November 26, 201114 yr Welcome to I forge Upper midwest blacksmiths are your local group www.umbaonline.ning.com They just had their meeting at centar forge Next event is winter meeting at South Beloit, IL in Feb. Gordon Williams is demonstrating. He is an excellent teacher with way too much energy.
November 26, 201114 yr Welcome. You are pretty close to Centaur Forge in Burlington, thats a plus. They have fun tools and books, full retail prices though. I grew up in Germantown. Have fun!
November 26, 201114 yr welcome to IFI... MI used to have a chapter here, a union friend of mine is a member...
November 30, 201114 yr Author Thank you all, I will be looking to find locals that are getting into forging iron, that is a bond that only few can hammer out.
November 30, 201114 yr Author 42: I could have used your help and knowledge few months ago when I and my wifes brother in law Bill started in this path to blacksmithing, now I have three different post leg vise (Columbian 4 1/2" jaws complete, Indian Chief 3 3/4" jaws complete, and Iron City 4 1/4" jaws missing few parts), will be picking up a very clean Vulcan 70lbs Anvil this Sunday. Hammers and tongs I have. Bill has two old forges, one post leg vise unknown manufacturer 4 1/4" jaws, 70lbs Vulcan vise, and soon will be adding 50lbs Vulcan. Getting big items was a nightmare, especially anvil's and post leg vises...the collectors created an artificial demand and the prices are sky high, which discourages people from starting in this hobby, good thing I am stubborn and persistent. Ebay, etsy, Craig's List are all good sources but sky is the limit and not knowing what to get and how much to pay for it was a learning curve, example for the post leg vises I paid $113.12 for the Iron City, $86.75 for the Indian Chief, and $90.00 for the Columbian. For the Vulcan Anvil I will dish out $200.00, which is $2.86 per pound. Unfortunately I found this and may other good web sites, after I acquired few initial pieces of equipment, that would have helped me choose the equipment much more wisely and guide me as to their value. So any help is appreciated. Edited December 1, 201114 yr by FordPrefect
November 30, 201114 yr Tongs, not tongues. But around 'Sconsin" having a tongue is a good thing too! You have too many vices, I'll be by to pick up the spares, and perhaps the one of the forges as well! LOL
December 1, 201114 yr Hey, there are funny people from "Da 'Shaw!" Frank Caliendo was one of them. Ok, perhaps the only one... But at least I know what a bubbler is.
December 2, 201114 yr Author I thought in Waukesha they babble...lol, but yes we some of us from Milwaukee do refresh our self via the bubbler.
December 2, 201114 yr Author Drewed, having a real hard time finding a good anvil, my friend who lives in your neck of the woods (Big Bend) found a 70 lbs Vulcan, but one that is not is in such a great shape. I had to buy three post leg vises just to get one that is good, that is sad. I got stuff to trade with now, but I am bummed that the guy sold the two anvil, just before i picked them up...oh well, patience is a virtue, especially when you have metal to pound on.
December 2, 201114 yr I will second or third Centaur forge as a candy store for Blacksmiths. I lived in Milwaukee for 8 years and never got there until the Fall I moved out of town. They had quite a few Brooks anvils sitting on the display floor that they don't have on their website. I was the only person in the store when I was there so I could look the place over. Good luck and welcome to IFI. You don't have to be a native to know what a bubbler is... but it does help. Brian Pierson
December 2, 201114 yr Only problem with centuar is that they are pretty expensive, but then again who isn't! Also, it is very hard to go there to "just pick up some coal," I tend to leave with a lot more than coal... FP- Anvils are harder to find around here, I don't know why. Don't feel too bad about not getting the vulcan, they tend to be in bad shape, and I don't like them. Not sure why, must be a personal thing. How much you looking to spend? and how big of an anvil do you want? I know a guy in Milwaukess who has/ had a few, but he is a blacksmith, and knows what they are worth. But they are not JUNK, and he wont screw you over. Shoot a PM to Aaron Cergol. He has a fly press for sale as well... Or I can e-mail him if you want.
