December 20, 20169 yr Well it seems like everyone fabricates a fire set. This is my take on a timeless classic. My bride has wanted me to make one and I thought Xmas was the perfect chance. This 36" tail 4 piece set (poker, broom, shovel and tongs) was made completely from salvaged scrap with a little forge manipulation right down to the 2011 Harley Davidson horn cover that doubled as the shovel. Even the broom was made from one of my old bench brushes that was tossed in a box years ago. The handles are made up of square rod I twisted up for the classic effect (l dig twisting metal lol) and then did some wrapping of round rod for an added flare. The base is a brake rotor and all the rings came from a couple chairs I found at the scrap yard and cannibalized for parts. Even the little glass globe that looks like fire came from a curtain rod my bride through out (yep she's getting it back lol). Painted the whole thing with heat paint and it's done just in time for Xmas. Speacking of Xmas, I'd like to take a moment to wish all of you fine folks and your families a wonderful holiday season.
December 20, 20169 yr Wow nice work CT. Excellent work with the repurposing and styling. Love the chain upright. I bet that was fun to weld.
December 20, 20169 yr Totally cool. But I cant tell how the tongs work from that pic. Would you explain how they work. Maybe a pic too
December 20, 20169 yr Really brilliant design. I love how you adapted everything to fit your new purpose! Merry Christmas to you and yours.
December 20, 20169 yr A masterpiece, CT. I wonder at how you managed to keep that chain so straight! What is heat paint? Is that like engine enamel?
December 20, 20169 yr Nice fire set Ray. Soooo much better than Pier1. Don't let the Chinese see it or the new guys won't be able to find a brake rotor to make a forge with. Frosty The Lucky.
December 20, 20169 yr Author Thank you gents. Yes the chain was fun for sure. What I ended up doing was clamping a str8 edge to my welding table, then laying out the chain along the edge with the opposite link resting on the str8 edge with the opposing link running along the side of the str8 edge then with vise grips locking it down str8 and tight. After that I welded each link to the next one, two welds rack on the back of the chain only to keep it clean. Worked well. Heres a couple of close ups Kevin O so you can see better. I hit rivited it together and welded in the spacer/ catch at the top. Aus, heat paint is just 1500 BBQ grill paint.
December 20, 20169 yr Now I was wondering about 1 where the chain goes down and makes a spiral for the base with the upright from the center. I always seem to find chain at the scrapyard...
December 21, 20169 yr Author Yeah Thomas I thought about running it from the center similar to why you were thinking but then opted to use the lip on the rotor as a solid weld support and went that route.
December 21, 20169 yr Author 3 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: surely that won't be your last one! Well sir you are probably correct in saying that. Something similar perhaps as I'm not a fan of doing duplicates.
December 22, 20169 yr Interesting how you kept the chain straight. I thought you may have hung it from above with a heavy weight attached and welded it that way.
December 22, 20169 yr Author The weight idea is rather interesting but I'd be afraid of it moving about when trying to weld it. I felt that the best way was to lock it down as tight and as str8 as possible. Using the edge as a lip to rest the chain also ensured that I had each link lined up with every other link. I find that the less I hold and more I can clamp, the better my welds are which still isn't saying much lol!
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