What did you do in the shop today?

[Judson Yaggy]

20 hours ago, JHCC said:

Steam!

"art long, life short"?  Trying to learn more Latin.  

[JHCC]

Yes. In Latin, if there’s no other verb, you can assume the verb “to be”. Thus, “Art is long; life is short.” The original was in Greek, from Hippocrates. 

Geoffrey Chaucer similarly observed, "The life so short, the craft so long to learn.”

[Zeroclick]

14 hours ago, jlpservicesinc said:

and I thought I like my anvils sitting low..  Love the stand and Brooks but..  Do me a favor and measure the stand off height from the floor to the top..  I run my anvil about 30-32" and I'm 5'11"...    Like the looks of your shop and your Dad..  

I didn't measure it with a tape I used the between my knuckle and wrist method and sat it about mid way. I am 5'11" as well my dad is a bit taller but it was more his foot placement he stood far away and then leaned in. Where as i tried to get him to tuck into the heel of the anvil.

But I will give it a measure to double check it.

[Reeltree]

Have been cleaning up a couple scrap metal piles, dismantled a steel truss for angle iron.  Found a lost oxygen pony bottle,. Cut off the bottom for a dishing tool , rigged up a part of a r x r spike for the bell clapper .  Extracted the high density foam out of the old hot tub cover.

 

 

[Hans Richter]

After getting some real huge air tanks I rebuild the aspiration area of the power hammer. 130gal’s on 145psi. Happy the breathless time is over. Create a nice sky line of ‘Tumulus’ Air Power Towers. Give them a nice paint job and pressure integrity test after all.

[ThomasPowers]

And blast shielding?

[Hans Richter]

Release valves on both the compressors and the tanks as well (155psi),  -thanks to mention it.

[ThomasPowers]

I have seen the results where folks did not take safety into account.  Compressed air stores a lot of energy---why we can use it for what we do use it for.

[jlpservicesinc]

Hans, how do you show and air bank, but not show the air hammer???

[JHCC]

Welded a rim onto the new forge. Also cut the top off the scuba tank and welded a thick stem to the inside. 

Together with the dishing form I made a few days ago and some judicious whacks from the treadle hammer, it should handle the initial forming of some bowls I’ll be making. 

[JHCC]

Addendum: the scuba tank is one that was retired after it failed hydrostatic testing. The walls are about 1/4” thick, as you can see in the center section of the cylinder standing on end in the background of the above photo. With the valve removed, there’s no excess air pressure to worry about, and because the tank never held anything besides air, there’s nothing nasty that’s needs to be purged (other than a layer of paint on the inside that should be removed before doing any welding). The steel is soft enough to cut with a portaband. 

[ausfire]

John, that is one serious dishing set up. Great use of recycled stuff.

I spent some time today rearranging the gate to my forge area. We have bar gate that operates on a swivel to allow horses to pass beneath when we have a farrier doing shoeing demos. The counterweight lever on the bar was too long and it blocks the visitors' view. I cut it shorter and tripled the weight on the lever. The 10kg weight had a handy hole in it so it was easy to forge a piece of 10mm steel around into a hook. Another small hook into the wood and bingo - it works well. The three pics show the weight set up, the hook in the timber bar, and the general view of the gate. A bit of maintenance work in between demos:

 

[Meadowgrove]

Tuyere found its place... About 2" lower than intended. I got too excited about getting to work on the project and my hamsters escaped!

Also noticed my angle grinder has walked off somewhere. Had to use a hacksaw... I cut a notch in the pipe and stomped on it, deforming the pipe end in the process. Now the accursed thing whistles every time I pump air in the forge.

EDIT: tiles are only temporary and won't be around when forging. Ran out of cat litter and wanted to confine the test fire in a small spot. 

[ausfire]

Just spent two long days in the forge doing demos for our annual Pioneer Days. Made a lot of the usual stuff - bottle openers, bull's heads, crosses, toasting forks, snakes and a troll cross or two. Just over 1100 visitors through the gate this weekend. Sunday night now and feeling a little weary!

I parked the Holden beside the forge and put a display of some scrap art on it. Both the car and the sculptures attracted quite a few photos:

[tkunkel]

Ausfire,  Nice collection of scrap art and also love the vehicles in the back!  The Holden looks awesome, also!

