ThomasPowers Posted November 13, 2020 Share Posted November 13, 2020 Candle behind the heart for the couple and then add another one for each child if they go that route. I still remember getting Korean War Dehydrated eggs at scout camp in the 1960's. I like cereal box cardboard out in the shop to lay things out on---I use a set of dividers to figure out spacing on somethings---like my chandelier, and you can push the points down into it when you get it right! (And draw a circle around the correct ones and put a line through them.) I have even used it as a template and driven a center punch through the holes onto the steel below.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted November 13, 2020 Share Posted November 13, 2020 Still some good ideas John. And it gets the brain turning for more. I agree on the thin cardboard box material Thomas. I wasn't pleased at first when the beer I like switched to thin case boxes instead of the normal cardboard box, but it comes in handier for template making. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted November 13, 2020 Share Posted November 13, 2020 So long as they don't go changing the beer, you should be fine! We did a big conversion from paper files to digital in the office a couple of years ago, and I nabbed a whole bunch of manila and hanging folders for template material. One tip I picked up at Quad-State last year (from the Colonial Williamsburg smiths) was that if you draw out your curves on a wood or cardboard template and measure them by stepping them off with your dividers set at 1", you don't actually need to write those measurements down. You simply count the pinholes left by the divider's legs to get the measurements you need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted November 13, 2020 Share Posted November 13, 2020 6 hours ago, BillyBones said: A little off subject Got me thinking of the youtuber Steve1989 who opens up and reviews old or foreign mres and rations. It's interesting to see what the old ones had in them and how they survived the test of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 13, 2020 Share Posted November 13, 2020 Is that the same Steve that did "Steve Don't Eat That!"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted November 13, 2020 Share Posted November 13, 2020 I dont know (had to look that up) but he certainly has tried some very questionable things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted November 14, 2020 Share Posted November 14, 2020 MRE= three lies in one... Meals Ready to Eat. Das I like the heart & inscription. Pick up some Tea candles they can set behind the heart when they want to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wirerabbit Posted November 14, 2020 Share Posted November 14, 2020 Finished shaping with grinder and file my wee hardy. Now to the heat treating. I also finished the last of my first punch set: a ball punch. I need to make something to open up those Topo Chicos at the forge. *wink*wink* I also handled my first hammer, an ebay find. I needed a lighter cross peen. The eye is a round-end-straight-side hole, but not symmetrical. Top (or bottom) of hammer eye differs from opposite side by 1mm side-to-side and about 2.3mm length wise. I thought I could feel a slight waist to the hole but I'm not sure. I picked the smaller side for the bottom of the hammer. Unfortunately when I drove the steel wedge it cocked the hammer head out of square and so you can see the snout up aspect in the picture. I'm 99% sure my handle was a straight fit. I bet I could have foregone adding the steel wedge, but I wanted to do things right. Even forged the wedge from some punch material off cut. First handle, so great practice at any rate. I suspect that perhaps the hammer eye is also not parallel to the hammer face. (It's not quite parallel to the hammer sides, after all.) Does anyone have a suggestion for visually checking that once the hammer handle is out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max pywell Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 Made an Xmas present for my dad nice little pruning knife Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 Cool lines. My only suggestion would be to break the corners on the handle (that is, hammer a small 45 degree bevel on the edges) before twisting. It’s a cool look, and it’s also easier on the user’s hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
671jungle Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 Installed a two point latch on the shops door, made some shelving and mounted the 183lb forklift tine anvil to the stump over the last several days. the double door kit we got at the local online was incomplete with the middle where the doors meet missing. So I got some 1/8” x 6” x the height of the door to bridge the gap and act as a pry shield. I also forged a simple handle/lever for the latch mechanism. The anvil seems too close to the wall on one side but there is enough room for what I need. For now. I also practiced some more shapes and made keychains for friends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 On 11/13/2020 at 5:13 AM, Welshj said: I was an 88M20 19K(30 when i got out) but i picked up an 88M secondary when i was stationed in Tx. (for those reading not familiar 19K and 88M is our MOS, military occupational specialty, our jobs) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max pywell Posted November 15, 2020 Share Posted November 15, 2020 5 hours ago, JHCC said: Cool lines. My only suggestion would be to break the corners on the handle Yeah was thinking about that I'll keep that in mind for my next one thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twigg Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 Fixed a lot of stuff the last few days, and finished the first of three paring knives for christmas gifts. Wish I had dyed this piece of oak before staining it, but oh well, next time. Should age well. Now I've gotta fix a lot more stuff! On 11/12/2020 at 3:41 PM, Michael said: I like your rail anvil set up! It's funny you should say that because guess what I broke next I got what I deserved for using pine boards with no corner brackets in an anvil stand. Next one is gonna be oak and steel! This should last long enough for Christmas stuff though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 Spent most of the day cleaning junk out of the garage my shop lives in. Might even be able to fit my wife’s car back in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
