Daswulf Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Very organic and flowing Ted. Jobtiel, Really nice looking fire striker, and I like the pouch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donal Harris Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Very interesting candleholder. It is nice to look at, yet sort of disturbing at the same time. I have no idea why that would be. Did you arc weld any of it? Strikers like that, how do they get around the laws making “knuckle dusters” illegal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 No idea? Didn't you ever watch the Addams Family on TV with their "african strangler plant Cleopatra"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.J.Lampert Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 25 minutes ago, DHarris said: Strikers like that, how do they get around the laws making “knuckle dusters” illegal? out of sight out of mind besides its a 'fire-striker' not a knuckle duster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 There is always a problem in prosecuting an illegal weapons or tools case. Some things are clearly what is prohibited but there are a lot of things in a gray area. Knuckle dusters can be like that. One with individual knuckle loops, sometimes with spikes, and a support for the palm is clearly intended for one thing. A fire steel or a large chain link is more problematic. Sometimes context is relevant. A crow bar in a trunk of a car stopped at 3 AM in a residential neighborhood along with bolt cutters, a hammer wrapped in rags, balaclavas, and other things may be "burglary tools" but a crowbar in a toolbox in your garage is probably not. I recall a discussion I had with a cop who wanted me to prosecute for a charge of an illegal knife where the measurement of the full length of the unfolded blade was longer than the prohibited size but the length of the sharpened edge was not. I had to explain about ambiguity and reasonable doubt. Besides, I thought the city ordinance was kind of stupid anyway. And that particular cop had a tendency to push things as far as he could. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jobtiel1 Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 No idea how that would work, around here knuckle dusters are illegal, but I plan on carrying this one in either a tinder pouch with charcloth and flint, or in my scouts uniform, so I don't think I'll be prosecuted for it. And I think I'll do more damage to myself when I hit somebody with that. And indeed, "out of sight out of mind" as long as you don't go waving around with it and only use for firestarting, it should be fine I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Ewert Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Thanks! Jobtiel1, nice work on both the striker and the bag! Spring steel is not the easiest thing to move. What are you foraging for? The only foraging I do these days is in dumpsters. DHarris, Stranger things have come out of my shop. They were supposed to be roots, but they look a lot like worms. The only welding I did on it was underneath the wrap, to hold the pieces together. Otherwise it started life as three lengths of 3/4" x 3/8" bar stock. Daswolf, love the gator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 I thought roots right away on the candle holder. The worms comment makes me think 3 snakes would make for a cool candle holder. The heads could come up and lean down looking at the flame with mouths open. The tails could wiggle around like that for the base. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted June 15, 2021 Share Posted June 15, 2021 Nice candle holder Ted, well done. I have to agree it's a little creepy. Morticia's strangle flower is a good thought. I thought carnivorous plant at first glance, one that grabs you as you walk past and draws you into it's mouth. Now you mention worms it's obvious the leaves grab you, the serpentine limbs draw you in and feed you to the worms! I'm going to have nightmares now aren't I? In all seriousness, it's really well done even if I don't know what kind of plant it represents. I'm a fan of candle holders and really stable attractive candle holders are excellent. Frosty The Lucky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donal Harris Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 After reading some of the other comments, I know why it seemed creepy. It appears to be preparing to move or has been frozen in mid-movement like the Weeping Angels on Dr. Who. really like the piece quite a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jobtiel1 Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 Thanks Ted, atm I don't have much foraging to do, but I'm moving soon and at the new place there are a lot of oysters, mussels, and "krukels" (type of sea snail) to gather. Also berries and the like whenever I go camping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 13 hours ago, George N. M. said: There is always a problem in prosecuting an illegal weapons or tools case In my experience back in the not so good ol days a CCW charge was usually just a bargaining chip used to reach a plea bargain. Although I did go to jail for a spring loaded knife when I was 18 but I've also been charged with CCW for a utility knife while still in my work clothes. It was definitely a throwaway charge meant to be used to get a plea. We'll drop XYZ if you'll plead guilty to A and B. Pnut Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Masterson Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 On 6/14/2021 at 5:24 PM, Ted Ewert said: Just don't get discouraged when your first tries don't turn out like the video you saw on YouTube. Most of those guys don't show you their own scrap bin. Well said Ted, thanks! 22 hours ago, Jobtiel1 said: I like the way this turned out, and maybe I'll make a few more to sell. Really cool striker. I found this punch at work and thought I could make one from that. I was curious if you hardened and tempered yours though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad J. Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 And along the lines of Pat's question, does it need to be a high carbon steel? I hadn't ever thought about that before now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jobtiel1 Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 Hi Pat and Chad, The key reason a fire striker works is because it is hard, I hardened the striker in oil, and did no tempering. What I understand/heard how it specifically works is that the stone (usually flint) is harder than the striker, and you scrape a tiny bit of metal from the striker which makes some sparks. If the striker would be soft, then the stone would be unable to scrape of small pieces, as the metal is more likely to deform rather than break off those tiny pieces. It's essentially the same principle as pieces breaking of when hitting two hardened surfaces together (which you should NEVER do). So to conclude, yes I hardened the striker, and didn't temper, and it needs to be high carbon steel, unsure if medium C would work too, but from what I know the fire striker needs to be as hard as possible. The punch from your work might be suitable material, test it like you would any unknown steel, and test forge it. maybe it can't be hardened hard enough, but then you got some practice for the second try. ~Jobtiel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 To add to what Jobtiel1 says, what makes the sparks is the transfer of kinetic energy from the flint to the striker, which not only shaves tiny bits of metal from the striker, but actually heats them hot enough to melt! (If you catch the sparks on something non-flammable and let them cool, you can see that they've formed little spheres when the metal melted.) If the striker isn't hard enough, it doesn't give sufficient resistance to the striker to transfer enough energy to the sparks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 And; a common problem with folks just getting started; is that the extra work time can create a decarb layer on the outside of the striker that needs to be removed before it will spark good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Ewert Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 If I have a striker and can't find a piece of flint, is it OK to use a grinder? I've been successful using this method to ignight my shirt on several occasions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 If you pre-char your shirt, it will work even better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 Chert, Flint, Agate; most microcrystalline quartzes work fine for "flint and steel". Make sure your shirts are 100% cotton or linen before pre-charring them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 Also, the edge of the flint needs to be sharp to shave off the bits of steel to make the sparks. If you have a chunk of flint or quartz and don't know how to get a sharp edge look up "flint knapping." Since they are about the same material I have always considered a rock in place in or on the ground "chert." If it has been worked by human hands, even just knocking of a flake, it is "flint." If it is banded and made into something pretty it is "chalcedony" or "agate." And if it is red it is "jasper." "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexandr Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 The customer brought the old table, restored, fixed a new tabletop. стол смола.mp4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donal Harris Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 If I weren’t so old and St. Petersburg were not so far away, I would ask if you need an apprentice. Language might be an issue, but I believe they just about have Babel Fish worked out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexandr Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 8 minutes ago, DHarris said: . Language might be an issue, but I believe they just about have Babel Fish worked out. When I was young, I worked as a sailor for several years. Didn't speak English badly. For 35 years without practice, I forgot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Ewert Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 I've been practicing my blacksmithing skills lately attempting to craft a presentable set of tongs. I'm on about my sixth pair now and have figured out a new way on each to mess it up. With every error the fix requires making the other half the same. This invariably results in the removal of material. What started out as a stout pair of tongs slowly becomes a stout pair of pliers. Is a humiliated blacksmith an oxymoron? Anyway, here is what I did in the shop today. Long box jaw tongs for 5/8" square stock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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