philip in china Posted August 18, 2008 Share Posted August 18, 2008 One thing I save is offcuts from shortening bolts. Those little stumps of threaded steel forge into excellent wedges for hammers. The slight ridges left on the edges from the old threads seem just to make them hold tighter in the hammer handle. I bought some wedges about 10 years ago and they are still in the original bubble pack as I have had no need to open them yet. My wooden wedges are made from broken drum sticks that a pal of mine saves for me. They are maple so are very good for the purpose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johannes Posted August 18, 2008 Share Posted August 18, 2008 really like the style of this work!!! I use only reclaimed materials for all of my products. Everything from old farm/heavy equipment to discarded furniture. A woodworking friend and I recently purchased 14,000 linear ft of Bankari and Brazilian walnut that was rejected at a lumber yard due to yard damage and customer rejection. All of this was destined to be cut up and headed for the dumpster. Everything (well almost) gets used. The small drop from larger projects gets turned into smaller pieces or used as components It's amazing what's out there if you have a little imagination. Here's a couple of pics of what it gets used for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archie Zietman Posted August 18, 2008 Author Share Posted August 18, 2008 (edited) Beaverdam that is great! I am very impressed! You might want to try insulating with koawool and then satanite or apg 36. I was using just koawool, but putting a coat of apg 36 over everything upped my fuel efficiency quite a bit. You might get your forge hotter that way. EDIT: also, how did I manage to totally miss that thread's existence? It gives me joy (the thread, not its' lack). Edited August 18, 2008 by Archie Zietman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chyancarrek Posted August 18, 2008 Share Posted August 18, 2008 really like the style of this work!!! Thanks Johannes! The trunk was made from the Bankari for a fellow who wanted hope-chests made for his grand kids ( I built three for him) The copper bowl was made from drop left over from signs made for a local Credit Union The bowl with riveted copper was made from drop that was left over from other projects in my shop I cast the fire-dancer chalices from some discarded aluminum racing wheels. The most enjoyable thing about using reclaimed materials is coming up with ideas about how it can be used! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philip in china Posted August 20, 2008 Share Posted August 20, 2008 Another favourite of mine is dirty engine sump oil. Use it for treating timber to stop it rotting. Mix with 50% creosote. If you get trouble with kids climbing over a fence leave out the creosote. The oil never quite dries so the kids get plastered with dirty oil. Their mother then suddenly takes control and stops them doing it again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeaverDamForge Posted August 20, 2008 Share Posted August 20, 2008 (edited) I'm not sure how well that would go over around here. The oil and contaminants might leach into ground water supplies. Dumping oil on the ground (not to mention sewers) has been illegal for years AFAIK, and the EPA is fairly good at finding the source. Good Luck! Edited August 20, 2008 by BeaverDamForge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new guy Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 :rolleyes:i personally reuse anything andeverything. i have an old sewer pipe forge. a worn out brake rotor forge, and an old tailpipe as an airsupply. i have a very nice 100 odd year old anvil, in pretty good shape too. and i burn scrap lumber and wood chips. and i have 2nd or 3rd hand tongs. i think i might be an eco friendly blacksmith. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentiron1946 Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 "I live in rural China. Do you really want to see how we reuse waste?" Philip in China. I can guess some of it. Night soil for fertilizer is one example and the others I don't want to go there. I recycle all the grass and leaves into compost for the garden plus horse and cow manure. I would use oak and pecan pallets for fire wood, pine pallets were for use in the outside fire pit. Saw dust from woodworking goes into a separate compost pile as it take more nitrogen to breakdown and I let the termites turn it into soil.:cool: I scrounge the piles of trash put out for bulk trash pick up for metal, if I can use it and if not I take it to recycling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dablacksmith Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 well my favorite recycled product is useing potatoe digger rods... they are a tool that is like a conveyor belt 1/2 in steel rods made from 5160! the ones i like are 3 ft long before the bends (they hook into each other at bolth ends) i use um for a lot of things mostly dinner triangles tho they ring real good! i also use garage door springs for smaller steel projects (strikers small knives ect..) I figure that is just part of blacksmithing tho... its perfectly good steel why not use it .... and the price is usually ....FREE!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ameling Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 The sheet iron I start with for my sheet iron pipes is the rectangular cut-outs/drops from making steel household doors. The piece is cut out to form the hole for the Mail Slot. So I salvaged a bunch of the drops. After sanding/grinding the paint off of them, it's good sheet iron for cold forging. I also use a lot of push lawn mower blades. They are generally made from either 1084 or 5160. They make up into good flint strikers, knife blades, and draw knives or scorps for wood working. I also use a lot of "agricultural" steel. So much of it is made from 1080 carbon steel. Like plow shares, cultivator points, disc blades, mower knives, hayrake teeth, etc. How to use the stuff is limited only by your imagination. Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saintjohnbarleycorn Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 lawn mower blades also, thanks for letting me know what steel they are. Use them for making garden tools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new guy Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 i also have heard that rr spikes are good for holding an anvil in place. i have just done so on a new stump. i cannot say how well they last, but they worked well the first time i used them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PICKETTR Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 I had found an archived thread of yours about a gasifier you tried. Are there any pics posted anywhere? I'm using an updraft gasifier with chips of Virginia Pine (grows like crazy here, pretty useless for anything else). Elmer Roush told me he makes his charcoal from the scraps of a cabinetmaking business. Almost all the steel I use is scrap. Good Luck! I would like to show you what can be made out of Virginia Pine. (this is a project that I worked on at a Historic Farm in Charlotte, NC. The shingles are white oak. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rlarkin Posted May 21, 2009 Share Posted May 21, 2009 Not realy smithing but still metal, and I do use my anvil and shaping block if that counts. I make these from either Freon tanks, or NOS tanks for smog machine calibration. I like the NOS tanks better because the Freon tanks have an oil residue in them. The ears and nose are 2" banding I collect at work. Eye lashes are pieces of concrete wire. tails are Pencil rod. Legs are scraps of emt I collect from some of my customers, and the eyes are 7/8" nuts with the head of a 3/8" carriage bolt in the center. The only thing I buy is the paint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammerkid Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 Well to start off with ,my forge hood is a old small water heater tank. My forge is built from droppings. My gas forge is built from a old 20lb. propane bottle. All my punchs and chisels are made from old coil spring. I make a lot of knives out of old files and old horse shoe rasps, and mower blade. my hot cut for my euro anvil was made out f 1 3/4" coild spring, my mouse hole hot cut is made from old truck axle. My shop is built with "scrap" 2x4s from my uncles work which where thrown out as scraps but were extras. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
48willys Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 (edited) My table for the forge was made from a conveyor frame,The vise stand was from a round bailer,wood stove,steam pipe,and some scraps,I had to buy the chain for the legs only because I couldn't find that peice I know I have somewhere.:rolleyes:This is the only picture I can find right know that shows both. Edited May 22, 2009 by 48willys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fe-Wood Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 This is a nice thread but it sure would be nice to see some pictures to go with the uses. As for me, it takes me about six months to fill a 55 gl. drum with trash, non reusable or recycleable rubish. All the pictures I've shown have been made out reclaimed materials. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runestrom Posted May 22, 2009 Share Posted May 22, 2009 (edited) This week I made a tool stand out stuff picked up at yard sales and junk piles. A disc was welded to the steel shaft frozen into an old cast wheel. A 2 1/2 inch pipe about 10 inches long was welded on the underside of the wheel which allows the top section of the stand to slip into and turn inside the 3 inch base post. The base of the stand is an old cast tractor wheel weight that is bolted onto steel channel iron. Fortunately many of these old cast iron pieces have steel components which allow you to weld. I am glad the stand is in two pieces as it ends up being pretty heavy and have had to move it a couple times already. Edited May 22, 2009 by runestrom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Chris: I think you meant to say your forge is built from DROPS, as in short pieces of steel left over from projects at fab shops. . . not DROPPINGS as in steaming piles of Poo left behind by land animals, unless you're MUCH stranger and inventive than I gave you credit for. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragons lair Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Philip, Where were you when I tossed many lbs of bolt cutoffs. Thanks for the info have lbs of 3/4 bolts came with front end loader kits that were too short. fireing up the band saw this week. Ken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfootnampa Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 I reforge and rehandle old hammers. Some of them have broken or worn out handles which I use for file handles and the scraps from that for wedges for the new handles. Scraps still unused then become fire starter for the forge. I buy old picks and cut off the points which are slightly reforged to make nice drifts for my hammer reforging. I get all the old jackhammer bits I find for reforging into mason's chisels, hardy tools, and other useful things. I save the shavings from my drawknife and shaving horse (where I make the new hammer handles) for fire starter for the forge (saves propane... which I used to use to get the forge started... coal forge). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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