671jungle Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 Taking apart cleaning and tuning the leather patcher. Maybe paint it. Also been reading some of the ventilation threads. With that said, I know there are some ventilation professionals here. Will these materials build a proper vent hood for a gas forge? Should the squirrel cage be used as positive pressure on the opposite side of the shop or should a extracting fan be installed in the vent duct? Thanks for any info. There will be a detector installed as well. The shop is 8’x16’ and 10’ tall with vents all along half the length of the ceiling above where the forge will be. There are windows on each length of the shop as well as a large one next to the double doors. Thanks for any info. I will continue to read the vent threads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 I spent the weekend tearing out and replacing the rotten cabinet floor under our kitchen sink. My wife never told me the drain was leaking; of course when she cleared out underneath it; she mentioned that a lot was stuff from the previous owner---we've been in our house long enough to pay off the mortgage! Took it in small bouts as I don't do well working on my knees on a tile floor even with a kneeler pad; as well as laying down to work on some parts. Chose this weekend as I knew that the mold and mildew would kill my sinuses and make me look like a false positive for CV-19 and I'm supposed to be working from home the next two weeks as the University does a punctuated lockdown. Then I get my first "come in and fix this" mail this morning. (My punctuation...) I have a deep and abiding abhorrence over the use of particle board in areas that will get wet sometime! This weekend didn't change that. One of my smithing students, a college Freshman, has come down with CV-19; but with the luck of the smith he hasn't been by for several weeks (3). So I dodged that bullet. We also wore masks and used separate tools and anvils when he did visit before that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Shed Forge Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 Last week high winds knocked over the gate to my backyard. With the weather getting colder and raining more often, I thought it was time to dig out the old post and replace it before the ground freezes. It's no fun digging a large chunk of cement out of the ground, so I got a little creative. I whipped up a bracket(?) from 1/4" round mild steel at the forge and anchored it to the top of the cement using cement lags. It was hard to find 2 strong spots as the majority of the block was in pieces and crumbling. From there I tipped my 100lbs anvil and attached stump onto a dolly and lugged it over to the hole and placed it between the hole and another fence post. At the base of the fence post I mounted a hand-crank winch and slung its strap and hook over the face of the anvil to hook to the bracket. After a couple minor adjustments and a few rotations on the crank, the first big chunk came right out. Had to do it all again for the next small chunk, but there after was all digging. I hate digging holes. Problem solved, anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 Pulling T posts I used chain and a truck wheel and the trailer hitch on my truck. A 55 gallon drum would have been better but I didn't have one in that location. fasten the chain at ground level to the Tpost. Run it over the wheel and to the pumper hitch, let the truck do the heavy lifting... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Shed Forge Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 I don't have a truck, or vehicle with a hitch to attach to unfortunately. We have a Jeep Patriot, but when looking under the backside, I could not find any safe place to hook a rope or chain... the frame is not visible and I didn't want to hook it to the wrong spot and cause a bigger problem. The original plan actually was to use my 55 barrel and the Jeep, but I talked myself out of it for that reason. Would have lagged to the actual post too, but it was all rotted and falling apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 Mainly putting that in for other folks; you got it done which is what counts. Surprised it doesn't have a tow hook or loop on the front---reverse may be a better gear anyway! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 A tripod works as a lifting frame in some instances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 A good old "handyman" jack can work well. I like the ideas of using an anvil, 55 gal. drum, or truck wheel to convert horizontal pulling force to vertical. My solution to recently having to get out a large piece of concrete was to have a next door neighbor with a back hoe. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Shed Forge Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 When I originally went to tackle it the day before, a friend came over with a different, weaker winch and a heavy duty ladder that works short and can extend taller. We straddled the hole with the ladder, hooked the winch to the top ladder rung and tried to crank it out vertically. His winch broke and shortly after it started raining and wouldn't let up lol. Thomas, ya know it might have one in the front, good point. We dont have the 4x4 version though, I wonder if front wheel would have mucked up the front yard. Either way, I was probably just taken away by my hype of getting to use the anvil for an unconventional purpose lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 16, 2020 Share Posted November 16, 2020 And a good excuse to buy a *larger* (taller) anvil! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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