Frosty

Broken.

A lot of that looks like hammer marks from here. No matter though, if you have a SLIGHTLY crowned face on a mid weight hammer, say under 30oz. you can literally hammer the face reasonably smooth. Some of those pits probably won't disappear though. One easy solution is to make a bottom tool that fits the hardy hole with a flat smooth square top say 4" square and about 1" thick welded to a shank that fits the hardy hole. Holding it solid on the anvil is as simple as cutting a slot in the shank that extends into the hardy hole a little ways as well as in the clear under the tail. Drive a wedge and the bottom tool won't go anywhere so you'll get good energy return. Not great but it's just for finish forging and fine work. Nice old anvil, I'd keep it and hand it down to the grandkids with plenty of tall tales about your Grandfathers feats of near miraculous skill on it. Frosty The Lucky.

Uh . . . don't you drill holes? I believe this was a topic of discussion years ago and Thomas finally agreed that any metal cuttings counted as swarf including grinder dust. We also agreed not to call grinder dust swarf to avoid confusion and further long discussions. In Father's shop we called any metal cuttings, Shavings but swarf seems to be more universal. Don't need a lathe to make metal cuttings/swarf. Frosty The Lucky.

Thank you Brian, I appreciate it. It's good to have backup. Frosty The Lucky.

Yes I do, an inspirational site for sure. It's the same basic idea I use for collecting black sand. I put a zip lock baggie over a horse shoe fishing magnet and work it in the sand, stream, etc. and when it's well coated I turn the baggie right side out, pull it off and dump it. Baggies aren't very durable though. Frosty The Lucky.

Nicely done John. I've seen pickup tools that the field turns on and off but they have magnets sort of sandwiched and half rotate when you pull the lever to turn the field on or off. Maybe reverses half the magnets neutralizing the pull but I don't know how that would work on ordinary ferrous material. Magnetic objects yes but . . . I was hoping you knew how that worked but of course you came up with something simpler. Frosty The Lucky.

I can see it's a "neutral" pose, you'd look better if you relaxed it a little, you look too stiff. If you want to mess with lighting, try it from above on your left so your nose casts a gentle shadow on your cheek and a bit on your upper lip. It can be adjusted t suit your features and what you want to convey but I'd have to be there to be more specific. I spent a few years taking photography and really enjoyed it. Hard to break old habits, I tend to compose every portrait I see in my head. Does the knob on the magnetic pick up tool release the magnets? I like it George, says it well. Thanks. Frosty The Lucky.

Wow, the Pohutukawa tree is spectacular! Thanks for the picture. 250 cows is quite an operation, do you have employees? When I was young we visited relatives that had a dairy farm and it was overwhelming to me but I was a maybe 8yro, city kid. I spent a few weeks a summer on a family friend's cattle ranch and their oldest son Rex spent a couple weeks with us. A horse and cattle ranch is way different but bet the compost pile smells about the same. Sorry Jennifer as usual I got carried away. All that talk boils down to. Use fuel oil to learn how to use the melter. It is consistent always the same so you won't have to figure it out. Once you know how it works on an operator's level. By operator I mean someone who knows the equipment well enough they do not have to put conscious thought into running it. At that point adjusting it for a new or unpredictable waste fuel will be as simple as seasoning a pot of stew. On the other hand if all you want to do is empty the tank and make fire, you'll learn something about it. It's just not how I figure out a piece of machinery. I do it in logical steps drawing on past experience and close observation. Deb does things with a random lets see what happens method. I'll try to edit the whys and reasoning and stick to basics. Jer

