Suppressive-Fire Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 So I have a long family friend that was cleaning out his barn and found blacksmith stuff that he wanted to scrap metal. So I bought some of it and was given some of it. He first gave me a 70ish lbs kohlswa anvil. Then he sold me this anvil and vise combo for $20 after that I asked him about this 5 1/2 inch leg vise. He said he was going to leave it with the house and I had to talk him into selling it to me for $40. and he sold me the grinding wheel for $60. I think he hooked me up. I have cross pen hammers and ball pen hammers. I think all that is left is a forge. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 a forge is quite easy to make where are you ( USA at a guess ) in your area what kind of fuel can you get easiest? propane, charcoal, coke any restrictions on the type of forge you can use? hole in the ground and a hair dryer can work brake drum forge 50 gallon drum forge gassers of many types Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 21, 2014 Author Share Posted June 21, 2014 I live in central california. Idk what I can burn or what fuel is most accessible. I didn't even think about fuel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keganthewhale Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 If you put your location on your profile there are often smiths close by who help each other out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 21, 2014 Author Share Posted June 21, 2014 Ok my location is up. I was wondering of I should put a wire brush on my angle grinder and clean up the vises and anvil then paint them black? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 using them is what cleans them best DONT PAINT YOUR ANVIL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keganthewhale Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 Being in CA, where coal is either hard to find or expensive when found, I would suggest propane. That is unless you have plenty of space and access to pallets or lots of wood to be turned into charcoal with a retort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elemental Metal Creations Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 Do NOT use the anvilvice as an anvil, it is fairly thin cast iron and will break fairly easy. I don't believe that there are a lot of them aroud for that reason. Does that one say Miller Falls on it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 No miller falls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 Element. Do you think the surface of the anvil vise is ok to punch leather holes on? Also should I clean it with a wire brush and spray paint it black. And also on the kohlswa anvil should I take a wire brush to that and put bees wax on it to keep it from rust? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 Punch holes in leather on another surface, The anvil is designed to support hot metal when it is being hit with a hammer, not punching holes in leather. But it is YOUR anvil and you may do with it as you wish. Have you tried hammering on hot metal on that anvil? How did the surface clean up after forging on the anvil? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 I meant to say that maybe on the anvil vise combo I can us that surface for leather work since it is a thin cast iron and can break easy. But I plan on using the kohlswa anvil for blacksmithing. I haven't gotten around to using the anvil yet. I need to set up shop still. I am moving soon because I am running out of space in my house and garage. I plan on buying a home with a shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 for punching leather a soft surface is better like a block of nylon or other plastic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 Punching holes in leather on that vise's flat will quickly destroy your punches. They aren't going to like being driven into the iron! I wouldn't do anything more to the vises than simply mounting them solidly and using them. Paint is nice, but a rust coat is also protective. A spritz with oil every now and then will keep the rust from growing. As for the anvil, mount it and get to working hot iron. Don't need no fancy coatings on the sides. That's a huge chunk of steel and will take a thousand years to rust away to nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinobi Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 welcome aboard! you have an absurd head start on the gear front right there! im highly jealous of that grinding wheel :) i agree, propane is probably going to be your best bet, its just that much easier to get and store. look up the California Blacksmith Association, there are a number of smiths in central CA that would probably love to have you in their shop for some mentoring :) lot of options for forges too, pack a lunch and read the section, you will find something that works for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ausfire Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 I have a big block of lead (formed in an old biscuit tin) on which to punch holes in leather. (It is also very handy to test eye punches and the like to see how they look before using on hot metal).BTW, you got some really good deals there - and that Swedish anvil is an absolute gem. It will serve you well. (And, no, don't paint it! Use it!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arftist Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 I would like to see more pictures of the grinder....how is it powered? Does it have an electric motor? If yes, what RPMs is the motor? What are the diameters of all the pulleys? It is critical that a wheel that large is not spun too fast. Potentially deadly. Please, Please do not plug it in without answering these questions. Knowing the RPMs of the motor, and the reduction of the gear train, it can be determined whether is is safe to use as is or not. I am dead serious about this, DO NOT PLUG THAT THING IN. If it is foot powered then ignore all this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notownkid Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 I grew up in an old Livery Stable in Vermont where we Restored Carriages and repaired harness and saddle stuff. We had a number of 18" x 18" x 1" pieces of granite with a soft pine board on top of it to bunch our holes into leather. Kept using the pine until it was