I don't end up with that; but I do have to do several weld runs just on the tip.

I talked with my neighbor and he said I could go collect rusty old barbwire on his land so I have some now to work on my Christmas gifts, it's pretty corroded though.

2 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

wrought iron porch supports

I gotta friend who has salvaged a pickup truck load of those things from houses being torn down or falling in, and he’s planning on using them to build the walls of a gazebo, then he’s planning on using one of those big wire mesh satellite dishes for the roof 

Sounds like a great idea for "up-cycling".

I have on of those 10 foot fiberglass C band satellite dishes, that I wanted to make it into a gazebo roof. The problem I can see is the weight and being able to raise it 10 feet by myself (it's heavy) maybe using the front loader on the tractor would work.

Maybe hang it from a set of shear legs that are then pulled upright by driving the tractor slowly away.

X2 on JHCCs idea,

maybe make a big round socket almost like curved angle iron to bolt it to and weld on some legs then use the legs to pivot it up 

5 hours ago, JHCC said:

Very nice.

Thank you.

Here are a couple chisels I forged today, they are not great but not bad for my first ones I guess. They are half inch, i would prefer 5/8 or 3/4 but 1/2 is all I have. I forged them out of automotive suspension coil springs. One I left round the other i forged square. I think maybe i should have forged a longer taper on the cutting end to give myself more room for forging or grinding a shape, and more room for sharpening in the future. I would also like to forge a diamond type end like you see on store bought chisels. And I would like to work on forging the square shape, its not bad but improvement is needed. I hardened it in water (no oil available) and tempered it in a toaster oven.

 

Well folks… long time no see! I have been away from the forge (and all of you) for far too long! I recently got these two pieces of mokume finished up. I made the bottom one with a friend, and the top one is a very small, dainty one I made for my mother. I ground down the edges (a bit like a knife bevel) on it to reveal the pattern a bit better. It was greatly assisted by my new belt grinder which I hope to use to make some squirrel tails and possibly a seax in the near future. I would also like to try a wrapped eye tomahawk out of some leaf spring.

Nice! Welcome back!

Good to see you again. The mokume is looking good.

Frosty The Lucky.

8 hours ago, Chimaera said:

a wrapped eye tomahawk out of some leaf spring.

My recommendation would be to make the body out of mild steel and use the leaf spring for the bit. It will make the weld easier.  Nice mokume!

12 hours ago, USANewbie said:

I hardened it in water (no oil available)

You don't have any oil? Most people have some sort of oil or other in the pantry. If not it's pretty inexpensive to pick up at the store. I'd hate to see something crack on you when it could have easily been avoided.

Over here you can buy 6 liters of sunflower oil at the Lidl for about 6 euros, and it quenches 5160 and 4140 just fine.

~Jobtiel

Are those old forge blowers in the background? They look pretty cool…

Yes I’ve got 7 blowers setting around my smithy right now along with a bunch of other junk lol, 

Frazer, would some mower blade work for the body, the a 5160 bit?

Depends entirely on the mower blade. A lot of them nowadays are made from high-boron alloys for impact resistance, but I have no idea how that affects their welding characteristics. John Deere makes theirs out of 5160, so that would be rather counterproductive.

You really are much better off getting some mild steel for the body.

15 hours ago, USANewbie said:

I think maybe i should have forged a longer taper on the cutting end to give myself more room for forging or grinding a shape, and more room for sharpening in the future.

A longer taper is certainly good, but not critical. You should also consider grinding a slight curve to the edge, which makes it easier to walk the chisel down the line of a longer cut. Mark Aspery's video about making chisels and punches is quite good:

 

Ok. I’ll see what I can find.

Thanks Frazer. I plan on getting some oil. 

Thanks Jobtiel1. Are car springs made from 5160 and 4140?

Thanks JHCC, I'll check that video out.

Chimaera, leaf springs are usually kind of thick also and 5160 is a pain to work. Especially by hand. Leaf springs make a good axe, if you can get the weld to stick, but in my opinion is just to much material to move for a tomahawk.  

There are 2 Alro steel locations in Cinci, well one is in West Chester. The one in West Chester is an outlet while the one in Cinci is a hub. I would go to the Cinci store you would have better chance of getting good drops there. It is on S. Medallion dr. You can also down load thier color code chart to your phone. Comes in handy when looking for drops. You can review what you are looking for before going in so it will be quicker to find it. One other note about the charts, there is no universal chart. The companies use what ever they wish. Alro marks 1018 in yellow while my supplier at work uses red for example. 

BillyBones. I forged some leaf springs and it was very difficult. On the other hand i just forged some automotive suspension coil springs and it was much easier. What kind of steels do you think they were made from?

There's variation between manufacturers, but many car springs are 5160 or something similar. 

I forged this knife today. I used mild steel because i just wanted the practice. I need to do some file work on it still. I forged it from 1/2 square stock. The blade is kinda rough, i will file it smooth but why is it rough? Is it my technique? Any constructive criticism is  welcome.