What did you do in the shop today?

[Kal]

If you are going to do the ABANA program, you must follow the prints for all 3 levels.  Each item is to be built to the exact size & shape of the printout, not what is on a video. Level I is not too hard but levels II & III are another matter entirely.  The scrolling must be perfect with no kinks or flat spots.  The frames must be square & to size... You get the idea. 

The attached picture of a successful Level III grill is NOT my work, I'm nowhere near as skilled as the smith who built it.

 

[Shainarue]

Kal, I'm not sure if you're giving this info in response to my comment regarding my poker end or just as information. But in case it's in response to me, yes I know the final project must be done exact to shape and size as indicated on the provided drawings. There are also projects that lead up to the final project which don't have as rigid of specifications but rather just to show you understand the concept and can demonstrate the skill. Basket poker only specified length and diameter of rods for basket and handle to attach to. Scrolling wrench only specified width of jaws and length of tines, and diameter of hanging circle. No specs at all on scrolling tongs. Etc.

[JHCC]

Stuck in a hotel on a business trip? Not a problem if you brought some repoussé tools and the sandpaper to polish them!

[Scott NC]

  I had a job in a control room in a high stress place and we were allowed to bring projects to work, as long as we did what was required, jobwise.  I polished and sanded a lot of projects there.  The fellow I followed (rotating shifts) used to bring in buffalow and cow horns to make powder horns.  He ground on them with a dremel and the smell/stench lingered my whole shift.  Those look nice!

[Shainarue]

John those are beautiful lookin' tools! Almost look like they were made from obsidian! 

[Scott NC]

  Or even black onyx!

[George N. M.]

Scott, there is nothing quite like the smell of burning horn, antler, or bone.  I've known guys who do all their work in materials like that by hand to avoid the smell.  It's almost as good as burning hair.  

I had my booth set up at a Mountain Man Rendezvous once beside a guy who carved beautiful scenes into moose antlers and when I asked him about his technique he said the material was so hard that he had to use a dremel tool but that he wore a respirator and used mentholatum (sp?) to mitigate the small and not to inhale the dust.

G

[Scott NC]

  Burning hair is pretty good description George.  I put up with it as others did mine.  Nobody wanted to rock the boat and ruin a good thing.  Heck, one guy used to rebuild small engines in there and everybody used the pressure washer to wash their cars at break.  It was a high stress place and they could not keep help...  Management understood and the place ran suprisingly smooth.

[JHCC]

Thanks, folks. These are sanded up to 1500 grit, and I’ll run them under the buffing wheel once I get home. 

[Frosty]

I've had a couple ivory carver friends who didn't wear a respirator and died from breathing the dust. I can't find the condition and the only thing I see listed for ivory dust is asthma. Leonard was a close friend, I dated his daughter but got along with him and her Mother better. He developed asthma but it progressed into something else that killed him.

Bone, horn, antler, most types of wood, etc. all can cause disease or just poison you. It's almost enough to make me want to shave.

Frosty The Lucky.

[JHCC]

My understanding is that since fine dust from ivory, bone, horn, etc is abrasive, it can increase the risk of pulmonary fibrosis — that is, scarring of the lung tissue around inhaled particles. 

[Scott NC]

  He must be a tough hombre, he's still at it at 70.  Maybe he wore a respirator while he worked it.  They provided them a plenty.   I don't know as I was at home resting for the next shift.  All I know is the smell it left behind.

[Savlaka]

well today I made my first hammer... with all the odds and ends I've made with a forge over the years I hadn't actually tried to make a hammer. 

This one is made from 4130 (might be 41b30). it came in at about 1-3/4Lbs, and was made as a slightly offset center straight peen - more mass on the hammer side. I need to do a bit more work on the handle still. but overall I think it came out close to how I was aiming for.

[jlpservicesinc]

Savlak. Nice looking hammer.. 

I forged up a steeled wrought iron cutlers hammer..  Cutlers hammers and file makers are very simular. 

[JD V]

I'm not happy with the proportions on the axe bottle opener. I think I'm going to make a bigger, longer handle, I'll make a couple and try to bribe the loggers to set aside some fir tops out of the slash piles for my firewood supply. 

Then made some towel racks to utilize my leaf practice.

[Michael]

Caitlin Morris, of Ms Caitlin's School of Blacksmithing in Frederick, Maryland, was a demonstrator at CBA's Roaring Camp Hammer In back in August. She taught this leaf keychain using a very light hammer, 10 oz if I recall, along with a double diagnonal peen hammer for the stem.  Just got around to trying it out on my own last week. One of the nicest leaves to come out of my forge!

[gewoon ik]

Re-organizing my workshop.

It used to be fabwelded oriented and the forge + anvil i placed in the center area where i had the most place. 

But annoying to use my welding table and move around with some other projects.

So finaly bit the bullet and draged the forge and anvil away. Moved the welding table to a completly new spot same with some machines and put the forge and anvil on its new place. 

Much better. Better access to my workbench and weldtable. More space around the anvil and my left arm can start regrowing its hair, because no longer to close to the forge.

My vice has better access when forging or welding.

Very happy. Now i need some coathooks and a toolrack for tongs (before no place to put it, would be or in the way or across the workarea).

No pictures because, i didn't take any.

[Frosty]

No pics of the new arrangement? You don't seriously think we're going to believe it if we don't see pics, do you? 

Frosty The Lucky.

[gewoon ik]

Come over, I give you the tour.

also had some time over and i opened my foege blower because irondragon pointed my to the greasenipple that should be a oilfilling. 

No rust on the cogs. A tiny bit of grease at the bottom and no oil.

How much do i need to fill up? I have a drainplug, so till the plug? And every use a splash?

[Shainarue]

JD, I like the towel racks.

Michael, I just recently started following Caitlyn on IG. She's posted some great tips in the few videos I've seen. That's a nice looking leaf.

[BillyBones]

Gewoon, I would love to come for a visit. Never got to go to Belgium in my travels across Europe. Pretty country and most importantly good beer. 

A bit nit picky but for any who care those greasenipples are called "zerks" fittings.  

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

Over the last several days, made some items for Glenn's Memorial Bouquet. No pictures to show until Steve gets them but here is a hint of one in progress.

I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sail’s.
Semper Paratus

 

[arkie]

1 hour ago, BillyBones said:

Gewoon, I would love to come for a visit. Never got to go to Belgium in my travels across Europe. Pretty country and most importantly good beer. 

A bit nit picky but for any who care those greasenipples are called "zerks" fittings.  

To clarify a bit on the two different lube fittings for those who may not be familiar with them.

A "zerk" fitting, BillyBones' grease nipple for injecting grease, is shaped like a miniature soda bottle with a tiny spring-loaded ball in the tip (for preventing back flow, if under pressure, or just leakage).

An oil filling fitting is simply a small tube with a spring loaded flap on top, sorta like a miniature toilet seat (not the one with a big hole...LOL).

[jlpservicesinc]

So here is the follow up which might make some more sense to my last post. 

[GhostTownForge]

looks good!