What did you do in the shop today?

[Mark Ling]

Thank you!

there is no folds for this billet, no reason really, it would only mess with the pattern, make it not as symmetric.

Yes sir, I started with a "lump" of chain, and if it is only the more common single height chain I do recommend stacking two layers together so you have more mass, because if you don't once you get all the gaps and air out it will be thin.

Sooooo.......Heats, too many to remember! about 4 hours worth of heats. Now this is all with a hand hammer, and so with power tools it would go quicker of course. I haven't ever degreased the chain, though I have heard of many doing so and recommending it. I would imagine it would help, but I'm too stubborn to take the time to, and it's worked just fine with out me degreasing.

I use borax as flux, and do flux it.

as I've mentioned above, take more chain you think, there is a lot of spaces and air in it and a lot to condense and get stuck together. I also did some chainsaw chain, that I was planning on using as the cutting edge of the knife, and got it welded and what I though was stuck together, and I went and ground the finished blank, and saw quite a few delaminations in the chainsaw chain, so I ended up having to cut out the chainsaw chain from the billet.

I've only done probably abut 5 chain Damascus, around 21/2lb billets.

 

let me know if I missed anything that you would like me to go over.

Ok, back out to work on polishing the blade some more and then on to the handle! by the way, heat treat went well. first quench the blade warped, but we corrected it and hardened her on up real well.

                                                                                                                                        Littleblacksmith

[Dylan Sawicki]

LittleBlacskmith I have a question I saw you mention that you square up your billets for hammer. My question is why? Does it just make it easier forge in the trough line's and fuller the cheeks. Or does it just make the hammer look nicer?

[SLAG]

LBS,

Forging heat will burn out any grease.

Although a lot of grease could give rise to hydrocarbon fumes. But you did not notice any. So no problem.

Don't worry about it.

Your fan,

SLAG.

[WoodnMetalGuy]

1 hour ago, littleblacksmith said:

let me know if I missed anything that you would like me to go over

Thanks for the further info!  -- Dave

[Mark Ling]

16 hours ago, Dylan Sawicki said:

LittleBlacskmith I have a question I saw you mention that you square up your billets for hammer. My question is why? Does it just make it easier forge in the trough line's and fuller the cheeks. Or does it just make the hammer look nicer?

this was the first time I had actually squared up the billet. I do like the look of Alec's square circle rounding hammers, and also because I was punching with a hand hammer, it makes it easier to punch; it doesn't roll away. I would imagine it would be easier to get the trough lines nice and square and all lined up nicely, but it will actually be hardy to forge in the trough lines. Basically because with the round there is less surface contact with the tool and the billet, but with the square billet, the whole fuller is making contact with the billet.

16 hours ago, SLAG said:

LBS,

Forging heat will burn out any grease.

Although a lot of grease could give rise to hydrocarbon fumes. But you did not notice any. So no problem.

Don't worry about it.

Your fan,

SLAG.

I just didn't know if once it burned away if it would leave anything behind that could contaminate the weld? I didn't notice any hydrocarbon fumes, and also I was in a well ventilated area.

16 hours ago, SLAG said:

Your fan,

SLAG.

15 hours ago, WoodnMetalGuy said:

Thanks for the further info!  -- Dave

Anytime!

                                                                                                                                       Littleblacksmith

[Mark Ling]

fixed my belt that broke, the middle piece broke off, so forged a new one out of 1/4" round that I forged down to about 1/8" round than flattened it only from two sides to give me rounded edges.

Made a handle for my new to me kettle. I was thinking at first "what will I use for a jig?" and then I realized I can just bend it around the kettle to get the correct bend! don't worry, i didn't hammer any on it, I know better than that.

got the chisel finished up. I played around with it some, just pushing it along the wood, and in the words of Doug "it will cut!". By the way Kaleb, I did not put a razor sharp edge on it, I figured it would be safer to do that once you have the handle made, at least that's how I do my knives.

                                                                                                                                Littleblacksmith

 

[JHCC]

1 minute ago, littleblacksmith said:

got the chisel finished up. I played around with it some, just pushing it along the wood, and in the words of Doug "it will cut!". By the way Kaleb, I did not put a razor sharp edge on it, I figured it would be safer to do that once you have the handle made, at least that's how I do my knives.

That looks a LOT better. Nicely done.

[Mark Ling]

Yes it does, thank you and everybody else who helped me with it!

                                                                                                                          Littleblacksmith

[Melw45]

Got some more done on my 2x72 grinder. Pics in the grinder forum in the NWGS post.

Mel

[ThomasPowers]

I cut sticks of 1/4" round 1020 CRS so my wife could have curtain rods in the casita---someday they are supposed to make it back to the stock rack, though now in shortened form.

[olfart]

Mark, the backside of that socket looks great!  Good job of fitting and welding.

On the kettle handle, is there a lid for the kettle?  If so, the handle may need to be extended upward a little for clearance.

[Mark Ling]

Thank you!

I do not have a lid for it, yet, I am looking for one though. I was thinking the same thing.....

                                                                                                                              Littleblacksmith

[Gergely]

I like the closed up socket, too. Clever that you left the big V opening untouched - looks good and sidestepped some plus technical issues.

