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What did you do in the shop today?


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Yes, yes. But how is one to cook the ROUS's, who are likely to be the only food source? After all, the flame spouts are most likely methane, which would char the outside but keep raw the inside. 

SLAG, ROUS is Rodent Of Unusual Size, a term used to refer to the giant rats inhabiting the fire swamp in The Princess Bride. Not nearly as sweet as the beautiful capybara, as one attacks and savages Wesley's arm almost to the point of killing him. The other itallicized name is that of the deer mouse.

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Ullo, you keeled my Father; prepare to die!  (Rodents of unusual Size are only found in the fire swamp.)

I did get out to the smithy today before dark!  Did some cleaning and forged a 3/4" sucker rod into a bottom fuller.  Much like this one we did out of car axle last weekend:

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Notice that the shiny "use" spot is pretty much over the sweet spot.  (165# Hay Budden anvil).

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Though a capybara is a rodent of unusual size, it is not a ROUS, nor is it a Rodent Of Unusual Size (check the capitalization). Capybaras are actually really cute. In fact, I have a story about capybaras. In the 17th century, Venezuelans loved to eat them. However, one day, they decided- "We should ask the Vatican if we can eat these on lent!" The obvious answer, and the one they received, is no! However, they really liked capybara, so they staged a protest. Eventually, under quasi-duress, the Pope declared that capybaras, who love to swim, are fish, and therefore may be eaten for lent. Same goes for puffins, iguanas, alligators, muskrats, and beavers. Fun fact.

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Never read the book, seen the movie about 500 dozen times though. It kind of holds a special place for me, my daughter loved it when she was little and i used to sit and watch it with her. She loved being read to but only 2 books usually. "Alice in Wonderland" and i have a collection of Irish fairy and folk tales by Yeats she loved. 

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On 12/26/2020 at 2:33 PM, Chimaera said:

I even intentionally tried at a black heat, and it worked poorly but didn't crack or anything.

I have not forged A2, but I have forged O1.  It can air harden in thin cross sections.  I was forging a knife when it happened to me.

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Finally rigidized my gas forge I bought who knows how long ago. It surely does what it says. After that is fully dry I'll add the kastolite 30 to finish it off. 

Kids slow progress down but they are just too cute and fun.  I'll be excited to have a gas forge to add to the mix of versatility finally. Also need to build a stand and figure out the add ons.

 

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I made a pair of box jaw tongs to grip bar stock I salvaged from the scrap bin at my brother's work for better handling while I'm using the bar stock for more tong making.

 

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Due to popular demand from my friends who are into Viking related stuff, I started practicing on making some fire strikers from coil springs. I feel I made this one too thick, and the scrolls don't align, but that just means I got to practice more.

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So this is a little project I have been working on for a bit now.  I jumped into the deep end of forge welding and stacked up 9 layers of 1084 and 15n20, two inches long and just under one inch thick.  I tack welded them together, welded on a handle and let er rip.  Without having a press I did this all by hand and got one heck of a workout. 

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All drawn out to about 7 inches. 

 

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I then used my bandsaw to cut them into 3 inch sections, then cleaned them up on the grinder, restacked and welded.

 

Back into the forge it went and came out with the ugliest billet/knife shape ever drawn out..  In all reality I was just going for a flat bar that I could then draw out and cut on the bandsaw.

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Yesterday I heat treated and started grinding on it, and did a quick etch before starting to hand sand

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I have a ton to learn and again had so much fun.  So far I haven't seen any cracks or issues.  I did not use any flux, but spent a lot of time grinding clean each restack before moving on and I am sure lost a layer or two in the process.  I learned that for anything bigger than this it will take alot more layers/bigger starting stack.  I need to invest in a 40 or 100 pound propane tank...  Forging temps run around 10 PSI and the tank froze.  Slow and steady was more productive than trying to draw it out as fast as I could. 

Getting ready to finish the hand sand today and final fit the dragon skin damascus guard ( had a piece on hand).  I glued a piece of desert iron wood onto some dyed redwood burl for the handle. 

The amount of knowledge I have learned by reading on this forum is more than anywhere I have ever been and I thank you all. 

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Yesterday started out with a *few* friends/students going to the scrapyard.  Unfortunately the heavy scrap where they keep pieces of RR rail is in the far back. (Note: Masked and distanced!) 20 UScents a pound this was a bit over US$20.  He also got a smaller piece, length and height, for jewelry making.

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Meanwhile I picked up some sewer snake and pallet strapping for PW billets and some bearing races for 52100 stock and 3 more car axles as making bottom fullers from them seems to be popular at my shop. (I had a couple on the "possibles pile"; now we have a use, I figured I'd better stock up---two even had the flange cut off already!) Also a few odds and ends, spring clip, broken off top half of a C clamp---(welded to some sq tubing with a slot for a wedge it would make a good holder for steel being chiseled cold on the anvil), a few unused wirenuts in the original package, etc...

After lunch we remet at the shop and had both the gasser and the coal forge in use for distancing. They were making chili peppers in the gasser from black pipe and I ran a new student through their first PW billet in the coal forge. 21 layers of sewer snake and pallet strapping, held with baling wire to a mild rusty piece of strap for the handle---didn't want the strap in the billet.

They left as the sun was going down, dinner with my wife and then a bit of DVD watching with her and some hot cocoa (mine with a bit of dark rum in it.)

Only issue was me trimming my beard a bit with the dragon's breath as there was some back burning on the burners that needed me to huff and puff to push it out into the forge.  My spouse said she didn't notice it so not too bad.

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Beautiful pattern you got in your billet hornet!

Weather has been playing merry heck with me.  Can't forge because it's raining.  Oh well.

TP, I took your advice and started a forge notebook.  I've been fascinated with some of the bending jigs and I'm trying to think of a way to use different sockets to get different diameters out of the same jig that will go in the vise.

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Cut 2 pieces of angle iron to fit into the vise jaws.  You may want to test fit and slide the angle iron in the jaws to get the right position for the piece of material welded to the angle iron and accommodate the sockets you plan to use.  Weld a piece of square (or round) to each piece of angle iron that fits into the socket drive hole. 

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My problem with that is that I have no idea how to weld.  Actually, I kind of know the theory but I haven't touched a welder in 30 years.  Brazing I can do. 

I have a welder downstairs that actually came with the house, sans leads.  I need a 220 outlet and a long extension cord to be able to set it up safely, not to mention the PPE required, so it's down the list a ways.  

I have thought If I take a piece of rebar and make an L shape with a 3/8 square on one end (the short one)  Make a straight piece with a loop that can slide up and down the L .  secure in the vise, put a socket on it and then have an adjustable jig that can take different thickness stock and can bend to different (small) diameters.  I even have an idea using a U and Y shape to set up a 4 point pattern using sockets of different diameters to create elaborate hair pins.

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