Frosty

Wow, I get done with some chores and check to find a perfect example of a new guy trying to be helpful but not really knowing enough to actually be a lot of help. Charcoal briquettes aren't terribly good forge fuel, lots of guys will tell you they're worthless. However they CAN be made to work, even weld but they're more hassle than they're really worth. If possible use "lump" charcoal this can be bought in the grocery store and is light little chunks. I can't recall a brand name at the moment, maybe before I finish. What makes heat in a fire isn't the fuel, it's the air. To get good forging heat, you can indeed use the coals in a camp fire, that'll be in the 1600f range +/-. If however, you're working genuine wrought iron you need to get it into the 2,300f+ range or mid yellow heat. For that the fire needs an air blast and some form of containment to prevent the fire from just spreading all over the place or being blown out of the hearth. The forge is just that a fire place or hearth, it can be simply a hole or trench in mineral soil, organic soils can burn so be very careful it's mineral soil. Or, you can use an old hibachi or bbq. A cast iron hibachi is a better bet being cast iron they have a much longer life than a sheet metal bbq. An old BBQ on the other hand has a lot more room so lining it with a little rammed clay and maintenance it'll last till you're tired of using it. Something to hold the coals themselves is a good thing, I favor fire brick arranged around an air grate though fire brick arranged in front of a side blast works a treat too. Do some reading in the solid fuel forge section of Iforgeiron and you'll see everything from antique rivet forges using a "duck's nest" arrangement to "proper" fire pots to fire pots made from brake drums and disk rotors. A fire pot or brick over a duck's nest is to contain and control the heart of the fire. You air source can be anything from a paper bag bellows and a little pipe up to an expensive brand spanking new electric or crank blower, let's not forget all manner of bellows old, new, commercial home made. Probably one of the best entry level air sources is a garage sale blow drier and a little 2" pipe to get it away from the fire, say 18"-24" is more than far enough away. Exhaust pipe works a treat and is light weight. however twisting together some black iron plumbing pipe works a treat and you don't have to weld anything. For a bottom blast collect a 6" long x 2" dia. nipple(that's the last time I say that, it's ALL 2" dia.) a floor flange, a 2"x2"x2" T another 6" nipple and a longer nipple, say 8" or maybe 12" nipple. The long nipple is the horizontal and forms the base or leg of a "T" the short nippes screw into the "arms" of the T fitting. got it so far? Now, screw the floor flange to one "arm", this will bolt or screw to the bottom of your fire pot. The other "arm" is aimed straight down and this is your ash dump. An exhaust stack flap cap makes a darned near perfect dump door. The long leg of the "T" is sticking out horizontally almost to the edge of your forge table, duct tape or wire a couple pieces of rod, sticks or coat hanger to it so the blow drier can lay aimed at the end of the pipe. Tape or wire the blow drier to your mount and plug it in turn it on and you're making a fire you can melt iron in if you're not paying attention. Easy peasy. Now, pull up a comfy chair, pack a lunch and something to drink and start reading through the sections on the IFI home page. You too Mr. Cochran, it's a good thing to want to help but if you don't know what's up, CAN you actually be helping? Hmmmmm? Think about it. <wink> Frosty The lucky.

Goodness Charles I know you don't like to work harder than you have to but buying a basket case post vise? Is it really that much easier to load? Maybe fits in the trunk of the wife's car so she doesn't notice more rusty iron coming home? The screw looks pretty good from here, if the box thread is good too I'm thinking it's a home run. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard Thomas, glad to have you. If you'll put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many IFI folk live within visiting distance. A hair drier won't get hot enough to melt for a couple reasons. First, put it a little ways away on a short length of pipe, 18"-24" is plenty. Second it has cool air blowing through it so unless burning coals fall into it it'll stay cool. A box bellows is really easy to make from a cardboard box and duck tape. There are a lot of options from home made from bicycle parts, setting up in a prevailing wind with a funnel to collect wind. (I've done the last and it worked a treat but a prevailing wind is hard to find) A sack and a piece of pipe makes a fine bellows. Under $100.00 shouldn't be a problem but will take patience. Just don't get your heart set on one type, being adaptable is a prime ability in this craft. Frosty The Lucky.

Efficiency is ore a matter of friction. A swing arm only has a limited area of friction where a guided inline has the swing arms and the guides so loses a LOT more energy to friction. In my opinion the main benefit of inline hammers is being able to use top and bottom dies at the same time. Frosty The Lucky.

Another keeper Rockstar. The pig in the dog show pic reminds me of one of Deb's favorite stories about winning 3rd. place in a dog show with a pygmy goat kid. Frosty The Lucky.

I have a cast steel Soderfors anvil that is loud enough to do damage if it's on a wood stand. I built it a steel stand very much like yours without anything between it and the stand. It quietened it down significantly. Anvils ring because the shock wave can rebound between the air transition at the face and foot. If it's sitting something that doesn't inhibit resonance it will ring like a bell. However being in contact with something with a different resonant frequency the two become self damping. My anvil now clanks rather than make y ears ring through plugs or muffs. Give removing the rubber from your stand a try and see how it works. Can't cost a thing. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. Have you checked the regional organizations near the bottom of the IFI opening page? It'll show you what clubs are closest to you so you can hook up with experienced smiths. You'll learn more in an afternoon with an experienced smith than many times as long on your own, they'll also be able to help you find tools, material, etc. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. If you put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many of the IFI gang live within visiting distance. Near the bottom of the IFI opening page you will find the regional association pages/links so you can find one closest to you and hook up with a club. There you will also find different subjects for your reading pleasure. Sure you'll need a comfy chair, lunch and something to drink to keep your strength up for all the days worth of reading available but you'll probably find every question you have has already been answered any number of times. It'll also gain you a basic vocabulary and knowledge so you can ask good questions and understand the answers . . . Well, hopefully, sometimes we don't understand our answers even if we wrote them. <grin> Frosty The Lucky.

