June 14, 20197 yr Visited Latticino in his shop, where he showed me how to make a tomahawk: So I gave it a try: With some success!
June 14, 20197 yr JHCC I love you make the rounds and pick up a little tidbit from where ever you go.. Very cool indeed. Nice tomahawk.
June 14, 20197 yr It's a mess, as usual, but thanks. John didn't give you the full shop tour. I run residential pressure natural gas with a blown burner, and with the new doors on the forge we were able to get up to heat for forge welding mild steel for the first time reliably to forge weld our hawks. I also have an older, small flypress and 4-bar treadle hammer that got some use. John killed it for his first hawk. A little profile filing, a quick heat treat, bevel and handle and this one will be a nice thrower and field tool. I'd like to chalk it up to the teacher, but he is a very quick study.
June 14, 20197 yr I like that your vise is mounted to a 55 gallon drum. I'd say that's a good excuse to always have some scrap. "If it wasn't full of metal it would fall over!"
June 14, 20197 yr Actually when I learned that 55 gallon drum trick is was from a travelling smith in the early 1980's who would sett up in parking lots to demo/sell. With a bung on the side near the bottom it is easy to fill with water---400 pounds worth making it stable and easy to empty by removing the bung and then light to load and transport. Also they said that all that water to hand seemed to calm site owners down about possible fire issues... However I found in my use that keeping my travelling scrap pile in it was generally enough for me and I didn't need to bring a hose or find a hose bib onsite. For water I used a wooden icecream maker bucket easily filled at a Janitor's sink.
June 14, 20197 yr It’s mostly full of sand, actually; a good place to drop a hot workpiece to cool while you work on something else. 2 hours ago, Latticino said: I'd like to chalk it up to the teacher, but he is a very quick study. It’s the teacher.
June 15, 20197 yr Been busy with life as usual, but school let out for me on Wednesday so I had a day and a half to make gifts for my kids’ teachers. These are the wine glass holders I made last year. This time I had a go with something like a grape leaf. I checked for pictures online and found a number of shapes for real grape leaves, so my interpretation must be close to one of them. I think Daswulf wanted to see a picture of these in use last year. I can finally oblige. I had to make six in order to get four....lost two leaves right near the finish line. I relearned to avoid cold shuts at that junction!
June 15, 20197 yr More work on the hydraulic press conversion: cut away the extraneous substructure, leaving the mounts for the motor and hydraulic pump. Also wire-brushed the heavy scale off the tomahawk head I made on Thursday, in preparation for grinding & heat treatment.
June 16, 20197 yr My demo forge performed great at the PAABA event at the Compass Inn museum. As usual when I'm busy, I forget to get many photos. Elizabeth only got a few. And I only got a few of my daughter. Was a great time with great people. If only I were more social..
June 16, 20197 yr Nice Das, Reminds me of the old days seeing that trailer. looks like a great get together. What did you make? Lou L: nice holder.
June 16, 20197 yr Made my first tomahawk. Well at least the head. This is after knocking of the flux and scale with a sanding disk. Got to fire up the old coal burner yesterday for the first time in well over a year, man did the welding go easy. Still needs hardened and tempered. A piece of A-36 strap with a piece of O-1 at the edge.
June 16, 20197 yr Jennifer, the pictures were all taken durring a slow point. Where were more people around. I didn't get as much made as I thought I might. Just some s-hooks few leaf keychains and a fork and spoon. The items were donated to the museums gift shop. There was a family that watched me make the spoon and they waited for me to get my stuff to the gift shop to purchase it.
June 16, 20197 yr Das, Nice.. Looks like you were busy then. Keep up the great work for sure. Did you hand out any cards?
June 16, 20197 yr Yup. I always try to keep cards on me to give out when someone seems interested. And promote coming to IFI for those interested in forging. Yup. I always try to keep cards on me to give out when someone seems interested. And promote coming to IFI for those interested in forging.
June 16, 20197 yr @Les L This is the best I can do for a full picture. I usually just put a rope twist in the shaft to match the vine theme at the business end. Then I tap the edges of the parent bar to make it just a little bit less sterile. Finally, I put a pretty abrupt diamond taper at the ground end.
June 16, 20197 yr Lou L, Thanks, that explained it to me. I was thinking it set on the ground, not stuck in it.
June 16, 20197 yr I had a little time yesterday morning to work in the shop. Made a stand for my post vise and straightened the handle then fired up my coal forge and made two flower pot holders and a wall bracket for my wife, all out of 1/2 square. This make 4 things I have forged, I'm having fun learning. The second picture is upside down,(I can't figure out how to rotate it on my new Chromebook) it's the wall bracket that will hold two items she currently has hanging on a piece of junk bracket.
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