George N. M. Posted July 8, 2023 Share Posted July 8, 2023 Re roses: Everything in the rose family has a 5 fold symmetry. An apple is part of the rose family and if you slice one horizontally you will see 5 seed chambers. If you dissect a real rose there will always be multiples of 5 in everything. That is why it annoys me when, in a commercial rose kit, the bottom piece, which represents the bud casing, has only 4 points, rather than 5. Yes, this is nit picky but, IMO, when you are reproducing a natural object it looks better to follow Mother Nature. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted July 8, 2023 Share Posted July 8, 2023 Learn something new every day. Thanks George! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluerooster Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 Been quite busy here for the past several months, coupled with my inability to post anyway, so I haven't been on. Just did a major system upgrade, so I'll be on more now. I sure missed ya'll. Thanx shorty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 A little more make-and-mend: converted a piece of heavy scrap (I think originally some kind of heavy duty anchor point) into a radius block for the Hossfeld: And turned some election sign wire into replacement drawer slide clips for one of my tool chests: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 (edited) Today was the NEB spring meet at the Bolton fairgrounds in Lancaster, MA.. A great demonstrator Dennis Dusek wowed the crowd inviting many to come up and work with him as he forged many items of artfulness. Dennis D. is the guy in the green shirt. Was Super, super humid. What a stunning smith.. His energy and excitement about what he works on was super apparent. first time at a demo where the demonstrator just had people come up and help.. Way cool. Me I made tongs giving a demo as I went along on different types of scarfs and showing how tongs should be laid out, also taught a lesson on wrought iron work invisible joinery and 1 on rattail finial. Cavpilot2k came by for a meet as well. I tried to rope him in to forging something but it was Sooooooo hot and humid. Edited July 10, 2023 by Mod30 Remove @name tag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anvil Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 boy, When its hot,,, its hot!!! Speak more on invisible joinery,,, I'm curious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 14 hours ago, JHCC said: replacement drawer slide clips for one of my tool chests: JHCC, that is brilliant. I have a couple missing on one of my boxes as well. Being a Snap -on box i went to the Snap-on dealer and found that they are no longer available for older boxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lary Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 Couple of soapstone holders from 3/8"x10" round. I don't use the 4 lbs rounding hammer all that often. But it was kind of fun laying the workpiece on the horn and rapidly flattening parts of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim695 Posted July 9, 2023 Share Posted July 9, 2023 I got bored today so I decided to make a demascus driveway. Now if only I could figure out how to twist it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 6 hours ago, anvil said: boy, When its hot,,, its hot!!! Speak more on invisible joinery,,, I'm curious I'll post a video with photos of the key points when I do a tutorial on the subject. The person who inquired about it was looking for alternative wrought iron jointery methods and from the description and drawings I supplied, he still could not wrap his head around it. The last time I made this style of this joint was some 30 years ago and without any of the form tools (tools used for checking measurements and such) I made back then, all there was is a hot chisel, forge, anvil, hammer, some larger 1.25" square drift I brought to change into a Cutler's hammer eye drift was able to demonstrate the concept and actually put 3 bars Upright and 2 rails. Forming a locked Cross shape. Not my finest work but was pretty excited to get it done and together with such limited equipment and time. got it completed in just about 2hours. 3/8X1" cross bars and 1"sq upright. sizes don't really matter was just demo stock. So, stay tuned. The school is coming along so hopefully the next "real teaching" video will be in there with all new digs. Had, a ton of people watching and learning about forge welding. Was nice because I was able to get some reins welded onto the tong jaws. I used different scarfing methods and explained why I like my tongs with a 1/2x1/2x1/2 ratio.. Anyhow, Had a great time, met a few new people but sadly got caught in a candid moment by one of the master smiths who is a watcher from a distance. I don't like to do those kinds of things in front of regular people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 Decided that the welding table really needed a pencil sharpener. