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I Forge Iron

How to Forge Rectangular Blacksmiths Diamond


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That is a tough one..  When I served my apprenticeship  my boss made me sign a contract to not take customers when my service was over.. I told him, I have no interest.. 

when I left him after the 3 years I left cleanly..    year or so later he called and gave me some customers as I was the only person who did not take customers when it was over. 

I have a lot of respect for the guy, though he was tough to work for.  LOL..    It is funny how in 3 years you get to know a lot about someone.. 

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Over the years  4 of the people I have trained and became on of my foreman have started their own businesses  None in direct competition   2 of them  have later subcontracted work from me

I have been told that I used to be very hard to work for, but that i have changed somewhat.  One of the people I trained 25 years ago worked for several other companies and came back to me 5 years ago. He is now my right hand man   we worked out a sweat equity buy in deal so that he is fully invested

Many  people have received training at my shop and have used that as a spring board into what they thought would be a better job. Often times asking for their job back later. 

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It has been my observation that there are lots of folk who have craft or profession, medicine, law, plumbing, black smithing, mechanic, engineering, carpentry, etc,. who think they can better their financial position by striking out on their own and hanging out their own shingle.  They see their boss or company charging $X for their time but they are only being paid $Y which is only a fraction of $X.  Unfortunately, while they may be excellent at their profession or craft they are not very good at running a business which take a whole different tool box of skills than their profession or craft.  They are now dealing with expenses and head aches of running a business.  And if they hire someone to help them they are now a boss with all the paperwork and hassle that being an employer entails.  Even if they are successful they often find that most of their time is occupied with running the business rather than doing the profession or craft that they love doing.  Very often they go back to being an employee because they get to do what they love and are good at and leave the business head aches to the boss or company.

- My question is about the collar weld.  When you wrapped the 1/4" around the rod you left what looked like a significant gap.  As you weld the collar to the shaft does the collar metal move sideways and fill the gap and weld the gap in the ring shut?  I think that is what must happen but it is hard to see what the metal is doing when it is at white heat.

Thanks, very instructive video.

"By hammer and hand all arts do stand." 

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George, the space is so the collar will have complete contact with the shaft while it is being welded.

The gap as the item is welded closes up and once the collar is fully welded to the shaft the ends now in contact will weld.

Forge welding is pressure welding..  So if there is no gap the collar will weld to itself and will never weld to the shaft.  Each time you hit the collar trying to set the tack weld the bar will just act as a mandrel. 

I will at some point show a video on this..  I was thinking this would make a neat video.. :) showing how to make a butt welded collar on a mandrel. 


If you want to see the process you can check it out cold.  You can also see it some when I smooth the collar before the weld when it is still cold..  Because the metal collar gets longer as its it is made to fit tighter the gap closes slightly.   this can be used to advantage if the gap is to large. 

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11 hours ago, George N. M. said:

Unfortunately, while they may be excellent at their profession or craft they are not very good at running a business

Boy howdy did i learn that the hard way. I had my own shop for a while and failed miserably. I am no business man for sure. 

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 I just suggested this finial treatment in another thread and thought I should do so here as well. With slight modification this finial will make an outstanding foot for tables benches, etc. By modification I mean make the flat end opposite the shaft wider for a larger footprint. 

Very nice presentation Jennifer and your video production values are getting better with every video. Thank you for all the work involved. The only suggestion I have involves the bottom tools blocking the view of the action on the face. This second video with the longer swage especially blocked almost every thing you did on the face. The overhead angle went a long way to make up for it, but DARN IT ALL I want to see what you're doing! I was wishing I was watching from the other end of the anvil but your lighting is pretty close to perfect now so that's out. Maybe turn the anvil around for certain videos? Just a thought. 

A last word for others learning here who were lamenting not having a swage. You can use the angle between the step and face as a swage. Provided your anvil has a step of course. The step will also help you index the stock and make it a little easier to get and keep the cube oriented and even. 

Again,  WELL DONE! Jennifer. Thank you.

Frosty The Lucky.

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Frosty the next video or video #3 will be on the rectangular version of the finial.   I'll make it on a 1/2" round bar or maybe even 3/4" sq not sure how much I want to get into it. 


As for the video/presentation (Thanks you)... I'm just starting to do what I do while I demo, but now I'm more aware of the time frames at the anvil vs in reheat times..  When I demonstrate I'm talking during the reheat times.. So now I just save what would be said till the next anvil scene. :)  And thanks again.

I was going to suggest you look at the other screen..  but you had seen that..  If it were perfect no one would have anything to complain about..  :) LOL..  (joking, they would still find something)..   ( I was running 6 cameras the day of this filming).   I keep trying to figure out a way to minimize all the complexity..  it takes nearly 45minutes to setup the lights, setup the main 3D cameras, then setup the 3  PS (Personal sports ) cameras (which run off a single remote) this can save a bunch of time.. I can start and stop them all via remote instead of walking to each one..  (The film footage from the PS cameras are 1080P but still not as good as the 3D cameras.)

Also with the (Drift Innovations  Ghost S)  PS cameras I can hook up the Lavaliere mic which is what I did in this video.  Anyhow, there is a bunch of stuff behind the scenes that no one sees and is time consuming and complex.  this on top of editing. Nice thing is editing is faster now. 

