BIGGUNDOCTOR

I was flipping through an encyclopedia of the Civil War, and saw a similar vise in drawing of an armory shop.

This should be the thread that talks about perceived value.

Why not make your own broom head? That way you could make it any way that you want to. If you can add your location, it may help in getting you what you are looking for.

On the subject of pictures, I would suggest some better lighting techniques. When we were photographing guns we would have to paint them with light at times to get them to come out right. What that means is a darkened room, and a long exposure. While the shutter is on, a light source is moved around the item to illuminate all sides, and surfaces. This works good when you do not have multiple strobes. Another method is to take the external flash off of the camera's hot shoe, and hit the lower sides that are shaded. The room lighting will do the upper surfaces.

I was in Troop 252 for 23 years,got my Eagle rank, stayed on as an assistant SM, then became the Scoutmaster for 11 years. Worked at 2 summer camps as handicrafts merit badge instructor for 4 years, so I got pretty good at scrounging stuff for the troop, and council. A lot of times as soon as I mentioned that it was for a BSA activity I got instant responses, free items, or some very nice discounts. The Scouts are still very well thought of, and a lot of people still believe in what they stand for, even though Scouting is not as visible as it once was in many communities. If I can find it, I have a Scout Handbook fron 1927. One of the merit badges listed was blacksmithing, with all of the requirements. Enter Wiki; The official source for the information shown in this article or section is: Handbook for Boys, 1948 Edition Original Requirements 1. Make an open link of 3/4-inch stock. 2. Forge a chain hook out of 3/4 x 1/2-inch soft steel or 3/4-inch round iron. 3. Make a bolt of 1/2-inch iron. 4. Bend and weld three links and form them into a chain, these links to be fastened to the hook of Requirement 2 by a ring, and links and ring to be made out of 3/8-inch iron. 5. Make a straight lap weld of 1/4 x 1-inch stock. 6. Make a rock drill. 7. Temper a rock drill. 8. Explain how to harden and temper a cold chisel. The official source for the information shown in this article or section is: Boy Scout Handbook, 1911 Edition 1. Upset and weld a one-inch iron rod. 2. Make a horseshoe. 3. Know how to tire a wheel, use a sledge-hammer and forge, shoe a horse correctly and roughshoe a horse. 4. Be able to temper iron and steel.

These appear to be his hourly rates for each type of smithing, and for each type of hammer used. So if you wanted him to make something architectural, and he does it by hand it would be $400 per hr., if he uses his 250# hammer it will cost you $150 per hr. and so on.

Easy with the right tools. While tapping a part in the lathe I snapped a 4mm spiral flute tap off in a piece of O-1. Ground the top flat, then drilled it out with a 1/8" solid carbide 2 flute drill that we make in house. I was left with three small sections of the flutes that fell out of the hole - sweet.

You can scrounge a lot of material for free, you just have to look, and ask around. Construction sites may give you rebar scraps, heavy brackets, etc. Check with local auto repair shops, muffler shops, auto body shops, etc for scrap items like u-bolts, center links, tie rod ends, springs,etc. Some businesses generate what they consider trash/scrap that is very usable to a smith. Wooden cable reels have long through bolts, farmers usually have stuff laying around, you are surrounded by material. You just have to look at things with the eye of a smith. B)

Bells Cymbals Steel drum / pan Gong Chimes Xylophone Flute Whistle

It had a wooden haft, but the military had hawks that were used in Vietnam. I see one every now and again at a gun show.

Hey Tim, unless it is a 400 series stainless you can forget about heat treating it. Stainless will work harden really fast though, just try drilling a piece, and let the bit spin on the surface to see what I mean Stainless in and of itself is some tough stuff, so you could probably use it as is for some time. It also holds up well to high temps. Sounds like you have been having fun out on your scrounging expeditions :D

Soak it in some diesel for a day, or more, should loosen up all of the old gunk in it.

I would caution checking the wrenches before using them for a project like this. Do not use any tools market HAZET-pretty sure that is the right spelling. These tools were used in the spare tire tool boxes on early VW's, and are highly sought after by collectors who are trying to put their tool box back together. There is a Vegas artist that makes belt buckles, and other items from old wrenches.

Some materials like aluminum cannot be torch cut due to the oxides that are formed. Aluminum oxide melts at a higher temp than the torch puts out. As for stainless, probably a similar occurrence due to the low amount of iron, and high amounts of chromium, etc. Steel is actually burned in oxy/acet process, not melted like with a plasma cutter. Very large chunks are cut with an oxygen lance. The steel is heated then a separate lance is used to feed pure oxygen into the cut to keep it burning.

Skateboard grip tape would work good too. It is thin, so it won't bulk the grip any. My friend uses it on his duty pistol.

I guess you haven't seen many "survival" knives, as a lot have used the pipe type handle. Buck made one after the first Rambo movie that may still be in production, don't know as I am not a big Buck Knife fan.

I second the use of rivets.

For those of us who haven't had our right to bear arms restricted , they make great targets. Hang a bell behind the center hole, and you can hear the different ring when you get a "bullseye".

It is easy to overheat steel welds with a TIG, and get porosity. I use stainless on most of the steel TIG welds I do when color match isn't a concern. Stainless rod on a steel part comes out really nice, and doesn't bubble as easy as steel rod does. For me, it just runs a lot easier, and I always had plenty of stainless rod available, so I used it. We did a lot of work with the wineries, and food machines, so lots of stainless parts. I am not so sure that the method that you mentioned would pass a strict testing.

If you can scrounge up another 3phase motor that is 5HP or larger, you can use it to run the hammer by wiring through it. I have done this for years with my machine tools at home.

When I bought my 306# Sodefors at a machine shop auction, it came home in my Dad's 1981 Cadillac Coupe DeVille. The guy running the forklift said loading an anvil in a Caddy was a first for him. To Dad a car was just transportation. His 55 Coupe DeVille had caribou in the trunk when it was fairly new.

I saw some unicorn shoes (heart shaped) made from horse shoes. The way that smith did it was by folding the shoe in half, drew the ends down, and then curved one end. When it was unfolded (the lower point was where it was folded) it formed a heart that was symmetrical. Real easy to keep the sides symmetrical this way,as you are working both sides at the same time.

The problem with them is that thay are way too deep. You can cut it down to size, or just look for a shallower drum/rotor to use. The semi drum will make a nice base for a stand of some kind though.

Used them a bit when I was with my Boy Scout troop. Still have around 6, or so kicking around. As for Lodge cookware. I have heard mixed reviews on their quality. Some say it is OK while others say to avoid it at all costs. Not sure who made the Dutch ovens I have, as none are marked, but all are older- 20+ years. My local supermarket has some Chinese made ones 12qt for as low as $9.99 at times, IIRC reg price is around $15. They do not look bad,and the price is right, but I have a hard time buying made in China, or around here Hecho en China I have my Mom's cast iron pans (Griswold, and Wagner), and have picked some up at garage sales. I like it.

Other colors can be acheived by parkerizing , grays, and green when used with a cosmoline-standard U.S. military gun finish starting with the 1903 series of rifles. There are a number of commercial finishes now on the market, such as Dura Coat. These are more of a paint type product. Browning was another gun finish used back in the muzzle loading days. Mix copper sulfate, and water then dip the part into the mixture. After a bit you will have a copper finish on your part.