Buy pigment. The stuff used to be pretty common even in auto parts stores. The same stuff used for polyester resin works for epoxy though I'd experiment before committing to something important. Try an auto paint or boat supply, surfboard suppliers are probably not so common in your neighborhood. Frosty The Lucky.

Ugly tongs, where? Those sure look better than my first few pairs and I'm happy to say I don't need to make tongs very often, not at all. Frosty The Lucky.

Nice looking gates Joel. Well done. Frosty The Lucky.

Bondo: If you really must have a like new anvil there is only one way. Buy a new anvil and put it in a display case. What you're wanting to do to that lady WILL shorten her useful life just for what amounts to looks. If you believe a flat face is important then you need to develop your skills and knowledge before you start modifying the tools and equipment or you'll be damaging them instead of "repairing" them. Perhaps an analogy will help. Suppose I bought a hopped up 1969 Camaro with a 450hp 327cid engine but was asking the guys on a hot car forum how to get it to idle smoothly. I'm not taking a shot at you, it's common for people to want to start a new craft with good, even perfect tools. Unfortunately as new comers none of us knew what was good let alone perfect. Nobody was born knowing this stuff, we've all been there. Frosty The Lucky.

No wonder you're mad Max, being entirely self taught is only a good thing in urban myth. Have you looked into joining NWBA? They're a heck of a bunch of guys and you'll learn more in an hour with an experienced smith than days, maybe forever on your own. I know, I'm largely self taught but didn't really start learning till I started working with the experienced. Seriously, drop by my shop on a warmish day and I'll show you how t forge weld in about 15 minutes. It's a first session lesson I teach as a confidence builder. I'd been trying to teach myself to weld for I don't know how many years till I ran into a little book reading then I got one. I was so excited I literally beat the joint to wire but it stuck. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. Appears to be a cast anvil, the body anyway. Have you done a rebound test on it? Have you joined the local organization? Nothing beats being able to get together with other blacksmiths to further your skills. Frosty The Lucky.

It has to have been a glitch Dave, I'm sure they're reinstate it if they can. Your Dad and family are still on the list here. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. Other than occasionally finding something good I buy my steel at the supply yard. Frosty The Lucky.

If you put your general location in the header you'll find out there are a LOT of folk here within visiting distance. The CBA is a great organization, meet up with the guys, you'll learn more in an hour with an experienced smith than you will in days on your own. I grew up in Sylmar, just FYI. Frosty The Lucky.

Nice use for broken horse shoes, I'll bet they'd sell pretty well too. I think something a little nicer for the hinge pin would improve the overall knocker. How's it sound? Frosty The Lucky.

Don't worry about paint, lots of anvils came painted from the manufacturer. Besides it's protecting it. It's hard to see but is part of the face behind the hardy hole broken or missing? It could be the picture itself, the angle from behind the heal looks okay. I can only enlarge them so far before res goes to pot. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. If you'll put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many of the IFI gang live within visiting distance. A few better pics might reveal some horrible problem but otherwise it looks to be in pretty decent condition. For the money, delivered, stand and hammer head I'd say you got a SWEET deal, add to that it's a Fisher. Fishers are top shelf anvils and better yet they're about as quiet as an anvil gets. Good for your ears, good for the wife's and good for the neighbors. Keeping close by ears happy is worth a lot. Good score. Frosty The Lucky.

I hear you Bryan, We'll get together when we can. I really like that rhino anvil, comes with built in bending fork. NO, don't tell me where the prichel hole is! Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard Devin, glad to have you. If you put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many of the IFI gang live within visiting distance. No such thing as the "best" coal forge. Sure, one might be perfect for heating left handed swivel widgets but worthless for heating swinging gate clappers. Pull up a comfy chair, pack a lunch, something to drink and get ready for many days worth of reading. The IFI front page scrolls down for I don't know how many pages of sections. Everything from shop pest control to home built induction forges and everything in between. I recommend you do a little reading about general blacksmithing to get an idea of what your interests might be or become. (Heck, I don't know where my interests will take me) You'll find a LOT of information coupled with people's experience, problems, solutions, etc. in any section your choose to read. I'm saying get an idea of what's what before you try designing a "perfect" tool, no such thing. We've all done it, it's a new to any craft thing to want the perfect tools so don't sweat it and more important don't feel silly. We've all been there. One thing I tell folk who want me to show them the craft is. "The tools are just highly refined dirt, they don't do anything. It's the clever monkeys with great big brains and thumbs that do all the work." A couple of the truly satisfying aspects of this craft are getting to use tools you make yourself and as your skills grow you find less and less need for "special" tools to make what you want. It's a life long learning curve, enjoy the ride. Frosty The Lucky.

Just wait till you try copper silver. Don't try brass silver unless you WANT to make a silver solder puddle. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. One of the authors we recommend to newcomers to the craft was a sculptor who traveled the world but didn't or couldn't pack his tools with. He became expert at building field expedient smithies and tools from whatever was at hand. Alexander Wygers, "The Complete Modern Blacksmith" is a classic how to for putting together a smithy on a budget. One last thing, we LOVE pics, pics of almost any darned thing so long as it's family friendly. We mostly look forward to seeing your: shop, tools, equipment, work, etc. but the house, scenery, pets, etc. are good too. Frosty The Lucky.