I like the shield a lot John but couldn't you have smiled a LITTLE for the pic? Or is it THAT heavy? The numbers look GOOD Gewoon, I really like them. NEVER take what you hear online very seriously. ESPECIALLY the gratuitously negative. That is a red flag signal they have neither ability or talent for the craft, usually because they're pre-teens who should be mowing lawns or playing outside instead of sitting in front of a screen. 10 years+/- of isolation has created a generation of people without social skills, they don't know how to present themselves, feel no consequences for bad behavior, can't read body language, IF they even know it exists. Sooner or later they'll have to go outside and find a job. Next time some YO YO says something that hurts, picture them taking that attitude and vocabulary to a job interview. Heck, do it now. . . Feel Better? I used to hear similar a lot. "You're just LUCKY you know so much." It used to get me down till the light came on. I didn't have to say, "Luck has NOTHING to do with it," many times and it stopped. Then there was, "You think you know so much." "No, I don't THINK I do." I was told by the field geologist, "I don't have a degree, I can't know anything." Wasn't long before I got called into the office for a talking too. Of course the field geo was sitting in for my dressing down. Told the supervisor the same thing. "I was told, clearly and succinctly that I don't have a degree I can't know anything. So, I don't, do NOT ask me. Sorry, I didn't mean to get going but I took it too many years to just say something like. don't let it bother you. It does, I know. Billy's advice is good, wish I'd heard it when I was young. Anymore I try REALLY hard not to get in arguments with the argumentative or idiots. One of my better responses is, "Let us know how that works please." The best is Silence. I may read a thing but if I don't comment? No skin off my nose. ANY problem with that is THEIRS. I have enough of my own I don't need their's Frosty The Lucky.

Start drawing the taper on the end of the stock over the far edge of the anvil. CENTER the hammer's face on the anvil's edge. This is called a "Half Face Blow" and is excellent for drawing tapers because the energy of the blow is more concentrated and the half that is not supported by the anvil (Off the edge) will cause the blow to tilt naturally. When you roll the stock only turn 1/4 turn!! This is IMPORTANT 1/4 turn back and forth just let your wrist turn back and forth Thumb UP, Thumb to the inside Back and forth. Do NOT change your grip! Now before you take another heat look at the results of what just happened. The stock will be straight to the point where the hammer struck the taper will start abruptly and go to the point. It'll resemble a sharp pencil but square. Yes? Next, heat it on the FAR edge of the fire so it does not burn the tip off! Bring it to the anvil and place one edge flat on the face so the point is off the anvil and tip the stock so the only point of contact is the angle where the taper begins. You MUST lower your hand closer to the anvil so the tip is higher than the anvil's face. This will concentrate ALL the force of the blows on the smallest possible area of the stock and it will draw down VERY QUICKLY. There is no need to hit it hard!! Again, use half face blows and 1/4 turns and draw it till the part you are forging matches the taper to the point. STOP. That is all there is to it. Once the taper is as long as you wish is the time to use a flatter and make it even. A flatter does not need to be a special bottom tool, a reasonably thick piece of steel 15mm. minimum, 30 is more than enough. so long as it's wider than the length of the taper it's good. A handle is a REALLY good idea so you don't hit your hand!! All the flatter is for is evening the taper you can do this cold if it is mild steel if you have to heat it, dull red will do. Remember to heat it with the point out of the far side of the GENTLE fire!! Gentle taps with a hammer, 1/4 turn after each blow. Forging long tapers with a twist is pretty normal until you've made a LOT of them. Starting with square stock makes it easier but it happens anyway. Mark one face with chalk so you know which side is which. If you pay attention you can feel when the stock is laying flat on the anvil so PAY ATTENTION! That's how I do it and how I teach folks the next thing is practice. Being a proficient blacksmith is a LITTLE knowledge and LOTS of practice. I hope this translates well enough you can use it. If not let us know I'll try again. Frosty The Lucky.