Me myself was at a demo/fair yesterday - it rained nicely all afternoon so all programs got delayed. Then suddenly all people were around my shop and every child wanted to forge (that's the show) I stopped at 22:00, got home at 23:30. Long day from 4:00am. Worst thing I'm out of the small goodies so I must find out something to make them faaast! Maybe I lift up my buttocks, stop sitting in front of the PC and go to the shop - that could be step one.

Bests:

Gergely

[Glenn]

Have you tried horse shoe nails into rings. Should be a quick easy project for the demo. Just to be sure and make several each week so you will have a quantity when the next demo comes along.

Or into small hooks? Flatten out the head and drill a hole to attach.

[ThomasPowers]

When I had one big demo a year I would try to make a sales item every time I fired up the forge to do something else. That way when the State Fair rolled around I had some stock ready to sell. (and generally the small items don't get in the way of the larger projects in the forge)

[Mark Ling]

Got the bowie all finished up, 6" blade. there's a couple things I could have done better. Don't know what the handle wood is....It's not local, some exotic somethin.....

Then last night a friend came over from 6-9:30pm and he and I started a rounding hammer. It still isn't finished, and there are a few wonky things about it, because I would have him strike, and then I would try and give him a break by having him be the one holding the top tools and hammer billet, and this was his first hammer, sooo some things are a little off, but in the end once it's done it should be functional. I should have taken about another 1/2" more for the billet, as it could benefit from being a little longer. forged from 1 3/4"round, will weigh about 1 3/8 of a lb.

                                                                                                                                Littleblacksmith

 

I'se done some testing with it that's what some of those streaks are on the blade from chopping and splitting.

[gmbobnick]

Made a David Kailey style guillotine fuller. Used a brush hog blade instead of leaf spring because that is what I had.

...and wouldn't you know some blockhead had to mess with the new tool before the safety briefing.

 

 

 

[SLAG]

LBSM,

Allow me to take a guess as to what wood the handle is.

It looks like an African wood called Wenge.

Wenge is a very hard and heavy wood. You can easily check for that.

Regards,

SLAG.

[ThomasPowers]

Gmbobnick; should be a poster about the perils of getting in the smith's way....

[Mark Ling]

15 minutes ago, SLAG said:

LBSM,

Allow me to take a guess as to what wood the handle is.

It looks like an African wood called Wenge.

Wenge is a very hard and heavy wood. You can easily check for that.

Regards,

SLAG.

I had wondered too...I have used wenge before, and it has a course grain like this wood did, but the color of it when it was rough cut before I started sanding it was a darker purple...could it be a variation of the species or somethin like that?

                                                                                                                                            Littleblacksmith

Now the seller on eBay had a lot of different woods that they had picked up at an estate sale, and didn't know what species they were just that they were from Africa. Got some really nice ones for a pretty good price.

[SLAG]

LBSM,

Wenge does not have a purple hue.

Wenge is a very hard wood. You should not be able to press your thumb nail into it no matter hard you try.

SLAG.

[JHCC]

Rather productive afternoon. 

Brazeal-style hammer-eye punch with rodded handle and a bunch of nails (most of them one-heat):

A Jeep-themed bottle opener for my Jeep-obsessed mechanic who keeps me in coil springs and torsion bars:

The blanks for a pair of twist tongs (a bit short, but that's what I could draw out of the bit of scrap I'd used):

And listened to a lot of Leonard Cohen.

[ThomasPowers]

Nothing in the shop today; but I've driven way too many T posts in the dry hard ground today. I'm working on extending the dog run to the entire back yard.  I realize it's excellent exercise and using an 8 pound sledge one handed (short handle) is great practice for smithing; but I'm beginning to feel like I'm too old to be working like that out in the NM sun...

On the other hand getting the T posts involved several trips to the scrapyard---always fun and my wife is covering their cost rather than it coming out of my allowance!

Also it's amusing when I'm teaching the college kids and pick up a hammer they have trouble using two handed and WHOMP WHOMP WHOMP, getting done part of a project they were having problems with... Being able to properly lift and carry anvils out to the truck impresses them too...

And a gift from my Minion!

[Mark Ling]

the night before last, I had went to bed and my right eye was hurting, but I figured I would just sleep it off. I woke up the next day and it was still hurting, but I didn't want to worry my parents, so said nothing, then today came along and this evening they noticed my eye was red, and they asked if it was hurting me, and I had to tell them, also because I was starting to get a little irritated. Today I got around to looking at it in the mirror, and noticed a little black spec, there's something in there. we tried a magnet, but that didn't do nothin, right now they are getting eye drops, I darn sure hope I don't have to go some expensive place. Time to go down to the shop and drink some crème soda, eat some oatmeal crème pies, and listen to some old country.

                                                                                                                         Littleblacksmith

Edited July 9, 2017 by littleblacksmith
forgot the most important part...

[arkie]

LBS, if you suspect something in your eye, don't mess around.  Go to an eye doctor.  You might have to have the splinter (if that's what it is) removed.  Don't let an eye infection set in.  You only have one pair of eyes.