Frosty

I think you're over thinking the job, get them close and tweaking them to a proof form.Simple curves will close up or open up pretty easily once they're close to what you want cold and a little final tweaking cold will work harden them a bit making firmer table legs so the table will be more solid. A good camp fire will make all the heat you need and you can use bending forks and a being wrench or a pair of bending wrenches and match them up to a soapstone pattern on a bench. You can cut an inside form from a plank and use it wet. It'll steam and smoke, just protect yourself from the steam and it'll work a treat. Frosty The Lucky.

That's how my shop is set up, I have gozintas in the floor for amongst other things so I can anchor jumpy things down. My 50lb. Little Giant would go a walking if she weren't plugged into a gozinta. The good lord gave us great big brains and thumbs so we could invent things like pallet jacks and engine hoists, I wouldn't want to get on the big guy's bad side by not using both my brain and thumbs. Frosty The Lucky.

What a moto for a micro brewery, "You'll need a crane to open one of our beers!" Frosty The Lucky.

That's how I did it and it worked for you too. <grin> Frosty The Lucky.

How about a pic of the other side of the second ring? A glass top clock table! Cool beans is right. You can glue a line of felt on the contact area between the glass and the iron. A few bronze bolt heads and a steam punk'ed counter top espresso maker and you have a PERFECT coffee table. Hang a couple large brass bells on the clock and it'll let you know when coffee break / tea time is. Don't forget glass insulators and brass conduit/fittings for the electrical. Frosty The Lucky.

Now you bring up Bees wax attracting bees, Arkie, I recall it being discussed before. That's a good tidbit of info to know. when I forge flowers I'll use bees wax and be able to pitch them being real enough to fool bees. Is that a marketing line or what? <grin> Frosty The Lucky.

I know, you have a pretty impressive inventory everywhere you go and proven product lines. I just got to thinking about kennels that didn't look like a shopping cart. I know I'm not going to start marketing products, regardless I can't help thinking about . . . things. <grin> Frosty The Lucky.

Normally I believe the general consensus would be forging an axe blade from O2 to be too advanced for a beginner. However being a tool and die maker you should be conversant with tool steels and have access to professional heat treatment. Bearing that in mind an O2 axe might be a great place to start. Just remember to look up O2's forging specs on the data sheet before you start. Frosty The Lucky.

Yeah, it's cast not forged. There's still a remanent of the flashing where the halves of the flask joined and there are no handling holes for forging. Not that you couldn't forge an anvil without the holes in the waist I just don't know of an example. I'm a huge fan of Soderfors anvils, (not a shock to the regulars here) they're hard and tough as a politician's heart. Some edge chipping is common, they're very hard so mis-struck blows on the edges can chip them. If they're a problem for you dressing (radiusing) them with a grinder is a good solution if they're not too deep and those look okay for "dressing". Put that beautiful old lady to work, she'll soon be queen of your fleet. Best anvils I've ever used. 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. We aren't going to remember you mentioning it in a post, having it as part of the header gives folk instant data. Sure it's a little bit of info but it's a good one. For instance Jason probably has most if not all the Fisher patterns but without knowing where you are at a glance he might have just passed on by. It really helps to know where the question is coming from, if a guy in Cambodia asked it's not too likely folk in the USA, UK, AU, etc. could be of much help. Hmmmm? Frosty The Lucky.

I didn't think I remembered it saying much about ferrous patination. Good to now some of my memory is still working eh? I just don't recall reading much about patination of ferrous alloys, even stainless is pretty limited to the colors it'll turn or take. Chris Ray was experimenting with putting cooking oil and or sugar in his quench tubs looking for a durable finish. As I recall the sugar water made the toughest but he passed away a good 17 years ago and we haven't talked about long term results. <sigh> His inspiration for the experiments were his mother and wife's cookie sheets and how impossible it was to get them to bare metal. Frosty The Lucky.

Gendry: Do I have to keep bugging you about your general location? Hmmmm? <wink> don't sweat it, I wont, it's not like a forum rule or anything it just really helps everybody involved. Folk close to you may have an extra anvil they'll let you use till you find a better one. Maybe invite you to their shop for some hands on practice. Seriously, one day with an experienced smith is better than a week or even month teaching yourself. I know, I'm self taught ad still have bad habits I taught myself to unlearn. Having a group of folk with the same interests to call, visit or just hang with is a valuable thing, the more eyes and ears looking for you the better. Sometimes it's as simple as needing help lifting a heavy thing and not needing to explain what and why of the thing. Learning bladesmithing doesn't require you make dozens of "blades" it requires you to learn BLACKsmithing. There isn't anything to forging a blade blank that isn't blacksmithing basics. There are some things to NOT do where blades are the specific task but those are specialties and forge basics is what allows the special techniques to be details instead of major problems to solve. I'm not a bladesmith guy but can tell you practicing on mild steel is not a minor difference compared to high carbon steel so practicing blades in mild is more of a bad habit maker. Frosty The Lucky.

