Hi,
I am a high school student In a Materials class which combines metal and wood shop. I am required to make a project which has 80 percent of one material and 20 percent of another (but does not have to be exact percents). I have access to a forge and anvil at home and would like to continue on learning even after my class is over. I would like to build something in my class to help me out in this hobby. Any help would be great keeping in mind my two materials the project has to include.

Materials that I can use include but are not limited to:

Metal
Wood
Concrete
Tile

I would like my prominent material to be metal and i would like to be able to forge it. I have no experience in forging but am willing to learn.
Any Help would be great!

Thanks,
Eagle

make a table/plant stand and use a concrete paver for the top they make square ones and round ones

Eagle,
How much time do you have to accomplish the project? The more time you have the more you can learn:) That will greatly effect the composition of the end result. Flowers of some sort with a wood base are well within reach with a modest amount of time to learn basics.

John

I have around 9 weeks to finish it. I was thinking of maybe a hammer but i don't know how long it would take or if it would be too hard

Give us some idea as to your forging experience and skill, as well as your wood working experience and skill.

i have no skill in forging but in wood working i have helped my dad make my house, a shed, boxes and other various items

Go to IForgeIron.com > Lessons in Metalworking > Blacksmithing. The Lessons help the self motivated to learn now to get stated in blacksmithing.

IForgeIron.com > Blueprints are over 500 how to tutorials with step-by-step instructions.

Figure out what fuel you have available and build a forge to use that fuel. Ask questions early and often and the folks on the site will try to get you answers.

A coat rack with a square wooden post and forged hooks and feet. A shelf to hang near the door with a place to put hats on the shelf and forged brackets and hooks below. A CD rack with a "V" shaped wooden trough and forged feet and ends. I have also seen some nice iron and wooden bookends. Just look at some magazines and catalogs that show things that people use to decorate there homes and you will see lots of items made of wood and iron. Forging a hammer would be cool, but I would not have wanted to try that as my first project.

BP0267 Collars, Half collars, or Clips

Leah has some good ideas there. And some sound advise on the hammer.

John

Thanks for all your ideas guys! I am hearing the coat rack and wall hangers the most so i think that i will maybe consider one of those. I have heard about making flowers and was curious if that would be an option for maybe the ends of the hooks. Is that an option or should i just stick to the basic idea? Thanks again.

Eagle,

In blueprint #313, the hooks that hold the curtain rod up could be made longer in the straight part, so the hole to put the screw through and the little pig tail are further apart. Then, you could make a flower something like the one in blueprint #1005, and put the screw through the center of the flower and the hook. Or, look at blueprints #455 and #401. You could make a rose or a leaf (you don't have to use a railroad spike, just use round our square stock and make a pig tail on the end) and make a hook from the stem. Don't worry if you can't get a screw into the center of the rose, you can widen out the stem just under the rose and drill a hole in it there. We would LOVE to see pictures when you get it made.

You could make a perfectly good hammer without heavy forging. Get a block of steel about 1 1/2" square and 4 -5" long, drill a hole in the center for the handle to go through, start about 1/4" dia and work up to 3/4" dia hole. Heat enough to drift the eye out from both sides to an hourglass shape. Quench when done. Use a bench belt sander to smooth and round out the faces. Sand the handle to fit tight in the eye, insert, wedge, and there you go.

How about a wooden tool box with ornate hand forged hinges and hasp?

Eagle Make A Branding Iron !
80% Iron 20% Cow Hide!
I Bet They Don't Fuss About The Lack Of Cow Hide!!!!

The blue prints in this site have many projects that might help, good luck. Ralphy :)

Eagle, I don't have a project for you just a note of congratulation on taking a class that teaches you to use your hands. None of the high schools out here have shop any more, very few of the middle schools and it not until university that you can choose to take a materials class. Art class is very sketchy if you catch my drift in high school. All high schools teach college preparatory classes only but there is one speciality high school for some trades but that is it and they don't tell parents about it unless their child has failed everything else. Once again congratulations.