As for swages and such in the anvil and blocked views.. There is no room in the trailer..  the distance from the camera to the horn is only about 10"   People really do forget it's a trailer.. LOL.   Once the shop is up, there will be a whole different vibe/area.  Then the cameras and lights and the whole video gig can be different.

your suggestion on the swage is a good one.

I don't usually forge the swages with integral shanks.   I make them by welding on a shank and I like my swages to completely go across the face of the anvil.. I do not like a short little swage..  This anvil has not had any tooling made for it.. All the tooling fits the 175lbs Hay Budden the way its supposed to so they don't move around.. 

I dislike tapers on the shanks of the swages for that very reason.. I use the side of the anvil a lot for forming/forging so dislike highly when the stuff moves all over.. 

This anvil will have tooling made for it, once its moved into the shop.. I suppose if I am bored I could make some tooling, but wait Anvil wanted me to make another section of gate, now that I have been out of retirement for a few years..  LOL..  Forging a few times a month I have excelled back into professional status.   LOL..  


All the peeps will be in for a treat once the shop is done.. LOL.. (when it's done)..  Things they are achangin. 

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When the shop is done     I see the first video-------- video series !   JLP Services Presents  "Anvil Tooling"    What to make.  Why you need it.  How to make it.

As for the filming---MInd Blown    6 cameras    I take pictures of things when they are done when I remember.   I can't even comprehend the amount of time and patience to set up and then edit feed from 6 cameras.

Thank You Very Much    for taking the time , money,  and patience to teach the audience that you reach.  The same audience who may take it for granted with no thought to gratitude let alone compensation for your efforts!  You may have just come out of retirement  but you still know how to ride that bike. And your desire to share with others the knowledge that you have earned/learned is laudable.   

Thanks for your efforts

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6 cameras. Wow. I can't imagine. I can't imagine even making a video. BillyBones had said I should make one for forging forks. Everyone should just watch your video for making forks because that is where I learned it from. So  if I do them good at all, the credit goes to you Jennifer. Thanks for everything because that is just one thing I picked up from you

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You shot that in the trailer eh? Hmmmm, I suppose you're not going to turn your anvil around for me then. <sigh>  Just joking I should've realized where you're shooting and know how tightly you have your anvil tied down. 

Some friends and I used to make movies when we were in Jr. high and we thought editing 8mm. film was tough. Yeah, pre Super8, I'm THAT old. What own your own personal TV camera?! HAH don't make me laugh, isn't COLOR:o television enough? 

Lighting, 6 cameras remote controls, editing, and lord knows what else. . . Guess I'll just wait patiently and see what you come up with next. 

Frosty The Lucky.

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Old Crew..  Probably not on the swages.. I just take some 1x1 sq or 1.5X1,  tig or mig a shank on. Heat it up in the forge. Put in what ever depression or form I want and call it a day.  I don't even bother with tool steels.   A36 or even 1018 works perfectly..   

If I need something that will keep it's shape for details I will use a piece of HC welded onto the face or will case harden it. 

Super easy and can end up with exactly what I want.  I don't forge swages any more unless it's going to be something special. 

Your welcome. 

the 6 cameras were for this last time. I didn't want to miss any footage and also wanted to do a comparision between the cameras..  I like the 3d cameas but don't have the same features as the PS ones..  They do film better and I love 3D film footage..  it completely changes the depth concept and then one can really see what is happenign with the steel.  Lots of details are missed with 2D.. 

Thanks CGL for the credit..   I always feel its' a group effort..  I put the videos out and then its up to the people to use the info.   Thanks for the shout back.. :) 

Frosty.. I keep trying to figure out a way that I can put in a second hardie hole that won't cost me as much as a new anvil..  I don't like the hardie hole to the right.. it is one of the largest advantages with being a righty and having the horn to the right.. On most anvils this puts the hardie way over to the left all by itself.. :) yeah!!!.. 

I own a Panasonic GH5, 8 of the 3D cameras, 5 of the PS cameras 8 video lights, 2 lavalier mics, 40 batteries,  etc, etc. 

I'd love to have another GH5 as they take such nice footage.. I just can't justify spending 1200.00 on a camera to make videos for free... Not when you consider what all these things have costed over the last few years..   A new anvil and new trunnion mounted swage block and a few other gizmos..  Or another power hammer.. LOL..  

Anyhow, wil just have to see how things work out.  




 

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I could not view the video so I may have to wait. As for the hardy tooling that is how I had planned on making them also. On my last steel order I got a stick of 1-1/2 square solid that fits my hardy hole. 20 feet should make more hardies than I need.

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Old Crew, I have several anvils with large hardy holes and a trick I came up with to make tooling for them easily and cheap is to buy damaged top tools---mushroomed striking ends and splits down into the eye sort of stuff and then forge the striking end to fit the hardy holes.  I have a large screwpress that does a sweet job of making opposite sides flat, even and parallel, so I hammer them close and then true up with the screw press. It seems that the using ends do pretty well and it's the striking ends that get battered; (or perhaps the ones where the face gets ruined are scrapped and the ones with just battered striking ends are retained...artifact of preservation.)

One Quad-State a fellow had a table of hardy tooling with the messed up ones dirt cheap---like a US$1 and I stocked up on stuff I use a lot. Much handier for me than getting the swage block out. (For ones not so messed up I can always drift the eye back open for a handle if I wanted to...)

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