Nothing like a smile to lift a person's mood. Well done Yves, he's going to love that one. Has me thinking about adjusting the piece a little to make a door knocker. Maybe dance a jig and rap on a strike plate with walking stick, knuckles, sword, axe or . . .? I really like it Yves, it's got my imagination rolling along nicely, thank you. Frosty The Lucky.

Okay guys, I apologize for engaging in this subject in the first place, my bad. I'm afraid I was just so surprised someone would E-mail Vaughn because s/he doesn't like the color they paint their hammers I just started typing. I mean REALLY. What kind of priority is that? Vaughn has been painting their tools blue for how much more than a hundred years? Every tool company I know of paints their tools if they're not chromed. All you guys who value how your tools look more than how they work that's just fine. Not saying anybody needs my permission, approval or anything, they are YOUR tools do with them as you wish. If you apply the same value system to your firearms . . . well, I'll never have to trust you at my back, just try not to hurt anybody else. Please. Again, I apologize for engaging in this thread and especially my initial reply. When you get your tools just perfect, please post a picture of them in their frame. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard George, glad to have you. There are sections of archived threads and posts organized by subject here on IFI. Most any topic is covered to one degree or another so almost anything you may want to ask has probably been answered. Reading will also help you with terminology and give you a handle on things so you can ask good questions ad understand the answers, all of them. <grin> Blacksmiths tend to have more answers than there are blacksmiths for every question. Pack a lunch, something to drink and pull up a comfy chair, there's a LOT to read some by today's greats of blacksmithing. Frosty The Lucky.

Darn that looks good Dave! Is the drifted hole in the crane's body a bottle opener by chance? Frosty The Lucky.

Replacing some of our wire kennels was my first thought too, then about the time I was going to hit send their marketability hit me. We both have girls involved in dog training and it just seemed a natural. They'd need to knock down flat for storage and transport. They need an end door and usually a side or top door is good too. Deb's been taming feral kittens and THAT makes me think a small hatch to get to feed/water bowls without taking a chance of letting a critter out or having one carve trenches up my arm would be really good. Frosty The Lucky.

Improvisational prototypes is what I call those whatchacallits. I tend to keep stuff till it's a stain, even the chips under the bandsaw are useful, sprinkled on the rose beds or peach trees and they'll really richen up. Seriously, when the peach trees at the new house were pale and wimpy flavored my Grandmother drove an uncoated nail into each trunk and within a week they were almost red and the best tasting peaches on the block. Frosty The Lucky.

That's a pretty superficial criterion for judging a tool. I find it hard to believe you'd actually whine about factory paint on a new tool on a public forum. Don't like the color? Buy paint or sand it off and let it rust. If something like this is important to you, I don't think blacksmithing is for you. The steel doesn't care, the fire doesn't care, NO THING about the craft gives an itsy bitsy bit of a diddly doo what you feel. It's up to YOU to learn the tools, materials and craft. The little stuff is a waste of time. The iron doesn't care though waste all you want, it'll just keep on returning to dirt. Frosty The Lucky.