Okay, you are doing it again, you are trying to understand and do too many things at one time and forget about other types of fuel systems unless you just want to put this melter out in a field and forget about it. Siphon burners are a First Class PITA and tend to REQUIRE almost non-stop adjustment. Smile say, "I'll consider it" and put it on the bad idea list. You have what you have it's a complete waste of time figuring out something else. You'd be farther ahead using a drip oil feed, those are simple and easy but not applicable to YOUR melter. We used to fire pottery and ceramics in drip oil kilns. The first time he tried waste oil he melted the kiln and scorched a 30' circle in his lawn. IF you're generous and open minded enough to have called it a "lawn." Stop listening to the it'll explode and destroy everything BS. This is the hallmark the ignorant, the only thing they have to pretend to contribute are dire warnings. Just because "someone guy on the internet" SAYS they have poured iron a few times doesn't mean anything. This is just blog gossip and is more dangerous than helpful. Just take a look at old Forged in Fire episodes where IDIOTS were OIL quenching blades in their garages. Before COVID this sort of invented experience used to get warnings here regularly. About making a volcano. That is NOT going to happen if you just follow the basics. You DO have reliable electricity at the melter. No? If you do not then you should not even be trying to light it. PERIOD. If the fuel stops, plugs, runs out or you shut it off, whatever the fire goes out and the blower cools the melter. This IS in fact how you should ALWAYS shut it down. Turn off the fuel and leave the blower running until you can hold your hand over the melter for a couple few seconds. Your refractory will last a LOT longer. If however you lose the blower with fuel flowing you WILL get billowing flames maybe 20' high, maybe higher depending on how hot the melter is. So long as you have a master fuel shut off a good distance away, say 30' behind some type of thermal barrier this is no emergency either. Shut the fuel off, It WILL just go out, just let it cool naturally. Do NOT mess with it except maybe to cover the top with Kaowool to help it cool more slowly. It is NO BIG DEAL, spectacular maybe but so long as you have a clear space around it NOT an emergency. It WILL NOT explode!! ONE last word about loss of air during a melt ABSOLUTELY DO NOT trust any automatic shut off any more than you'd trust someone's life to the safety on a firearm!! They are just devices made by man they are NOT infallible. Always have a manual shut off at a distance from the melter so YOU can shut it off. If the automatic works GOOD! No shut the manual valve off at the source till it's cool! Okay, that's my advice for the day. IGNORE some guys on the internet, that advice falls under the "don't do it this way" category. Burn ONLY fuel oil until you have MASTERED the melter. It can NOT explode. Waste oil is for AFTER you know what you're doing! SECURE electricity or do NOT light it!! If you're using a generator make sure it's tuned and has a large fuel tank large enough the melter runs out of fuel BEFORE the generator! That's ALL folks! (Looney Toons sign off from my kidhood) Frosty The Lucky.

Alec used to be a member here but decided to go commercial with his videos and We haven't seen him since. I've dropped in watched a few of his how tos but have a very different way of doing things. I almost never use the horn for anything but a bottom fuller or truing up rings but that anvil is a Soderfors and has a round horn. I've never used a jig to make something as simple as a wall hook. I certainly don't try turning the hook on the horn. I turn hooks and such on the face and start them over the edge though if it's a large ring I do it all on the face. Once the end it turned I lay it on the anvil curve up and tap the end and it curls. What I'm suggesting for a coat hook shape more resembles a fish hook with a straight shank and the hook with a finial scroll so it doesn't make holes in heavy coats. I usually put 2 counter sunk holes in the shank so the hook can't pivot sideways if the kid jerks his coat off. The countersunk holes swell the shank giving it some texture and letting it be known the hook was formed like modeling clay. It also lets the user attach it with countersunk screws less likely to snag a delicate garment. My typical wall hook had a twisted shank too but it was my hook. I made them at demos because I could turn them out in about 7 minutes from cutting the stock to finishing while maintaining a patter with the audience. People LOVE it when you twist square stock, it forms scale as soon as you take it out of the fire so it's darkish red with flakes but when you twist it the scale falls off in a red shower revealing an orange heart. The audience is there to be entertained and a little razzle dazzle is just part of the show. A little brass brush highlight and request hooks, etc. I rarely ended a day with more than a couple hold out display hooks for the table. Making a set went faster because I didn't vary the hook or do a lot of talking. They sold like hotcakes. It was all just practice at the anvil. I strongly suggest you develop the basics, draw, widen, upset, bend, twist before you worry about sales let alone making a buck. You're doing fine, seriously just keep at it. Frosty The Lucky.

