MacLeod Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 Das, I like that tree. Definitely definitely the nicest horse shoe Xmas tree I’ve seen. I’m going to make one, mind if I cheekily borrow your design? 13 hours ago, Daswulf said: horse shoe christmas trees, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 Thanks MacLeod. Feel free to use the idea. My version is just made from someone elses. Would love to see yours. I've seen a lot of different takes on the horse shoe Christmas tree. They are all nice. I wanted to make something to be smaller than the full shoe trees for more variety of display options. I left this one on the table for my better half to see this morning and now I need to make more. Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 25 minutes ago, Daswulf said: now I need to make more. Lol see! It looks good, much nicer than the full horseshoe ones. I’ll throw a pile of rusty shoes into the cement mixer tomorrow and get cracking! Thanks Das. Oh happy thanksgiving to you fellas over there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 Haha yeah, it happens often. I tried hiding the sunflower inbetween working on it and had the flower head painted, she came up to the shop to tell me something and spotted it right away among my cluttered junk. She asked if I was making it for the upcoming show and I told her I had figured when she saw it she would want to keep it. (She loves sunflowers) Money is tight so she told me to take it to see if it sells. Deal is if I don't sell it she gets it and if it does sell I make her another. I already need to make more anyway lol. Thanks, We had a good Thanksgiving day and feast with my family. Amazingly no serious arguements happened haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 Sounds like a good thanksgiving then, glad you got to enjoy it with your family! All the best for the show pal hope you are having to make more sunflowers after it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BsnNFrnt Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 7/8 sucker rod claw hammers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 On 11/27/2020 at 9:17 PM, BsnNFrnt said: 7/8 sucker rod claw hammers Nice. Difficult? I’ve thought about making one for my cousin who is a carpenter. I didn’t get near my Christmas tree today a dragon to go behind a two bottle whisky display and the beginnings of a rams head door knocker. I had to make a new eye punch as it was heavier stock than the fire side tools I usually make. It got shorter with each test until I was happy with it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 This morning I did the forge welding on 3 barbwire basket Icicles, A bit tricky as the wire is so small, and old and corroded. Luckily I still have some beautiful Sewell seam coal to weld with. Unfortunately I can only work on one at a time as a second would burn up while I was hammering on the first. After the fire got hot it was about 12 turns of my Buffalo 210 hand crank to get to welding for each end. I did find that wire brushing the ends with a powered wire brush did not work as well as an overnight soak in vinegar and then a rinse in snow water. This afternoon I hope to fire up the gasser and do the twist/untwist on the baskets and forge the hook one one end and maybe work out how to do barbwire star Christmas tree ornaments---should be a lot less finicky! Yesterday it was cold and rainy and I stayed indoors and fed the woodstove and spent time on the couch reading with my wife. (Her: A Night in the Lonesome October; Me: 1636 Seas of Fortune.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 I want to see the barbed wire icicles! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BsnNFrnt Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 MacLeod the sucker rod hammers should not be hard for a guy that makes dragons that look that good. I just had to build three drifts until I got one that worked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 Thanks BsnNFrnt! You haven’t seen all the dragons that went before though! Thanks for the inspiration, im thinking I’m going to try a miniature claw hammer from coil spring that’ll avoid the difficultly of the drifts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 I'll see if I can get a friend to post a decent picture when they are finished; I plan to paint them silver. Still to do: twist and untwist the baskets; forge the hanging hooks, wire brush and boil in water (to remove any borax still present, let dry and paint. You can make your own if you have access to rusty barbwire and are good at forge welding small stuff: Take 4 pieces---I cut them so a barb is in the middle of the length and twist this old wire a bit tighter, cold; soak in vinegar overnight and rinse. Forge weld the two ends and draw out and round the welds to make nice points, one to be the bottom and one to be the top with a hanging hook forged in. (Or a loop for a ribbon or wire ornament hanger.) Twist and untwist the basket, forge the hook and finish. Now "why rusty barbwire?" I don't put galvanized metal in my forge! Besides which I like telling folks that I'm giving rusty barbwire to my kids for Christmas! (Of course it's sterile rusty barbwire---even prions don't handle forging temps!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 "why rusty barbwire? well Thomas just so happens I’m removed old livestock fencing from my sisters house next week and putting up new. If I could prevent one metre of the barbed wire going into landfill I’d be happy. I look forward to seeing it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 As we are in ranching country you also see things done cold with it like barbwire wreaths for the door. The stuff I'm using is quite old: two twisted strands with flat barbs wrapped around one of the strands. I may have to pick up more at the scrapyard. I like to find it in reasonably straight and short lengths---like 20'. "New Mexico has an "open range" law. That means if you live near cattle, sheep or other livestock and do not want them on your property it is your responsibility to keep them off through lawful means. It also means livestock are free to roam wherever, including on roadways"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 Much the same as our common grazings. It’s not many drivers on the island that haven’t hit a sheep. It’s only a little fewer that haven’t popped the carcass into the boot(trunk) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 Deer is an issue most places I've lived; if you call it in to fish and game you usually got permission to butcher it---help offset the damage to the vehicle! Out here we have Elk; they are tall enough to go over the hood and come in the window and take out the driver. The big pickups have our version of a Roo Guard for deer and cattle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 We had Roo Guards on our police cars. However they didn't help much when one of my officers hit a deer at 110 mph during a pursuit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navyag Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 Worked on a set of small flat jaw tongs. Build a JABOD yesterday, this was the test drive. They aren’t pretty but should work for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 28, 2020 Share Posted November 28, 2020 2 hours ago, Irondragon ForgeClay Works said: Roo Guards I just checked, I was sure you weren’t in Australia! What on earth is a Roo guard!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 impact guard for kangaroos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 Just because I'm not in Australia I can't know what a Ute or a Roo Guard or a Tinnie is? Come over and visit some time and I will explain the Official State Question of New Mexico: Red or Green? (Or Christmas!) IronDragon; why were they chasing a deer at 110 mph? A 30-06 does just as well and probably is more controllable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 Now that's funny I don't care who ya are. I guess I did set that one up didn't I. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLeod Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 you did. And Powers never lets one get by! thanks Steve! (You never know!) if I believed everything I read here I’d be outside howling at the moon doing some forge welding right now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 Moose are our most common road kill-er. Even a 4x4 pickup tends to cut their legs out from under them and they do a fast roll up the hood and through the windshield. We call front end moose armor, "Moose Goosers." About the only thing you see them on anymore are semi tractors and even then they tend to take the vehicle out too. A moose gooser isn't much if any use on anything smaller, 4x4 trucks tall enough they don't go over the hood usually end up with bent frames. I knew a guy who went under one in a Mazda Miata and managed to steer between the legs. Took the convertible top off but he drove home without a scratch. The pickup behind in the next lane wasn't so lucky but wasn't too badly injured. Made the papers. I remember because he was a friend and that's something to celebrate. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul TIKI Posted November 29, 2020 Share Posted November 29, 2020 8 hours ago, ThomasPowers said: Come over and visit some time and I will explain the Official State Question of New Mexico: Red or Green? (Or Christmas!) I miss Hatch Chile. Christmas on the enchiladas please. Next weekend I'll be making some Green Chile Stew. I attempted a green chile turkey soup with the leftovers from Thanksgiving, but it didn't turn out like I wanted. I forgot Cilantro, and didn't add enough Green Chile. For those who were not blessed enough to live in the Land of Enchantment, Chile is not the meat based thing associated with Cowboys. It's a wonderful Chile Pepper with an amazing balance of heat and flavor. And the stuff grown in Colorado is NOT real green chile!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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