3 hours ago, BillyBones said:

Is it me or is it just cheap unusable steel?

Jason - it's probably a "red-short" steel. Some tool steels are like that. It was probably a very good file, just not good for forge welding. 

How's Quad State going? I really want to be there, but I'm just now recovered enough for light work. The ride up there in my Tacoma would have been murder on my back.

I decided to try out the handled top fuller I picked up last weekend and attempt to make something out of a rr spike I had laying around. Had to take a break, but maybe next weekend I can get the handle twisted and cleaned up.

Justor, when I make something out of a RR spike I always do the twist first before drawing out the point to make whatever it is going to be.  That wy you have more metal to grip in the vice while you are doing the twisting.  But whatever works best for you is the "correct" way.

"By hammer and hand all arts do stand."

Today I realized the importance of having a better stocked first aid kit. Liz was mowing and ran up saying our neighbor bob cut his ankle off. Don't know what really happened to him but his foot was dangling with the bone out. She got the car ready to get him to the hospital and i grabbed the first aid stuff and atleast got it wrapped with gauze wrap. We got him in the car and she is off to the hospital with him. 

I dont know what happened but he certainly wasn't sober. Looked like it will be a long recovery. 

 

Apparently he dropped his bike and that is probably what broke his ankle. At a guess he probably tried to stand on it doing more damage. 

Don't drink and drive, or ride... not worth it. 

George, that's good advice, thanks! I wasn't sure at first, but the video I was following along with did it at the end for some reason so I figured maybe there was a good reason.

Das, hope your neighbor will be ok.

Das, IMO 1st aid kits are kind of like triage.  For minor injuries you need some bandaids, antiseptic, etc..  These are handy to have in the shop so that you don't have to hike to the house and possibly make a rucus over a minor injury to yourself and others.  2d level injuries are serious and may need professional attention such as stiches, etc..  For those you need compresses, etc. to stop the bleeding and stabilize the damage until professionals can deal with it.  These are things short of an ambulance ride.  The most serious are those where someone is going to die or be in very bad shape if someone (you) doesn't do something.  This involves using torniquets, anti coagulents, etc. to stop the bleeding. and may involve things like CPR, clearing the airway, stabilizing the neck, etc..  This is definitely call the EMTs and ambulance unless you can transport the victim faster yourself without indangering him/her.

If your neighbor (hope he heals fast and learns something) had really "cut his ankle off" it would have been a level 3 incident and you would have been dealing with spurting red stuff.  It's hard to say that a bad compound fracture is anything but serious but a traumatic amputation would have been worse for everyone involved.

So, the moral of the story is that we should all be prepared for all levels of emergency, have the equipment, and know how to use it.

A lot can depend on where you are in relation to professional help.  If you are 10 minutes away from the ambulance barn that is one thing.  If you are in the back of beyond where it is 2 hours for the pros to get there and another 2 hours back to the ER you need to be prepared a lot deeper.  Luckily, I am in a 10 minutes to the hospital location but it is possible in Wyoming to be in the long haul to medicos areas too.  And that doesn't even consider cell service to summon them.

GNM

23 hours ago, Shainarue said:

started working on removing the eaten up air grate so I could install a new one

Awesome!!! Have ya had a chance to take some pictures yet? 

i can’t wait to see what ya get done with the new to you forge!

Two good calls George, I call ditto on both..

First, Justor: Nice fork so far. George called it about twisting the handle section first, it's WAY easier when you have good flat sections on both ends of the twist. I find it is easier to make a nice transition from the twist to a round section after it's twisted. Lastly you can draw the spike down for the twist a little smaller still makes for a comfortable secure grip.

1st. aid kits are as George describes and you need some training to do much more than apply anti septic and bandaids. 

Sanitary napkins are excellent for serious blood control. Ace bandages are B A D for controlling bleeding, use the gauze or surgical tape!

Yeah I've used them a couple times to control bleeding. After the first time I bought a box for the pickup emergency box. Ladies close by supplied them the first time. 

Frosty The Lucky. 

 

Some of my heaviest work yet. Based on a John Switzer vid.

5/8” x 5’. For me it was hard to handle and wore me out a bit.

The loop could be a bit bigger but I’m real happy with it. Lots of fun and thanks for looking. 

George, well said. I did at first run down with rope to use as a tourniquet. Like you said, that would have been gushing.  Then realized it was not what she initially said and ran back to get a gauze wrap as there was no need for a tourniquet. 

Anyway.. yeah, going to rebuild the first aid kit. 

 

Nice work Rojo.

Justor nice work on the fork. 

I know there are those on the forum with much more experience in emergency medicine than me, but there’s a couple of things I remember from our emergency preparedness training a couple of jobs ago that might be useful.