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 Also gave a lesson on Pigtail finial forging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 Started clearing out the new shop space. Running out of room in the old one. The back corner i will put a floor in and make an "office" out of, the coal will stay put and a bunch of stuff to get moved around. I am hoping that by fall i will be moved in which most likely translates to next spring. My only problem i have not figured out is how to heat it in the winter. While digging around and clearing things i found 4, 20' section s of 3/8" round bar and a couple pieces of pipe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anvil Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 shop gremlins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazz Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 I find that a propane forge will heat or at least warm a shop up quickly. Ventilation is required so you do not asphyxiate yourself though. My shop leaks well enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 Yeah, the problem is a propane forge does nothing to warm your feet or much below my waist. Make up air from adequate ventilation heads straight for the floor once the shop warms up some. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 My old boss in the furniture store started out in business reweaving chair seats in an unheated shop in Brooklyn. He had salvaged some big cast iron medallions (these depicted various versions of the NYC coat of arms and had originally decorated the old West Side Highway) and figured out that he and his partner could keep their feet warm in winter by standing on them after placing them up on bricks and heating them from underneath using a plumbers torch with the flame turned down low. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 That'd work, I wonder if I could sneak out of the highway maintenance yard with a couple manhole covers. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 Bolt them to the inside of your truck's wheels. No-one will ever notice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 Ever try to lift one? How do you suggest threading them around the axles and hubs? I suppose I could just use what's left of the sheet of 3/4" plate in the shop, I could just build a fire on it and go back to the house for another cup of coffee. Hmmmmm. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 1 minute ago, Frosty said: How do you suggest threading them around the axles and hubs? I'm just the visionary here; practical issues are your department. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 Insulated boots it is. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 I do not use propane, hence the pile of coal in the barn. I also do not see a propane forge doing much at all to heat a 30'x30' barn with 25' peak at the roof. I have a propane torpedo i use in my shop now. It will heat the shop up pretty quick so i run it for a few minutes then shut it off till it gets to cold to be comfortable. Even doing that i will run through a 20# tank of propane in about 3 days. That would be kind of cost prohibited in that large of a space i would think. I am thinking one of those 2 barrel type wood burning stoves or maybe a pellet stove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 How about building a heat exchanger into the forge stack? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gazz Posted July 12, 2023 Share Posted July 12, 2023 I think blacksmith shops are typically cold places with a few hot spots in the winter and can only add that you need to work harder or get used to it. When I started at Alberts, it was late summer of '79 but he was gearing up for the Albany gates project. The shop was not big enough to build them there so we had to construct a pole barn which didn't get started until January of '80 and fortunately we had a few weeks of unseasonably warm weather to do it. The gate project took over a year to complete so we did get to work on it in the cold. One morning we came in and all the iron in the shop including the partially completed gates were covered in frost due to a few warm humid days followed by extreme cold, double digits below 0 degrees F for about two weeks. Quite a sight and unfortunately no one took any pictures while Albert commented it was like Dr Zhivagos ice palace. There were several exhaust fans in the building to remove the stink and foulness of the pneumatic grinders (not just grinder spray but well oiled compressed air to keep the grinders running) and stick welder fumes so any heat we made working was quickly removed and most days the doors were always open to keep fresh breathable air coming in. Everybody wore leather steel toe Red Wing boots so no insulation there. One of the guys who primarily did grinding kept a quartz heater at his table and morning and afternoon breaks we warmed ourselves at the kerosene salamander heater. Gloves were typically only worn when welding or grinding. I believe the pace we worked at kept us warm or at least not thinking about it. I have a propane heater for my shop and will run it an hour or two before going in to work. My shop space is dense with machines, stock and junk and they are like ice cubes so it takes awhile to warm up. I also use one of the propane radiant type heaters as it can be moved around to follow me depending on what I am doing. I do have some recent pictures of Alberts original shop somewhere in this PC but can't seem to locate them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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