December 3, 201114 yr Author Only problem with centuar is that they are pretty expensive, but then again who isn't! Also, it is very hard to go there to "just pick up some coal," I tend to leave with a lot more than coal... FP- Anvils are harder to find around here, I don't know why. Don't feel too bad about not getting the vulcan, they tend to be in bad shape, and I don't like them. Not sure why, must be a personal thing. How much you looking to spend? and how big of an anvil do you want? I know a guy in Milwaukess who has/ had a few, but he is a blacksmith, and knows what they are worth. But they are not JUNK, and he wont screw you over. Shoot a PM to Aaron Cergol. He has a fly press for sale as well... Or I can e-mail him if you want. Drewed, I get my coal in Fond Du Lac, great price, and found a forge there. I was thinking of getting a Centuar fire pot and make my own stand and the rest. I don't feel bad anymore, it's just that if I tell someone I am selling something to them, then that is what I will do, it's a principle that I live by, my word counts for something.I would like to pick up a 80lbs anvil and a 145-165lbs anvil, that should cover what I want to do, price is not an issue but not going to pay over $3 per pound, obviously I need to see and if I like it, then price is not an issue. A friend who is a welder picked up a Trenton 150lbs anvil for $35, I have a picture, what a lucky stiff. Looking for a clean drop forge anvil (Hay Budden, or Trenton), verse the cast iron, so Vulcan even a clean one, is not all that, it was not meant to be for me, lol.Any help I get is appreciated, so if you know someone let him know I am looking for two anvils, but one would be great for starters, by the way I am doing the smithing in Big Bend, in your hood, I keep my honey bees there and plenty of room for me to do all the stuff I love to do. I will have extra two post leg vises, I will pick the better of the three I own, the other two I will sell or trade for an anvil, two of the tree are in great shape, I will clean them up before I get rid of them. Thanks Drewed for all the information, maybe we can meet one day, and have a coffee, love Starbucks.
December 4, 201114 yr Where in FDL do you find coal, and how much is it? I've been getting mine from centuar @ ~30$ for 50 lb bag. I'll see what I can do about the anvils.
December 4, 201114 yr Author Drewed, You have been overpaying, my other friend told me he gets his coal Burlington. I will PM Aaron Cergol for the fly press. http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/mat/2693092476.html Bud Soil's and Grading LLC. nut= 1 1/2" clear for wood burners or coal burners or forge 50 lb bags are $9 per bag. $8.50 a bag on a pallet of 50 bags/1.25 tons = $425 stove= 1 1/2" to 3" clear for wood burners or forge 50 lb. bags $9.50 per bag $9 a bag on a pallet of 50 = $450 rated 13,000 btu wood normally 5000 to 6000 btu
December 4, 201114 yr what about ash and sulfur levels. > that sounds like low BTU's and at too cheap a price to me.,
December 4, 201114 yr FDL has "anthracite(green) coal.anthracite= hard coal that comes from pennsylvania, which as low sulfur, low smoke, low dust, and low amounts of ash rated 13,000 btu 1 1/2" clear for wood burners or coal burners or forge" The stuff I get from Centuar ( and its 27$ a bag, not whatever I said before...) specs at: Moisture: 6.0% Ash: 8.0% Sulfur: .1.5% BTU per lbs: 13,000 Volatile Content 25% Size 1 1/4 x 3/8 So Same BTU, and little bigger in size but... 9 Bucks a bag?!? Oh heck yeah I'm heading to FDL!!! Do they have a location that is staffed during the week, or is it buy appointment only?
December 6, 201114 yr Author what about ash and sulfur levels. > that sounds like low BTU's and at too cheap a price to me., Not sure ash levels, price is great for just starting out. Steve the samples of Damascus pattern examples are awesome on your web site. I love them all, the ladder, serpentine, and welded cable is really nice. Thanks for the link Steve.
December 6, 201114 yr Author FDL has "anthracite(green) coal.anthracite= hard coal that comes from pennsylvania, which as low sulfur, low smoke, low dust, and low amounts of ash rated 13,000 btu 1 1/2" clear for wood burners or coal burners or forge" The stuff I get from Centuar ( and its 27$ a bag, not whatever I said before...) specs at: Moisture: 6.0% Ash: 8.0% Sulfur: .1.5% BTU per lbs: 13,000 Volatile Content 25% Size 1 1/4 x 3/8 So Same BTU, and little bigger in size but... 9 Bucks a bag?!? Oh heck yeah I'm heading to FDL!!! Do they have a location that is staffed during the week, or is it buy appointment only? Drewed, Just give them a call, there is someone there all the time. I am not sure what the ash content is but for a beginner just getting into blacksmithing this will keep the cost down.
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