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I Forge Iron

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interesting story: I never found to many forging tools around me because all the old tools that the smiths had been donated to museums. we just found out that in the local town of daysland, someone had the original trip hammer and anvil that the old German smith used to own, and the guy was selling them! we went to see the machines and it turned out it was a little giant trip hammer 25lbs, and a 190 ish... peter wright.(very exiting). they were for sale at a good price, and plain and simple, there ours. I am very lucky to have a family very much into blacksmithing, and I cant wait to help pay for it.(mental message: make lots of bottle openers)^_^

 

I have cleaned out space for these workhorses and will be doing a video once the arrive. I have a couple of questions. again this is a 25 little giant (I think), can it just be set on the ground or dose it need to be bolted down. help appreciated! 

 

Ethan

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You are one lucky guy Ethan, I'd like to meet and shake your parent's hands. They not only support you're ambitions but YOU appreciate it.

Did you get a chance to stand next to the LG and pretend to be operating it? No it's not a kid thing it's about getting a feel for a piece of machinery. My father taught me how to figure out how to operate strange machinery bu first tracing the controls then pretending to operate it before turning it on.

Specifically to your new LG you want to note it's working height, you want to be able to lay the work on the bottom die level and at a comfortable working height for you. In my case this is about waist high, other folk have different comfortable working heights but that's mine.

You'll find most LGs were build in a day when folk weren't as tall as we are now, my 50lb. LG had a working height almost at the bottom of my pant's pocket so I bolted it to 4"x12"  beams laid on their sides and through bolted together. This raised it to a good height for me and enlarged the hammers footprint. I have it anchored in position with a peg in a gozinta to keep it from walking in use. It still rocks but can't go anywhere.

I wouldn't put even a 25 LG on a dirt floor, the normal motion of the hammer in use will dig a hole and it'll just get worse. At a  minimum I'd build it a timber foundation and mount the hammer on a timber base similar to the one I put on mine. You don't need to go as far as some of the recommendations, the LG company's recommendations are over designed significantly. There are a couple reasons I believe, first being liability, they didn't want their name connected to failures and second these were going into factories and being use for 6/10s. Local smithies probably used one almost full time just sharpening plow shears, the stock dies for a 50lb. LG are for sharpening plow shears.

Okay, the first pic is me checking it out in Moose Pass. As you can see the top of the bottom die is pretty low well below my comfortable working level.

Is_this_loud.thumb.jpg.d579c64090b8d5578

The second pic is the base, glued ad through bolted with all thread. You have to be careful the allthread doesn't interfere with the hammer's tie down bolts.

Hammer_base_01.thumb.jpg.d2db5a3715d9b8d

The third pic shows the base bolted to the hammer, the steel strap stock is to back the bolts and help tie the 4" x 12" beams.

Hammer_base_02.thumb.jpg.7342d1dcba8d416

The last pic shows it from the top and how much the base enlarges the hammer's foot print. Were I to do this again I'd make the base with 3 ea. 4" x 12" and extend it at least 6" in front of the hammer base. This would not only make a more stable hammer but give me a comfortable place to rest my foot when using the treadle. As it stands right now I had to attach a treadle extension to get it low enough to use.

LG_base_top.thumb.jpg.d667ba07317e4dc638

This is NOT the only way to put a LG on a base, it's just how I did it and I'd make changes if I did it again. It sits on a 8" double reinforced concrete slab in my shop. The physics that makes most mechanical hammers want to walk is the sideways motion of the crank, crank arms, springs, etc. (Laterally reciprocating mass) All that mass being moved side to side near the top of the hammer has a lot of moment of leverage and causes them to rock side to side. There are lots of ways to stop them from going walk about, rubber mats help a lot but if I were setting one up on a dirt floor I'd bolt a 2"x2"x6" angle iron flange flush with the bottom on each corner with a hole just the right size to drive a length of rebar through into the ground. Basically spike it down. The spikes would have to be pretty long, I'd say 12" minimum and forging them yourself is sort of traditional don'tchaknow. <grin>

Okay, I'm going to sign off before I get into a serious ramble.

Frosty The Lucky.

 

 

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When are you going to start offering lessons Ethan? Those are some pretty good looking tools. The cupping tool could use some cleanup or it'll mar the work and you'll have to do more grinding on the turning pein.

Frosty The Lucky.

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My pleasure Ethan.

I think your cup tool is probably deep enough, just a little rough inside. What problem does it have? The rough patch is from not brushing the scale off during forging. No big thing.

Frosty The Lucky.

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Time to make yourself a flatter for use with the power hammer. Looks good though.

Ditto the flatter. It's a darned good looking top fuller, I'll bet the next one will look WAY better.

I think it could use a little longer working end and a little curve to the fuller. It'll work a treat as she is though.

Nicely done Ethan.

Frosty The Lucky.

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Power hammer toold look a bit odd, as they tend to lack the striking seface your used to, if you score a peice of axle from a hevey duty truck (1.9-2.2" cut of a "square" section (tall as it is wide) and split it in half weld on a handle and you now have a combination drawing die and flater depending on wich way you flip it. Fullers are much the same, 

Edited by Charles R. Stevens
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Power hammer toold look a bit odd, as they tend to lack the striking seface your used to, if you score a peice of axle from a hevey duty truck (1.9-2.2" cut of a "square" section (tall as it is wide) and split it in half weld on a handle and you now have a combination drawing die and flater depending on wich way you flip it. Fullers are much the same, 

Thanks for sharing this. I'm going to try it this weekend. We have 3 wonderful scrap yards in San Antonio that allow you to scrounge and the two biggest are just down the street from each other. I ALWAYS find good stuff and I know I'll find some heavy duty truck axle.

I don't have a power hammer but I'll still make good use of it.

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