1 hour ago, Buzzkill said:

As has been mentioned elsewhere, the true cost of scrap steel isn't always easy to define.  For instance, if you get some free steel, but it takes you a lot of fuel and 4 hours of your time to forge it to the shape  you want, that may have cost you more than purchasing new steel that is already close to the shape and size you want.

I think nearly all of us have at least one time worked on a piece of "free" steel for several hours before concluding that it may not have been the best choice.  

There is definitely something satisfying about taking a piece of steel that would just be junked or recycled and turning it into something that can be used for generations, but sometimes it's not worth the effort.

BillyBones' suggestion of using a tire iron is a good example of trying to find something much closer to shape and size you need for your project.  Coil spring is also probably a better choice than the leaf spring.    I have hammered out a couple things from leaf springs which are about 5/8" thick and 3" wide.  Those experiences convinced me to choose starting stock more wisely in the future.

WEll its true but i bought thin mild stock it was not that expensive squere stock like 14 mm in deameter  0.5 inches   

At shops i didnt get to pass by carbon steel (REASON why my font is bigger is that i copied converted metric  measure from google and it messed text  now.

It is harder to buy new carbon steel (and i guess more expensive) than mild steel even with mild steel (for tongs that i wanted) i didnt get quite right dimension i wanted thicker piece but didnt get any .

 

I make a stainless steel chimney umbrella and fixed the chimney in the workshop.

Pretty much rookie here but all i use right now to forge is scrap metal i have gathered from trash or friends. What i have learned is old files chisels and coil springs i can forge much easier then almost every other scrap i have used and have been fooled few times by items i thought would work easily and just did not. Was actually thinking about trying to forge weld 4 fikes together to get a nice billet. File steel moves very nicely. Thats just my 2 sense as wekk as keep uo the great work everyone.

I think part of the confusion on the nomenclature of the tool used to change a flat tire is that they were originally rwo separate tools.  A tire iron was the pry bsr used to get the tire off the rim so thst you could patch a puncture and a lug wrench was the tool used to remove the lug nuts of the wheels.  Since folk rarely fix punctures any more the only use for a pry bar is to pop off the hub cap.  So, auto manufacturers decided to save a buck or two per car and combine the tools, a pry bar on one end and a hex wrench on the other, and for the old bumper jacks, a jack handle.

My advice on scrap steel is not to get stuff that is too big for you to forge.  You can look at a a leaf from a big truck spring and think, "Wow, look at all that good steel!"  But, in reality, it will take a LOT of fuel and effort to reduce that big chunk of steel down to a usable size.  I try to pick up high carbon scrap in small pieces, springs from compact cars, etc..  One of the best knives I ever made was from an old spring from the seat of a buggy or buckboard.  Also, older springs tend not to be weird alloys that require special heat treating.  Heat, harden with a quench, temper, and Bob's your uncle.

If I had access to inexpensive plasma or water cutting I'd think about having large springs cut into smaller strips to save fuel and shop time in reducing it to usable size.  This would be sort of like reducing a wrought iron bloom to rods to be sold to blacksmiths.

"By hammer and hand all arts do stand."

Nice work Alexander!

Most HC steel I use is old files or big cold chisels. I ordered a bar of 1095 once for some axes I sold, since using known steel there is nice. I got a complete leaf spring once from the scrapyard but I don't think I'll use that up anytime soon. I use it occasionally for bearded axes.

Today some supplies to finish the San Mai knife came in the mail, a piece of brass flat bar, brass rod, and a piece of walnut for the handle. Before assembly I etched the knife and now I just need to file, sand, and finish the handle and the lower part of the brass "guard". I'm stoked to get this finished and starting the sheath as well. It kind of is a show off piece to be honest. Also to see if I could. Second knife ever.

The cracks in the WI are still there, but nothing cracked further during hardening so it'll be fine I hope.

~Jobtiel

5 hours ago, George N. M. said:

My advice on scrap steel is not to get stuff that is too big for you to forge.