used up threw it in the kilning bucket and got a new short piece from scrap. Of course we were only 30 miles from Granite Quarries. Wish I knew what happened to those pieces of Granite but it's been nearly 60 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beammeupscotty Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 notownkid is right on the mark with his suggestions regarding punching leather. Leatherworkers these days tend to do their carving with a granite slab as backer and put some sort of wooden or plastic block on the granite if they need to use a driven type punch. You could also use use a hand punch, which is what I do most of the time. Contrary to what some here have suggested, coal and coke are not all that hard to come by in California, mostly because we have a very active organization, the CBA and many professional smiths buy fuel by the ton and are willing to sell smaller amounts to CBA members. I buy coal in Brisbane which is just south of San Francisco at Lazarri, which also sells a lot of mesquite lump charcoal. There is also a guy east of Sacramento who sells coke to CBA members. I am sure you will be able to find it in your area as well. Join the CBA. If you are out in the valley, keep your eyes peeled for an old commercial coal forge. There are plenty of them around, you just have to wait for the right price. I bought mine at a scrap yard in Wheatland which is in the valley north of Sacto and only paid $200.00 for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 25, 2014 Author Share Posted June 25, 2014 I pluged the grinder in and it works fine. LOL. I can post more pictures later when I have more time in the week. I am so happy you all are helping me out with good information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arftist Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 I pluged the grinder in and it works fine. LOL. I can post more pictures later when I have more time in the week. I am so happy you all are helping me out with good information. Glad you think it is funny, it could easily have been the last thing you ever did. Why come to a panel of exerts for advice and then ignore and laugh at their advice? I still recommend you submit the statistics I asked for; your wheel could be one small nick away from violently exploding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beammeupscotty Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 Glad you think it is funny, it could easily have been the last thing you ever did. Why come to a panel of exerts for advice and then ignore and laugh at their advice? I still recommend you submit the statistics I asked for; your wheel could be one small nick away from violently exploding. While there is some justification for your concerns, it is very unlikely that the motor attached to this thing is going to spin it fast enough for it to be dangerous. Judging from the picture, I think he has at least a 1:6 ratio and it could be as much as 1:10. Given a common 1800 rpm motor that means in a worst case he might be spinning that wheel at 300 rpm and could be as slow as 180 rpm. With a 1200 rpm motor it would be even less. All that said, I too would highly recommend to the OP that he read the nameplate motor speed and also measure the diameter of the two pulley wheels and post that here so it can be evaluated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beammeupscotty Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 Being in CA, where coal is either hard to find or expensive when found, I would suggest propane. That is unless you have plenty of space and access to pallets or lots of wood to be turned into charcoal with a retort. I pay $27.50 for a 50 lb. bag of blacksmithing pea coal and have to drive about 25 miles to get it. If I drive about 80 miles I can buy nut size coke for $25.00 for a 50 lb. bag. I don't know where you live, but I have not seen significantly lower prices anywhere else in the county. Blacksmith Depot has pea coal for $25.00 a bag. That's pretty close to what I pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arftist Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Posted 12 October 2009 - 09:30 PM I almost died today. I took my old pedal powered stone sharpening wheel and hooked it up roughly to my belt grinder motor, set on the middle speed pulley configuration, it was running smooth and true. I put a piece of steel to the wheel while it was running, I was off to the side not sitting on the seat. If I had been sitting in the seat I would either be in the hospital in a vegetative state from a crushed in skull or laying in a bed with massive blunt trauma, or dead laying in my shop until someone found me. The stone exploded, and when I say exploded I don't mean it came apart I mean it exploded with a bang, broke into 4 main pieces and in line with how it was spinning. 2 small chunks went through my roof, 1 chunk went through my small ryobi wood bandsaw and embedded chunks of stone and the bandsaw itself into the 2x4 shelf beam behind it, another main chunk flew into my KMG motor which was powering the grinder and put a 1/2" deep 2 1/4" round dent into it and broke off the magnet inside and pulverized the wireing box on the front, the other 2 main chunks and small bits went into the wall and pulverized. A split second after it exploded I went running out of the shop, seeing the directions and sizes of the pieces after the aftermath I was lucky I was not hit by a ricocheting piece that could have seriously damaged my body or killed me. In hindsight it did not seem that stupid an idea, but thinking deeper a natural sandstone(?) wheel as compared to the vitrified wheels that run just fine 3 times as fast on my bench grinder was not a smart idea. If you own one of these grinders, do not attempt to motorize it. I thankfully made it through this event unscathed, but it could have been worse in more ways than it could not have. '?do=embed' frameborder='0' data-embedContent>> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suppressive-Fire Posted June 26, 2014 Author Share Posted June 26, 2014 I plugged it in when the owner of it sold it to me and was telling me how it still runs. I wasn't trying to mock anyone or laugh at anyone. I am very appreciative of everyone's advice. Thank you all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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