Daswulf Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 The (what they are using as the) face is 7 5/8", top is 9", and the bottom is 8 1/2 x 4' long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 Looking forward to seeing a photo of them installed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 Me too. I should be installing them tomorrow evening. Still trying to work out the details. It was a brick fireplace. They are having the beam installed tomorrow and mesh over the brick to be getting stone put over it. Here's the beam when I went for measurements. Front face. Top face. I'd have suggested resin to fill that big divot but they had already loaded it with linseed oil, and I didn't want to complicate things. Still a beautiful old beam. I can't wait to see how these look on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cincinnatus Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 Now I see what you mean about a pain without a brake! Once you see the beam you realize how big the brackets are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 Yeah, too wide to bend in my vise. I ended up clamping them to my welding table and with a piece of bar over top heating with a torch and bending, then cleaned up on the tail of my anvils. (One is flatter and one has better edges. ) The main bracket is 3" wide x3/16" thick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rojo Pedro Posted February 18, 2019 Share Posted February 18, 2019 A couple of rebar hooks for my rebar tong rack and a new style bottle opener made from spring steel. Believe you me, multiple tests prove that it works a treat ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 18, 2019 Share Posted February 18, 2019 Got the gasser up to ~15psi without significant issues. Did have a few crumbs of Kastolite shedding off the inside surface, but what remains seems solid enough. I took the opportunity to turn four feet of 3/8” round into 1/4” x 7/16” for a project I’ve had in mind. Worked very well, despite my anvil being cold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 18, 2019 Share Posted February 18, 2019 Congrats.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Installed the fireplace mantle brackets today. The lady was happy with them. With the way the beam was mounted and the backing plaster/morter I did have to trim 1/4" from the top side but other than that installation went easy. I'll be excited to get pictures from her after the stonework is finished. Not too bad for my first commission of this type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Looking good! (And a good place to hang the Christmas stockings!) I didn’t have any real shop time today, but did grab a minute to try something. I had the idea to make a little Kastolite “tile” as a replaceable floor for the gas forge, so I put a pound and a half of the dry mix in a gallon freezer bag with 4-1/2 oz. of water, kneaded it until mixed, and then plopped it in the bottom of the forge and pressed it into shape. When it’s hardened, I’ll take it out of the bag and fire it in the forge. If it works, I can use it as a consumable protection against welding flux. (Quite possibly a waste of time and material, but a fun experiment nonetheless.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Thanks John, that was one reason she wanted them. She had mentioned her idea initially to put a bar through the loops to hang stockings from. I made the bracket that holds the loop deep enough (with enough offset to hold the loops forward) to be able to push the loops back and install a bar through. With some loop hooks to slide on the bar it will hold a bunch of stockings nice and secure. She liked the idea and it will be a future commission. Thats a lot of loops... ugh.. I'm going loopy. Like the forge floor idea. If it works and I ever build one consider the idea borrowed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Too late Das, you've been loopy since I've known you. Love the mantle brackets can't wait for the close ups. Good idea for making a forge floor John. It's not going to be a disposable, not really, Kastolite laughs at hot flux. I didn't do anything IN the shop today. It's been snowing a couple days for about 7". Does plowing snow from around the shop count? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Yeah, I'm loopy, lol. Oh, I have to say this was my first time riveting something like this together. Used bolts and nuts to hold and did one rivet at a time. Made the rivets, tho they surely didn't turn out as nice as I'd have liked. So a little research is in line for decorative rivets. I did gain some ideas and will be making a proper rivet header tool. I've seen some but was in a crunch for time. Also apparently if I want to make a pyramid ( or other fancy) shaped rivet I need to make a positive to hot hammer into a negative as a "bucking" tool? Still researching and checking older threads. Ah well, my rivets worked fine in the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuja_torra Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Practiced my pattern welding with mild steel. 32 layers with 3 folds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 that is a great start.. It's endless the possibilities.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 Das, that is a beautiful mantle. Cant wait to see the finished fireplace with the brick installed. Anyway, my best friend gets out of lockdown after 14. He was always a camper so i thought i would make him a fork for cooking on the fire. My split went uneven so it is now a poker, little short but maybe good for a camp fire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 Thanks Billy. When a split for forks gets uneven for me, I still draw them out and just hot cut the longer part to make them even. Still a short poker can be useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 A nice wide hardy can make lining up the cut easy to trim them to match. You do need to either angle the long one a bit more so it is a tad shorter so when you forge the new point out they match, or if the cross sections match you can file the cut one to a point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 Yesterday, experimented with cool Spring fire strikers for my wife's scout troop. Today was a baking day: cheese scones and flapjack (well, I can't get away with bashing metal all the time) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 Unwrapped the Kastolite “tile” for the forge floor: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudman Posted February 21, 2019 Share Posted February 21, 2019 Coming along nicely jhcc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocketman_k Posted February 21, 2019 Share Posted February 21, 2019 Experimenting with electrical etching of stainless steel for labelling the hour ring of my latest sundial. Not quite there yet but results are looking promising. I don't want it too perfect as I want to keep a "hand made" feel to the finished item. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 21, 2019 Share Posted February 21, 2019 May want to see how the armour makers are doing it over at the armourarchive.org Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 22, 2019 Share Posted February 22, 2019 Fired the Kastolite “tile” in the forge. All done (still warm). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted February 22, 2019 Share Posted February 22, 2019 Good idea John, I like it. I never thought of forming Kastolite in a plastic bag that way and I routinely mash burgers in aluminum foil. Guess I need to think more outside the bun eh? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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