Forged a new flatter

[Blackwaterforge]

Started with 4 1/2" of 1045

[MOblacksmith0530]

Nice looking piece. Did you forge the hex or just upset it from hex bar?
I have a friend who has access to cnc machining centers and I plan on having him mill me a 2" thick block with a 1-1/4 inch square hole with about a 3/4 radius in it to upset flatters into and was considereing using something like 1045. I haven't decided whether slit the hole for the handle first or not. I will probably try it both ways. I was planning on buying the stock in inch and a half bar form and necking it slightly to drop in the upsetting block and go to town on the face upset. Can't wait to try it out.

[Frank Turley]

A suggestion. The central working area of flatters are flat, but in order not to leave edge marks on the work, I have fallen the edges off 2 or 3 degrees with my disc sander and sanding belt. Say you have a 3" square flatter base, about 1/4" to 5/16" is relieved .

Years ago, I worked with an older man originally from Mexico, Victor Vera. In Spanish, he called the flatter la plancha, which translates as the clothing iron. In Spain, they call it a martillo aplanador, a smoothing hammer.

[Blackwaterforge]

Started with 4 1/2" 2" round.

A suggestion. The central working area of flatters are flat, but in order not to leave edge marks on the work, I have fallen the edges off 2 or 3 degrees with my disc sander and sanding belt. Say you have a 3" square flatter base, about 1/4" to 5/16" is relieved .

Years ago, I worked with an older man originally from Mexico, Victor Vera. In Spanish, he called the flatter la plancha, which translates as the clothing iron. In Spain, they call it a martillo aplanador, a smoothing hammer.

Yes The working surface of the flatter is about 2 1/2