These are good points to consider SJ but can be dealt with up front. A couple things may make water and spalling non-issues: First if you're using river clay, mix it with sand in a ratio of 1pt. clay to 2pt. sand and if it doesn't clump tightly when rammed add 1/2pt. Portland cement. Don't automatically add the cement the theory more is better is often a good way to paint yourself in a corner without an exit. Even that small a proportion of cement can make the clay mix VERY sticky and it can very well make it almost unworkable. Lastly only add just enough water so it sticks together when hammered. If you make it like potters clay it's going to shrink check badly as it dries, visualize a dried mud puddle. The important part of that recipe is the sand it does two major important things, it lets steam exit the liner without building pressure and secondly it makes the liner a little flexible. Preventing pressure building up puts paid to the spalling issue and even a little flexibility prevents thermal cycle checking. Once fired it's not going to care about a LITTLE water on it. Using commercial refractory is a different animal. Most commercial refractories are concretes you prepare the form, mix the proper amount of water, apply it, let it set/cure properly and fire it. commercial refractories are usually designed not to spall, even when liberally wetted at heat. I don't recommend dumping buckets of water on a HOT liner but that's not what sprinkling coal is. When wetting the coal around a fire you're not supposed to wet the forge pan, it's just supposed to slow combustion of the coal for a couple reasons: steam pyrolizes coal more efficiently than a dry flame front. Almost all the undesirable volatiles you're driving out of coal are at least partly water soluble so steam leaches it out faster than dry heat. It helps prevent the carbon from burning while it's pyrolizing (coking) so more of the desirable CARBON (breeze/forge coke) remains. Then it helps the coal stick together and dome up for you. As I recall those are the high points of why you wet a green coal fire but I'm a propane guy so I could have a lot wrong, miss important things or . . . Heck if I knew I'd tell ya. <grin> Anyway, the short stories are: Execution. Use the liner material correctly, use the fire correctly and use the water correctly and the liner should last for years. Frosty The Lucky.

Cut off wheels in right angle grinders scare the (bleep) out of me. I much prefer my HV band saw for general cutoff work, it's the ONLY power tool I'll turn on and let run unattended. Even a serious jam can't hurt anybody but maybe a $20.00 blade. I do have some cut off blades I use in a sacrificial skill saw for cutting sheet like roofing steel. Not much can get you if a blade comes apart but I'm still really careful. Frosty The Lucky.

There are a number of widely used Maltese cross patterns, I don't think exactly which is used means all that much. Of course I could be wrong, I don't know a BUNCH. I used to have a nice "surplus store" black and chrome Maltese cross pin on a hat. A friend's father gave me a pretty hard time for wearing a "swastika." He couldn't get his head around it being a US Marine Corps, marksman's medal until I found and showed him the "book." My friend was pretty embarrassed his Dad didn't know a swastika from an iron or Maltese cross. That was the same hat I had my Father's cavalry cross sabre pin on. Kills me I lost the hat when I moved to Alaska. <sigh> Frosty The Lucky.

We're on the same page Mark, we have wire kennels all over the place and Deb is involved in a number of training classes. I'll bet if others involved in classes and competitions got a look at classy alternatives to wire kennels they'd sell. Hmmmm? Frosty The Lucky.

Yeah, that's one of those MUST follow me home scores Froggy. The possibilities are almost endless. Reading the description before looking at the pic I was thinking ways of making a fire ring or grill. The bolt holes and a little creative twisting, bending, and tennon peining came to mind. Taking a look brought end tables, and shadow boxes to mind. You did you offer an appropriate reward to the yard guys for setting others like it aside for you? Yes? Frosty The Lucky.

Send them to school and they eat the apple, eh? Do they like rawhide chew toys as treats? I'm thinking no matter what you whip the perch with it's a sacrificial pad or grip. I've always thought falconing would be fun in the extreme. I've always been good with animals, birds included but recognize the level of dedication a bird of prey would demand. My work schedule pretty much made even owning a dog a deal killer for 20 years so falcons were WAY out of the question. There is an established mated pair of goshawks that nest on our back property line. We only get to see them occasionally but it's hard to describe how watching them cruising through a climax birch forest at around 30-40mph. feels. There's no question they're hunting when they fly through, it feels positively ominous. When we first moved here I discovered the nest one day in early July. I didn't get a look at the nest but got really clear looks at the goshawks when they started stooping on me. Fortunately they gave a shriek every time they dove so I was able to get on the far side of a tree trunk. I took final cover under a large spruce tree's canopy and they wouldn't come under the branches but kept shrieking past at probably 60-70mph. Awesome is just too much of an understatement. I already knew goshawks don't just try and scare a threat away, they go for blood. If they'd caught me in open enough space they'd hit me and hit me hard. I don't need talon scars, like my ears and eyes so I took cover till they decided to cut me a little slack. When they let off I headed away from the nest and they let me go but flew high cover and occasionally made a harrying stoop behind me. Just enough to make me take cover and keep me moving the right direction. That part of our property is off limits from mid June till August, just because. When we stop hearing the chicks screaching for dinner they're usually fledged and hunting, another week or two and it's probably safe in their nesting territory. It's just wicked cool having goshawks as neighbors. We have zero predators here, we have them for top gun watch birds. Even Bald Eagles and Great Northern Owls stay away, a good 1/2 mile away. Frosty The Lucky.