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I Forge Iron

What did you do in the shop today?


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GG, looks like a variant of the Kentish Hewing hatchet.  Most countries have their own axe designs based on what type of trees they generally are using it on, (Like the North American "double bitted" for example)  Hewing axes, often with canted handles generally came in hardwood and softwood styles.  Finish work was often done with an adze and only for beams that would show when used in houses.

When I made my modified copy of the mastermyr chest I used an oak plank found in a flood pile along a stream, It was rough sawn and I adzed the surface proving that I am not skilled with the adze; but it would make an ok Blacksmith's tool chest made by a blacksmith and not a carpenter!  (My contention is that the Mastermyr chest was not intended to be used as a blacksmith's tool chest; but was repurposed for that use!)

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2 hours ago, SinDoc said:

Dang Billy, I didn't know you were a millionaire!

Funny you say that. My neighbor was on vacation when all of it was delivered. When her and her son got back he said "Look mom, our neighbor is a millionaire." I said later on if he thinks i am rich, the guy across the street just bought a new truck! That guy is a billionaire! 

All together it is just over $4K... so far. That includes tool rentals, buying some tools (twice in one case), extras supplies, and copious amounts of adult beverages and pizzas for the end of the day. 

 

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I needed something for 1/4" stock so I thought I'd try building some Poz tongs. Not the easiest tongs I've built, but not too bad. They're fussy to get right.

I basically followed John Switzers' method, but I think it could be improved.

20210726_154234.thumb.jpg.bc02ad668847e4bacfd61f6633c941be.jpg

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I like that video, but the part where he clamps both reins in the vise and then sticks a round bar between the jaws and twists them baffles me. If you think about it, all you need to do is to move each jaw slightly sideways, so that it centers on the centerline of the tongs. That’s nothing more than a simple offset, which can be done with an old-school adjustable wrench. 

1C90C0C7-DDE7-447C-BDB3-1C3E4F36EE4C.jpeg

Clamping just the rein of the half you’re adjusting keeps the joint from getting twisted. Spot heating with a torch or quenching the bosses can isolate the bending to right where you want it. 

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Been awhile since I fired up the forge. And it showed. Got up early before it got hot. My coal just would not start. Took me 2 hours to get it started. My rebuilt hair dryer wasn't pushing enough air to get it going. And my vacuum cleaner was giving me too much air blowing it out. I finally got it going and tried to forge an old piece of file into a dagger. What little I got burning was barely enough to heat it. 

 

And then I had to quit. Couldn't catch my breath, was seeing spots (more than normal), and felt weak as a kitten. Got a tang on the file and that's about it. Took me an hour to quit breathing hard. But I wasn't sweating too much. It was a new experience. Unpleasant. I guess when it hit 90 with the humidity it was too much for me. It's really upsetting. I worked out in that heat for 25 years. Never got like that. And I did landscaping in the 90's back when it was stupid hot in NC. It has cooled off a lot since then. Who knows when I'll be able to finish that dagger.  

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Too much air from the blower is not a problem, and easily fixed.  Do not connect the blower directly to the piping to the forge. Leave an air gap and aim the blower so that it misses the pipe opening and spills some of the air.  Aim more directly for more air, less directly for less air.

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O dang that is pretty.

Not to stick a monetary value on your work, but I could easily see something like that being specified on a job and costing 6-10 thousand dollars. I see fancy lightwork on projects all the time that are bonkers expensive. Should recommend you to our local lighting specifiers and architects :P

What are the dimensions of the assembled one? The picture unfortunately doesn't have anything to provide a scale for.

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