Ah, your work looks fine. We all had to start from zero even if we were a 5th generation smith you still have to learn the basics and the best way to do that besides practice is to show your work, compare to others and talk. We mostly swap talking about what we did and most importantly share the mistakes. That way folk who pay attention don't have to make them to learn from them and go on to make new mistakes for the rest of us. Make sense? The only issues I see is hammer control and that's just practice. Sure the shoe horns could be smoother but those will work just fine as long as there's nothing rough to snag a sock they're just fine. I do suggest you leave the wall hooks straight below the rivet hole before turning the hook, they'll look and work better. Otherwise they look good, nice finial scroll and a smooth even bend. Darned good. Maybe put a little texture or shaping to the piece of strap stock that connects to the wall. Doesn't need to be fancy just a little something on the ends for interest sake. The telescoping table came out very well, I'm NOT showing Deb!! All in all a nice bit of work you've done, I've enjoyed looking and imagining where I'd put or use it. Well done, keep it up and keep us in the loop please. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. One of the best parts about blacksmithing is you are SUPPOSED to play with fire and hit things with hammers, get dirty smelly and burn holes in your clothes. It's a very satisfying addiction and we'll help you further it. At this point just worry about learning the basics to a point of proficiency. It's a wonderful form of therapy, not so much for taking out aggression and anger at the anvil but because the craft demands control over strength and you can't control the hammer and tools without controlling yourself so anger or problems have no room. We LOVE pictures, shop, tools, equipment projects, kids, pets, whatever so long as it isn't something you wouldn't want to explain to a child. See you again. Frosty The Lucky.

It was worse for Deb, I just sort of came too in a specialty care hospital. It's a long list of me being very lucky, hence the "Frosty The Lucky" signoff. I screwed up felling a leaner and it got me good. I don't know if I remember starting to cut the tree or only think I do because I gave it so much thought beforehand. It just ate Deb up, it was months before she knew if I was going to recover or be a vegetable. The one thing kept her going was a vast support network, she got nonstop emails from people on Iforgeiron, blacksmith friends of mine stopping by, helping keep the farm up and fed. The youth group from church, etc. etc. Friends never left her alone. I actually remember coming back from wherever I was. I guess I never stopped fighting, they had to keep me restrained constantly. One of the docs decided I wanted out so they strapped me into a bed chair thingy and wheeled me outside. Abby our rescue dog came up to me and after a quick sniff laid her head on my leg. It's one of her ways of making people feel better and she slipped her nose under the sheet. I reached down and started petting her on the head and said "You're a good dog Abby" and I was back. I remember sitting there petting Abby and talking to Deb. I was in and out for quite a while afterwards but clearly remember feeling better if Abby was in the room. Deb got requests to bring Abby to hospitals to make people better for years. Abby was already a service dog, Deb's mobility dog but she just fixed people in distress. It was like she had bad vibe radar on occasion she'd just drag Deb gently in a seemingly random direction in a store to some poor soul who was hurting. Lots of times a disabled Vet in a wheel chair would be having a bad time and Abby would put her head on their leg, her tail slowly wagging and you could just see and feel the pain and anguish leave them. An honest to God angel at work. I gotta stop, I'm tearing up remembering how lucky we were to have her as long as we did. Frosty The Lucky.

I lift my coffee mug to short time actually being reasonably routine! Bone spurs OUCH! Deb had one on her shoulder and decided reverse shoulder replacement required less recovery and therapy than having the spurs ground off. We both got tired of her recovery time but it was really worth it for us all. Be well Brother and maybe drop in and say hey once in a while eh? Frosty The Lucky.

Okay, Sweden is a fishy place to eat. After looking up the dishes you listed above I'd have issues. I've never cared for oily fish. Heck, I'm not a fan of salmon unless it's smoked. Jansson's surprise I could handle but . . .SURPRISE it has halibut or ham, maybe sausage or peperoni in it! Sliced potatoes, onions and cream baked to a golden brown is my kind of food and I'm always experimenting with scalloped potatoes. I'd love to see Sweden someday. <wistful sigh> Frosty The Lucky.

