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I think the originals may have been lost in the great software glitch of 2015 (along with so many others, alas). Glad they got saved elsewhere, so that they could be reposted here. Do you remember which IFI member posted these, so we can give them credit?

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My photos from pre-glitch are still in the IFI system, all there stacked up in my personal profile.  The link between them and the publicly visable thread seems to be what's broken.  

 

Not to pour water on this nice hot thread, but I sold my treadle hammer the month after buying my fly press.  7 years ago now, haven't regeted getting rid of it for a moment!  If you are going to build a mechanical hammer, might as well hook an electric motor to it!

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No power to the fly press unless you count arm strength and electric lights.  

If you would like to borrow an electrical power cord I'll bring one to the spring meet.  (GRIN)  In fact, I probably have enough that we could run power from your neighbor's place to the trailer, we could hide the cords under the snow.  

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On 12/31/2017 at 9:44 PM, Judson Yaggy said:

I sold my treadle hammer the month after buying my fly press.  7 years ago now, haven't regretted getting rid of it for a moment!  

 A flypress  is a whole other beast than a treadle hammer. Ones a push and a bump , the others a single or multiple hit . Each has it's purpose and best use.

I use them both a lot and like all the various options available. I've made about a hundred tools specifically to fit the flypress and about an equal number to use under the treadle hammer.

The nice thing about a treadle hammer is you can set a hand held  tool on the work in just the right spot and  drive it in with whatever power is appropriate and then follow it up with another tool for a second or third  operation all in one heat.

Even though it only hits straight down , a treadle hammer  can give angled blows to the work  by the manipulation of various fullering or  block tools.

The flypress excels at being set up to do a single operation to multiple similar pieces at a time, less so for one offs where the stock is changing section rapidly.

Big section and volume changes in the material is where a power hammer is the tool of choice.

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Ever use an electro-mechanical flypress?  A friend of mine uses one for coining.  Most flypresses don't have a problem with thickness of the stock; once you have accelerated the mass the hit is the same over a wide range. Now if it's too thick to be able to get the weight up to speed that will make a difference.

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  • 3 months later...

Fascinating info in this thread.

Just curious: for light work, have folks ever reversed the principle and simple taken a big sledge (20lbs or more), created a pivot point at the back of the handle and with a leg lever/pulley system simply lifted the head to drop it on the anvil? I realize you lose a lot of added leg power that comes from contributing to the downward force on a regular treadle hammer but would the notion of a leg-powered drop sledge have any merit or would even a 20lb sledge being dropped 10-12” inches not create any sort of useful forging power? 

* I’m an Art History major so my understanding of Physics and the like is non-existent! 

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I’ve got some nasty tendonitis in the old elbows so it got me re-interested in assisted hammering. No power hammers for me but I do have plans for a Treadle Hammer. Not sure about whether that would be overkill for the relatively light work I do (hammers, knives, etc). Plus, there is the impact on the knees from the downstroke (kind of akin to the impact on the arm/shoulder from a Fly Press). So I was wondering if there was any logic to using the leg muscles to lift the weight and drop it, rather than drive it downwards. Not as powerful, by any means, but is dropping a 20lb sledge on hot iron from a height of 10-12” useful at all or not really? 

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Not at all..  The key is to find a design that will offer everything you want..     Ideally I'd suggest you start your own thread on the making or information search.. 

I've posted a few vintage hammers all ready here and if it were me I'd go with a balanced design vs a spring only design,  Also a one hit function and adjustable head height.. 

Eventually I will be making one but not today..   

In answer to your question.. No,  a dropped weight becomes an uncontrolled hammer.. it is designed for a given size of stock.. The only way then to control it is to increase or decrease weight..  

 

A proper foot hammer (which is what they are really called) vs Treadle hammer..  can be used for fine or heavy hits based on how much leg strength and body weight you can put into it (at least the design I will do)   The older hammers use the bounce of the head coupled with the leg to create the strike.. Some incorporate a toggle like action that will increase the snap of the head.. 

Anyhow, do a google patent search for Foot hammer, Treadle hammer,  and you will pull up a whole bunch.. 

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Great info. Thanks.

 

Regarding the dropped weight, in theory you could control it a bit by how high you lift it, right? Again I know that this whole idea of a hinged large sledge is a less than ideal solution (low power, minimal control, slow repetitions) but in light of this overall thread I’m just curious about all the reasons why. 

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I think that image is from the video series Christ Centered Ironworks did about the “Hardy Hammer” that he built. I won’t post the link (it violates the TOS prohibition against linking to religious content), but it’s easy enough to find on YouTube.

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Yup, that is a board drop..  the problem with this design in a foot operated affair is how to keep flywheels moving in order to lift the board..  there are several different designs for " Foot operated hammers" but they only differ in layout..    Its the human condition that our bodies only move a certain way..  legs for the most part are up and down with circular thrown in..

you could setup a ratchet type arrangement to raise the weights and then an adjustable release point but I think or feel it would offer little in terms of efficiency when there are working examples of foot hammers out there.. 

Foot hammers will help with developing balance and leg strength for sure..

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