Starting making crosses for a show next week making 70, got 44 done. 42 of these are regular crosses and 2 are Celtic crosses. The remainder will also be Celtic crosses when they are done. Thought I'd share.

John

they are nice looking. bet you will be able to make them blindfolded after 70...
How did you form the celtic ones, was it that unfolding trick?

TLMG,
Once you unfold the cross you take another heat and drive a drift thru the center opening. Actualy I use 2 drifts, one smaller and then 1 large and drift it out in 2 heats.

John

This is something I've been wanting to learn for a long time.
I have access to some 5 inch tram car rail spikes and want to use them for just this project. Espicaly the Celtic cross.
Good work

Nice grouping John, great to see you aint letting your skills get rusty.

Btw: a Little Giant 100# is up and running here and a 50# is getting a complete makeover. I guarantee it now takes longer to heat a chunk of 4140 than it does to hammer it into a drift, LOL.

You know you are more than welcome to come "play" here anytime.

Nice looking work there. How big are those and what sized stock did you start with? There should be photos attached at myy first attempt to a cross similar to this.

John,
looks great! My only question is hour long did it take you to prep/cut the blanks before starting the "real work"?

oh, and what size stock are you starting with?

The crosses start out as 3-1/2" of 3/8" square. the finished cross is 3-3/4" tall and 3" wide the celtics are a little bigger. good size for a key fob or a necklace either one. It takes longer to mark and cut them than it does to forge them. The trick to forging is to keep everything straight as you go.
Reidster,
How did you do the texture on yours? I like that. Also the starting dim and finished dimensions if you don't mind sharing.

John

How are you doing the saw cuts ? On 3/8" stuff it's pretty critical to get it all centered isn't it ?

Not trying to hijack John's thread, but here is an older forum thread with some links added for how-to's. For those with an interest in making a cross or two in the future.


http://www.iforgeiron.com/forum/f63/old-rugged-cross-12125/

Edited November 23, 200916 yr by trying-it
typo/spelling

Stan,
Nice cross I remember you showing that to me when I was at your place. Thanks for the link also.
Oak Hill Forge,
Bandsaw withe guides clamped on both sides of the blade to keep it centered and a push stick to keep the fingers outta the blade. I will show post some pictures of the setup this evening.

John

John, the latest tooling addition I designed and made here for quickly adding the wood texturing to any sized stock. Sure there are boughten models available, but then what would I do with all my free time?

Nice job Stan.

I started with 3/4" sq about 6" long. I overlapped splits by 1/2" - I think one cut was 3 1/2" and the other was 3". I used a small cross pein along the lenght axis to texture on both sides and it came out pretty well I think for a newby.
Oh yeah - I also had to "trim" about 1" for three of the longer legs to get proper looking geometry. I think I figured the width should be about what the long leg legth is measured from center and the top portion should be about 1/2 the width.
I cheated and drilled and tapped the end using 10-24 tap and bolted the base on. I hammered the edge of the base for texturing as well as marbled if you will by leting the base scale up 3-4 times. Applied several coats of boiled linseed oil to warm parts for finish.
I made this piece as a gift to my mother and her husband as they are both really ill right now and thought this would provide some spritual motivation for them both.

Those are nice looking crosses but by now you should be cross-eyed. About how much do you get for one at a craft show?

one of the guys in my guild says he sticks a glass marble in the center and puts it back in the forge till it melts...haven't tried it yet but it sounds neat

Bentiron, this is one that I make and sell. It too is marked with a chisel for the wood grain and is on a 2 X 2 1/2 X 1/8 inch base. I get $10.00 for them.

Cross - Blacksmith Photo Gallery

Bentiron,
Keyfobs are $6 and Necklaces with a leather strip are $8. They sell well, I put 2 coats of clear enamel on them to make them shine.

John

Looking good. I think you have inspired me to give one a try.

Adam

Been busy in the shop and didn't get the bandsaw guide pics up that I promised. Very simple 2 pieces of 3/8" x 1" flat stock and 4 c-clamp vise grips. Made a pusher stick out of the same 3/8" square stock the crosses are made of to keep my fingers out of the blade too.

John