Here is a perfect example of that. For years I looked at these and thought why did I drag them home. The other day I decided to cut the long frame in two and make work tables out of them.

The piece on the right was from an old Chevy pick up front frame section. I was thinking about a hundred pounds of steel and I could cut it all up to use some. Decided to cut it in half and take it to the steel bin at our trash compactor today. Even as I was throwing it in the bin I was thinking maybe I should keep one half. But common sense won out and I pitched both (with a sigh). Free steel isn't free when labor and fuel are figured in to get it usable.

Wish i lived close could have made an anvil stand haha. 

I have fallen into the too big trap buying steel. Got a 3"x3" about 6" long piece of A2 thinking oh yeah that will be good for something. Collecting dust so far is what it is good for. 

Moving my scrap pile from the old space to the new, a lot of heavy stock, 2x 1.5 inch, 1.5 inch square, 1.25 hex, is being donated to my friends with power hammers and presses. My eyes were bigger than my arm/hand hammer.

Edited August 13, 20223 yr by Mod30
Excessive quoting

I think I'd need a bigger hammer...

The hex would make nice hammers.

Frosty The Lucky.

Mostly design work today, scaling up a sketch to full size. I do love proportional dividers. 

Had a friend stop by around noon and so opened the shop and lit the gasser.  I worked on two rasptle snakes for the state fair; he worked on a toasting fork,  we may see it in use at Quad-State.  I also wire brushed one of the 3 legs for another largish tripod.   Scrapyard tomorrow and then probably finish off finishing that tripod.

We were checking out his big 4 door 4WD truck with the small bed and payload---looks like putting just the four of us in the cab would max out the total cargo weight!  (We checked against my much smaller truck and I noticed that they used 150# per person as the weight of people; sigh it was accurate for me back in High School; but 38 years of marriage and a good cook for a wife has made that but a fond memory.)

Also, from yesterday, I finally finished the square(ish) bowl I’ve been playing with for a while. 

Finished the guitar. Some parts went sideways and I had to adapt and overcome, or deal with it.

Just in time for my event tomorrow. 

 

A little filing and it's done.   No leaves this time,  next time though...

Looks great Chad!

Wow Guys! I like the bowl John What's the better half think? 

Another most excellently cool guitar Das. I'd be bragging to have it on my wall.

That turned out really well Chad. What are you going to call it? How about "Winter Ent?" Hmmm, maybe make a couple little hobbits with magnets so they can ride. I really like it!

Frosty The Lucky.

Finished another job.

Love the look of that one alexandr! 

I think my tool evolved overnight .

I never saw that chipping hammer can evolve into hot set or maybe it's cold set .

Well I cut some rod with it.

I like feeling if having arms faar away from hammer.

If this rod ever break I will start hole inside and attach wood handle, but I first need to forge drift for that .

So maybe this can help someone.

If I made a second Frosty the name would be A-pair-ent.  I'll show myself out after that one. 

Das, ever thought about or made a guitar that actually works? I watched a documentary where Jack White made a guitar with a board, 2 nails, a pop bottle,  and a piece of bailing wire. Stuck a pickup under the wire and plugged it in. I did not realize it was that easy to make a guitar. May be a nice novelty feature for a musician or music store to have. 

2 hours ago, Chad J. said:

If I made a second Frosty

 Does that mean you're my real Father?!?! Does Mother know, should I find a medium and ask them?

Frosty The Lucky.

Does it sound wierd that i dont want to buy anvil right now  becasue i dont want to buy something expensive  and pound with hammer on it   i missed today  with my chisel  since i used to cut some rod, and it hit "railroad anvil" and now its mark there.
I tought man if i bought real anvil i will feel bad hiting and damaging it.

For anvil i only need horn to be honest and hardy hole, i tried once is it posible to weld some steels with arc welder (need to take up pounding ) once tried but i didnt get good result.
Is it posible to stick weld some junk to railroad.
I have something in mind but sometimes theory is not like practice.