drill it on my press and in a vise. I plan to clean up the taper on my belt grinder, as close to center as possible. Then, I guess I'll hang the bob from a string and let it spin, and mark the sides with a felt marker where I need to remove steel to keep the point centered as it spins. In my mind, this should make it as centered as possible. Although it most definately won't be precise enough for Strine to survey and align the sides of the Sears Tower ( :wink: ) it should be functional for a homebuilder. I'm considering using this one as a prototype to keep around the shop and then welding up a billet of junk steel damascus and forging another out of it for a gift. If not for Christmas, then maybe for his birthday in January. That'd be pretty swanky! A damascus plumb-bob! It'll be the jewel of his tool belt and he the envy of the worksite. :lol:

You're in my kneemail, too.

The consensus seems to be that anything of the stainless variety stinks, but it is popular with production knife co's because it doesn't "tarnish". 52100 seems to be the steel of the gods lately in the custom knife world, from what I'm reading and hearing.

No lathe here... I actually just forged the end of a railroad spike into a round point, and then put a twist in the spike. I cut off the end, and I'm annealing the whole thing tonight. I'll either punch or drill a hole through the side, and then drill a hole from the top. Then I guess I'll use my trusty bader grinder to grind the point smooth. It'll be interesting to see how it turns out.

Hey folks... I'm wanting to forge a plumb bob for my brother (a carpenter) for Christmas. I'm assuming that it'll be no big deal. Forging and filing to a precise and centered point shouldn't be that difficult. However, are there any thoughts on how to forge a place to attach the string? I'm wondering if I could just forge a little "rat tail along one side of the top and scroll it over making an upside down "U" shape. I've also thought of drilling a hole down through the center of the top, and then drilling a large diameter hole through the side to pass through the end of the original hole, making a "T" shaped hole. This way, the string could be passed through the top and out one side, knotted, and then allowed to pull back through to the center, with the knokt holding the plumb bob on the string. Your thoughts?

May the LORD's hand continue to remain on you and your family...

Wow. Miss a few days for work and look what happens. Glad to hear the her prognosis is looking better all the time. I know she's got a tough couple of weeks ahead and will keep her in my prayers.

Well, I just got a call that the boy is home and the family is going to be doing some couseling together. Thanks for remembering them in your prayers.

Well, my friend married their mom and got 3 kids with the package. He immediately legally adopted them, and has been raising them like they're his own ever since. He loves them to death, and they all get along pretty well. I suspect that the son who ran away is still dealing with the abandonment of his real father. I hate to speculate, though. I just found out he's in contact with his youth pastor and has called his mom to tell the family that he's OK. Doesn't seem to be considering a return home yet, though. :(

Folks, a good friend of mine told me this morning that his son has run away from home. He's a great kid, but has had a terrible home life before my friend adopted him and his siblings, and I suspect that he's still dealing with that internally.

Not too shabby, mister! Looks like a great utility blade. Maybe I'll get in on the next KITH...