Hardy: what do yall think

[EWCTool]

Over the summer I got to work with a professional blacksmith and he showed me many tricks and a few good methods of tool making. One that I really liked was the hot cut hardy. The shank is mild steel. Then the blade is leaf spring riveted to the shank. This construction makes replacing the blade easy and a new hardy is just a rivet away, not half a day of forging. How many times have you missed the metal and destroyed the edge of the hardy?

The second picture is the same picture but the leafspring is welded on not riveted.

Again I do not take credit for the designs.

[EWCTool]

Sorry about the huge pictures. I think you can almost see the individual electrons doing their thing.

[monstermetal]

I like it... great idea... One thing I would think about is adding a bit of a slight curve to the top of the blade profile.... it would make cutting a bit easier as its all about how much surface contact you have.. But clever design and looks like a great tool....

are you using the spring as forged or did you harden it?

[John B]

This construction makes replacing the blade easy and a new hardy is just a rivet away, not half a day of forging. How many times have you missed the metal and destroyed the edge of the hardy?

Quicker to regrind the hardie, whether a traditional one piece one or fabricated like the ones you show, and also learn how to use tools properly, and respect them.

Whatever you hit, spring steel rivetted on or welded on, it will still mark the hammer face you are using, and then you have to either have a seperate hammer specifically for using with the hardie, or repolish the hammer face you have used and marked up by careless working practice,

And you will have to regrind either the old one or the new replacement one you are fitting.

So you gain some time and lose some time, just try to improve your hammer control and it will stand you in good stead for this and other situations requirng hammer control.

They are relatively quick and easy to make for those with problems forging or even accessing suitable hardie materials, and durable,

I made one over thirty years ago from a shank welded to a piece of 3" diameter steel 1" plus long and a piece of Volvo leaf spring for the blade, welded to this base, and it is still in use now, with the edge intact, and I only had to regrind the edge a couple of times in that period of time. (Marked one or two hammer faces though that were repolished ASAP after the incident, you know when it happens, more often than not it is when someone else borrows it to use.)

[ThomasPowers]

I like that design for folks who don't weld; but: I forged my hardy over 20 years ago and have never had to forge another---even with teaching hundreds of beginner smiths. Faster to touch up the edge on my hardy than to grind off the rivet for replacement.

[Nakedanvil - Grant Sarver]

I like that design for folks who don't weld; but: I forged my hardy over 20 years ago and have never had to forge another---even with teaching hundreds of beginner smiths. Faster to touch up the edge on my hardy than to grind off the rivet for replacement.

I'm with you. In another thread I showed where I forged a "traditional" hardy in half an hour by hand and it would probably only last 20-30 years if it got regular use.

The one shown is kinda cool, but a solution looking for a problem. WAY too blunt IMO.

[Bob S]

Lots of talk about cut off hardies here and all over this (and other) sites.

I made a couple of hardies years ago. One with a straight side the other without. I made another when I got another anvil.

Question is, what are you guys cutting off?

I go for long periods without using a cutoff hardy. I have a saw. If you cut off a bar with a hardy you end up with an end that eventually needs to be cleaned up... maybe two ends to clean up.

If I want a slit I do it with a top tool on the anvil or treadle hammer.

So unless you are making nails, I'm curious.... what you cutting off with all those hardies?



Bob

[pkrankow]

I'm with you. In another thread I showed where I forged a "traditional" hardy in half an hour by hand and it would probably only last 20-30 years if it got regular use.

The one shown is kinda cool, but a solution looking for a problem. WAY too blunt IMO.

I followed your directions, not a "half hour" for a beginner's hands, but quite do-able.

I agree the design shown is neat, but I can resharpen a whole lot till I get concerned about material loss, then I can draw out some more material from the base of the hardy and re-harden.

Now if the blade was easy to change then you could put some narrow fullers, or a saddle, or some other tool that is often simply attached to a tool post for the hardy...

Phil
edit : removed word in wrong place.

[Nakedanvil - Grant Sarver]

I followed your directions, not a "half hour" for a beginner's hands, but not quite do-able.

I agree the design shown is neat, but I can resharpen a whole lot till I get concerned about material loss, then I can draw out some more material from the base of the hardy and re-harden.

Now if the blade was easy to change then you could put some narrow fullers, or a saddle, or some other tool that is often simply attached to a tool post for the hardy...

Phil

You didn't mean "not quite doable", did you?

I don't want to fiddle around changing blades. The square shank is the original "quick-change" tooling system. Wham-Bam!

[pkrankow]

I have no idea how that "not" got in there. I fixed it.

It is quite do-able, but not a half hour for a beginner. I use the hardy that I made to your directions almost every time I use my forge.

Phil