jtm1811 Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Hey everyone... so I'm rather new to blacksmithing and I would like to invest in a set of Bolt Tongs. I have heard that they are useful for holding round stock and square stock nd railroad spikes which i would love to start making knives out of. However they come in a bunch of different sizes which i dont know what they mean. The sizes say BOLT TONG 4-5 mm (3/16”) x 300 mm (12”) REINS W/BALL ON END OF REINS C.S. i know that the 300mm is the rein length but idk what the 4-5mm part is? could someone plz point me in the right directon or tell me what size would be suitable to hold railroad spikes and other stuff... cheers, Jake Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ausfire Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 They seem very small for bolt tongs. What were some of the bigger sizes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John B Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 I think it would be safe to assume the 4-5mm (3/16") would be the diameter of the bolt or material they were made for. You would require one the size of the shank of the spike you are going to be using, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSW Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 RR spikes are usually about 5/8" square on the shank on average, so you are probably looking to get a pair of 5/8" bolt or spike tongs. Often the way tongs are made, you can usually hold the next size up reasonably well. With some tongs you can also hold the next size under, though on occasion with some difficulty. So say 1/2" tongs may work for 3/8" thru 5/8" material. This can be convenient when you need two tongs to work with the material. Say you need to get the work piece out of the forge, but then have to shift how you hold it to work the stock. I'll usually use the "wrong" size tong to grab it in the forge, then transfer the stock to the correct sized tong to work the material. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtm1811 Posted January 28, 2016 Author Share Posted January 28, 2016 10 hours ago, DSW said: RR spikes are usually about 5/8" square on the shank on average, so you are probably looking to get a pair of 5/8" bolt or spike tongs. Often the way tongs are made, you can usually hold the next size up reasonably well. With some tongs you can also hold the next size under, though on occasion with some difficulty. So say 1/2" tongs may work for 3/8" thru 5/8" material. This can be convenient when you need two tongs to work with the material. Say you need to get the work piece out of the forge, but then have to shift how you hold it to work the stock. I'll usually use the "wrong" size tong to grab it in the forge, then transfer the stock to the correct sized tong to work the material. Thanks for the help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forging Carver Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 No one size tongs is best. You can never have enough tongs as I am just figuring out and I'm pretty new to this! Anyways, for railroad spikes you want tongs that will hold 5/8" as DSW said, which is just under 16 mm. if you want a pair of tongs specifically for railroad spikes, check out this link. I'm not sure how well they work, but if they are specifically made for railroad spikes then I assume they will work for their intended purpose. Hope this helps you a bit. http://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/railroad-spike-tongs-18475.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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