masonry trowel ?

[Pug}{maN]

got all the brick to face the forge....

 

 

 

 

now i need to make a trowel to apply the mortar, any one ever make one ? need some direction.... looks EZ but what stock do i start with ? and any other hents ?

 

[Timothy Miller]

The book "the Edge of the anvil" shows the process.  Its a really all about peeing out the metal thin good job for a cross peen hammer.  Get a piece of hardnable steel something springy like 1070 or 5160.  Start with a bar something like 1/4" by 1 1/2" by 5"  fuller in on both sides about 1" from the end draw this down to a point this will be your tang. Draw down a blunt point on the other end of the bar to form the tip of the trowel but make sure it stays a uniform thickness. because when you peen it out it will be a more uniform shape.  hammer the back side of the trowel near the tang into asymmetrical diamond shape of the finished trowel but keep a uniform thickness.  This is your preform it should peen out to a somewhat even shape if you are careful.  Start peening start in the center and work your way out work carefully.  leave a rib down the center near the tang to stiffen the tool.  This accomplished using the edge of the anvil as a fuller slightly off the center line on each side of the tang.  Once you have peened the material to the proper thickness about 1/16" planish it with a flat faced hammer.   File or grind to the final shape harden and temper for a spring temper.  This is the classic way it was done for a professional high quality tool.  You also could rivet on a tang and use a piece of work hardened mild steel sheet its up to you.  This is not a beginner project more like intermediate skill level.  

[781]

Marshaltown trowel in IA used to use Nazel hammers to make there trowels.
I believe when they switched to more automation they had 3 3B hammers that Bob Bergman bought and 3 smaller hammers 1B and 2B which went to Minnesota.
None of this helps you making a trowel and it would be more cost effective to buy one but of course that would not be the point of it would it now.
Good luck on making one and lets see pictures when it is done.

[VaughnT]

Maybe cut the blade out of a plow or old saw and forge-weld a tang on it?  

[ThomasPowers]

Or how about an old shovel---the ones that were heat treated? In reality good trowel is a precision tool and making one as a starter project will be hard to get a good one.