According to the EMT who ran our session, even if you don’t have the proper bandages or pads or gauge ready at hand, anything that applies  pressure to stop bleeding and contain the wound is acceptable in an emergency situation, even if it’s just a T-shirt and duct tape. Also, if a wound is bleeding through a dressing, don’t replace the bandage; add to it. For both bleeding and breaks, bulk is better. 

Having been through the military i got to take many first aid courses and i was a combat lifesaver, a bit more than basic fist aid but not quite a medic. Everyone should take at least a basic first aid course. As far as first aid kit, i would suggest building your own. Most of the commercial ones i have seen now a days seem to be nothing but a box full of band aids and antibiotic ointment. 

Had a great time at Quadstate. Finally got to meet the one and only Thomas Powers. Wish i was not on my way out when i did, would have liked to talk a bit more. Maybe next year. 

Mark Ling, The Little Blacksmith, did a heck of a demo. Really enjoyed it. 

Bought my granddaughter a piece of petrified wood, she is taking an interest in rocks now, and i bought a small piece of wrought. I have never worked wrought and wanted to try it out. 2 new touch marks, Celtic cross and a Trinity knot. Spent more to go there than i did there. 

21 hours ago, Purple Bullet said:

it's probably a "red-short" steel

PB, not sure about that. I do not work much tool steel so it is a concept i am only vaguely familiar with. I did figure my first attempt was to hot so i did try working colder, over a couple different ranges of heat, with pieces of it and it seemed like no matter what it would end up cracking and splitting. I did not try welding them into anything just trying to work the steel to figure it out. I am just chucking it up to unworkable... for me that is. 

Thanks for the help and compliments guys. Unfortunately I always seem to have a case of major beginners luck. From forge welded basket twists right thru to basically everything I’ve done and then tried to duplicate besides easy stuff like flowers - If you look closely the twist and bend is far from perfect - I’ve also realized things are much different when you have zero time constraints and are simply doing a project for fun which is what the original globe was vs a paying customer who’s waiting for their purchase. On this one I did do a much better job on the 1/2” stock base and then welding it where the ends came together than I did on the first one…but I’ve saved the toughest part for last. I went 5 inches long - I’ve kept notes this time though so at least the meridian is a mistake/test I won’t have to deal with again. Center punch mark is so I can know where they were welded together. Might as well weld the meridian right at that spot again to hide any signs. 
 

Jen I like your scrollwork! Congrats and I'm looking forward to seeing more!

Pat, if hitting all the details on a 3 dimensional project is beginners luck, then you need to buy a lottery ticket.

Anvil, thanks,  I had never done blow over leave nor bevel scroll so these were new..

When things go wrong with a project, but you don't want to waste the work you've already done..... was making a blacksmith knife, but there was a severe Crack where handle meets blade.... so I cut it off and tried something else.

 

I don't like the twist.... didn't turn out how I was wanting it to. 

Good work saving the effort Rogue. 

 

Thanks Daswulf. I have been out of the forge for a month or so trying to baby some tennis elbow acquired at work.... but had the desire to go pound some steel. Was frustrating that my first idea failed, and this one didn't turn out as I'd hoped, but it is all learning. I like the blade profile on this, and my grinding is getting better, so not a total failure. Always something to learn from. 

You could always straighten out the handle and make a stick tang. 

Yeah, I have considered that. Is a doable option, though it would require re-heat treating. There are options available, and I may try one of them. 

23 hours ago, TWISTEDWILLOW said:

Have ya had a chance to take some pictures yet?

Finished it tonight. Ended up needing more work on the inlet pipe than it appeared so it took me most of the day to finish what I THOUGHT was almost finished yesterday, lol

https://youtube.com/shorts/5NsdXiFZkAU?feature=share

22 minutes ago, Wandering_R0gue said:

There are options available, and I may try one of them. 

My drawing professor in college taught us not to be precious about our work, occasionally having us tear up our drawings and start over. It can be quite liberating to be bound neither to one’s failures nor to one’s successes. 

Rogu:  Twisting two pieces of different diameters is difficult to get looking right.  If you draw them out to a uniform diameter before doubling it back and doing the twist it will likely look better.

Shaina:  Looks good.  I bet it works like a champ and that you will get many years of use out of it.

"By hammer and hand all arts do stand."

My little sister is retiring from the Navy as a Chief after 22 years.   She's mostly been reserve but had her turn in certain countries.  I was originally going to make her a small anchor but changed my mind, for now.  I was working on a KA-BAR  for her yesterday and got the best set of fullers ground in yet.  I need to temper it again and get leather for the stack handle.   

Made the wife a serving spoon. She had me make a rack to hang next to the stove and now needs stuff to hang. So she now has a ladle, fork, and spoon so far. 3 more hooks on the rack so i am thinking next will be a spatula and slotted spoon or ladle, maybe both. Also an excuse to use the new touch marks.