It's funny, I've been building propane burners since sometime in the late 80s and somewhere I have all sorts of information regarding things like flow rates through x size orifices at a given pressure, the effects of nozzle length, shape, etc. Then there is all the stuff that effects how well a given jet of gas induces a second source say air, temp pressure, etc. etc. It's all very scientific. When it came down to it it was faster easier and more accurate to take what I knew about adjusting the flame of an oxy acet torch flame and tuning propane air burners by eye and ear. There's probably a good reason there aren't things like flow gages and such on your melter. The old mark 1 eyeball and ears are faster and more sure. Frosty The Lucky.

Really nice coat hooks Asa, well done! The fireplace tools look good as well. I've found few people actually use log tongs but they DO sell sets. Frosty The Lucky.

We had a small hobby farm for years here, Deb bred African Pygmy goats and when I was living at home we had horses so I know all too well that chores go on regardless of the holiday. Finding people you can trust to do the chores if you have to leave for a while is always a concern. We kept a number as "adopted" family, our table was always open to them and such. Mother numbered us, I was #1 son, Shannon my Sister #1 daughter and there were 2,3,4, etc. It was good having teenagers handy other than myself. How many head do you run? Strictly dairy or do you have other stock? Frosty The Lucky.

Check with a paint supplier for "Retro Reflective" paint. Light shined on it will have a significant % reflected directly back at the source. Same as the lines on pavement, street signs, etc. It'll make your 8 stand out like a light bulb. Frosty The Lucky.

Ah, Swedish so it's not a misspelling. I withdraw my question. Merry Christmas Mike. What's a traditional Christmas Dinner in Sweden? Frosty The Lucky.

MERRY CHRISTMAS Tim!! What's the "traditional" Christmas dinner down under? BBQ on the beach? -1f right now up from -7f when got up it's about 45 minutes till sunset so it looks like our high today was around -1f +/-. We're having turkey, dressing, gravy, green bean salad and apple pie. It's just the two of us so there's no point in making big meals. It'll still be plenty for a proper gorging though. How about you guys out there? Frosty The Lucky.

Merry Christmas guys! John straightened me out on this definition of Anerobic as a Christmas eve vocabulary present. It makes perfect sense, I used to clear trail with a machete then come back with a chainsaw to clean up the ankle biter stubs. It's a good work out but in production mode I swung a Sthil with a 20" bar clearing trail. After the Great White . . . birch attack nearly killed me I've put up my saws. I have a tiny battery one suitable for cleaning up brush on the driveway or around our parking areas. No more. After spending a week -10 days in a drug induced coma, at least two brain surgeries the TBI left me too unstable on my feet to cut trees. Still I had a darned good run, more than 35 years cutting wood, and only one serious injury, not bad eh? Even then the tree that got me went right where I aimed it, it just kicked back off the stump before I got into my hide. I have a dent in my head, wanna see? And OF COURSE I'd warn a professional tree cutter about Maple. Kind of a KARMA thing eh? I used to cut Tag Alder all the time but one more than 3" in dia. was rare, they're were the 20" bar really shined. I'm with you I HATE taking down a big old cottonwood! They're NEVER never sound and Even walking around whacking them with my "framing hatchet" was only an indication of where it's punky. We hired a local tree service to take down an old cottonwood too near the power lines for me to chance. One guy came out, took a look and about 2 hrs. later they unloaded a feller buncher, cut lifted and laid it on a log truck one piece. The guy on the manipulator just stripped the limbs with the claw and stuffed them in a dump truck. One guy on the ground halved the trunk and chained it down while the guy on the manipulator held it steady. The dump truck had already left and the feller buncher was loading itself on the trailer. The lead guy handed me his clipboard, I signed, we said thankyou to each other and they were gone. Maybe an hour, in out and gone with a 75' x 3' butt end cottonwood. I think it cost less than $500 and the power company picked up part. The stump was cut level with the ground and their number listed stump grinding. I cheated that, I scored it deeply short of the edges with my chainsaw and dumped 3lbs of potassium nitrate in the slits and poured water to the top. It was gone in 2 years and not a sprout. I kind of miss cutting my own wood but I'm not up to it anymore, can't move fast enough. <sigh> Frosty The Lucky.

Uh, "RestauranG FE." What's a restaurang? Hel me iron this out will ya? Merry Christmas Mike! Frosty The Lucky.