 

[Hans Richter]

Aus, you are a blessed person to do/live your passion in this beautiful environment. If you ever think about pension or retirement please give me a sign. I gladly want to take over this great occupation ;-)

Know the feeling from my ‘outlaw-time’ on the historically shipyard. When I had asked a dollar (American/Canadian/Australian don’t care) for every foto they take, I was a rich person now.

Enjoy every day and stay healthy.

Your sincerely,

Hans

[Daswulf]

Great display Aus. I love when you post pictures with so much to look at in them.  

[Koek]

started out with a simple twist with a hook on both sides to hang our hammock chair.

seeing as it was a wee bit long however so I  decided to tie a knot in it.

[JHCC]

A while back IFI member Stitch gave me a bundle of big cotton terrycloth gloves that are great for heat resistance, but not so good for flying sparks. Remembering another use for borax and boric acid, I made up a bucket of flame retardant (1 part boric acid, 7 parts borax, 100 parts water), soaked the gloves, and put them out to dry. 

The first pair were great for use with tongs and tooling under the treadle hammer — until they caught a spark. I’m hoping these will be better. 

[Gergely]

Aus, amazing stuff in your picture: both your work and the automobiles. 

 

I recently upgraded my show table gear. In Dec and then in March my stuff got so much damage by the rainy weather that I had to stop and think. The new version is totally rain safe, storm safe. It can be dismantle into <3' pieces in less than 10 min and weighs under 40 lbs. Except the four bottom paws that are 15 lbs each. The table surface measures 160 cm x 80 cm. 

It still lacks a good painting, and I want to change the plastic to some waterproof canvas for better looks and good shade. 

For comparison I attach a picture of the old table. I liked it, but it weighs the same as the new and has half the surface. (And I can't hide my things from the customers under it.)

Bests:

Gergely

[Hans Richter]

Take a visit to the local Plummer shop and buy the necessary parts to aspirate the future mobile brake drum forge -I want to use for fairs and social projects. Next week I’m also invited to pick up two used 10in brake drums. Also get a nice empty oil drum (and more to come) which is a forge stand right now, but I’m hesitate to use the drums as mobile forge stand, smoke hood on the field forge, ceramic raku-kiln, BBQ or steel drum too. Buy the hinges for the replacement of the first to big and CO producing gas forge.

My dear, so many plans and so less time .

Also casted two new bronze miniature anvils, they turn out to very nice, valuable and appreciated ‘sponsor-gifts’ to the people support forge Tummulus.

Envy the ones between you, are retired and/or have (beside of grandchild’s, gardening & administrate nice forums) enough time to follow their favourite occupation.

Cheers, Der Hans   

[Hans Richter]

Gergely, a nice booth -looks very authentic with the filigree legs of the exposure table and the scrim cover. Well done. Specially like the wine holder and I'm curious if there is some Tokay still in the bottles.

Let me know

[VaughnT]

Got all four brackets made and delivered to the customer.  She met me halfway, which was awesome, but I kinda wish I'd driven all the way and done the install myself just so I could be sure everything went together like I envision.

 

Now I have to come up with a way of bending these brackets more efficiently.  Right now, I just clamp them in the vise and knock the leg over.  The downside is adjusting for different lengths of legs because I have to put a block under the vertical leg in the vise.  I'm thinking about buying a section of rack that will allow for 1/4" adjustments while still supporting the lower leg.  Not sure about that, though.....

 

[ThomasPowers]

How about a fixture for the vise that has a stop for the bottom of the leg and a right angle bend to engage the vise top sort of like an L with the top bent over to the left....

Noticed that a new "wine tasting and craft beer" place has opened in our little town---now we have *2* businesses!  I must make a couple of bottle openers and corkscrews as a "welcome gift".... and leave them a stack of my cards...

[Heelerau]

I finished this little herb knife for the War Office a few days ago. I forged it out of an old file and used a piece of fruit wood as a handle.  The War Office kindly  turned my great whetstone to allow me to make an initial working edge, which I then finished off on an oilstone. I have left the blade fairly hard. It is pretty roughly finished, but a functional tool. She is ver pleased with it which is the main thing.