A wise old person once advised me, when starting off on any new adventure your first $1000 should be spent on books.

 

A wise old person once advised me, when starting off on any new adventure your first $1000 should be spent on books.

Unless it's pharmacy school... then its $1000 on books, every semester, for 8 semesters. Not including undergrad...

 

A wise old person once advised me, when starting off on any new adventure your first $1000 should be spent on books.

I definitely didn't go that route. I've been using all the old books I could find online but I don't like having my phone or tablet near the forge or anvil. I have printed select pages a few times to have handy in the shop. 

This 4lbs sledge head followed me homne from the local scrapyard. How a Mexican hammer wandered here? I guess it's the wonders of globalization.

Bests:

Gergely

At the flea market, I picked up two small outside calipers, a fat old cold chisel that will make a nice hand fuller, and a nice Black Diamond file that I think I will use as the core of a san mai knife once it wears out. Six bucks. 

Those smaller calipers look very well made.  One piece arms and bow?

 The smaller (4") pair, yes. They are stamped "H & R BOKER / CAST STEEL".  Here's a close-up: 

Not bad for fifty cents!

Nice.  I've seen ones like that before, but not with maker's marks.  Good score.

Last NEB meet a 5" post vise missing the spring followed me home for $35.

I missed out on the 6" vise missing it's spring for $125 because the guy selling it was nowhere to be found.  Hours later, when I was finally able to get back there he had sold it.  He told me I should have just grabbed it then and paid him later.  This is how my life goes.  I have a massive collection of near miss stories.  My latest is the small dumpster of monster coil springs from heavy equipment that I could have had for nothing but "were just scrapped yesterday".  That was last week.  <sigh>

Putting your business card with SOLD written on it can help in those situations---sometimes.

And for the new folks: Cast Steel does not mean it was cast into shape. It means that the material they forged it from was "Cast Steel" used in the old days for high quality items where shear steel or blister steel would not work as well.  To make cast steel you originally took  wrought iron derived steels---shear or blister steel---and melted it in a crucible and pouring it in an ingot mold. (You didn't cast it to shape as that would have large  grained weak steel; forking helped to refine the grain structure.)

 

. (You didn't cast it to shape as that would have large  grained weak steel; forking helped to refine the grain structure.)

Forking? lol sorry I couldn't help myself.

My system does not always agree with my word choice and some of it's choices sneak by. Forging of course.

I knew it was a typo, It was just funny.

(for cast iron I use a spoon---because it will HURT more!)

The site self corrects quickly.  (grin). 

Thank you  Dylan.

While at a local business, I ask if they knew of someone wanting to get rid of some pallets. The fellow said go across the street. They (across the street) only has 3 or 4 but go to the business at the end of the block and ask. The business at the end of the block had a nest of over 300 pallets, all stored inside, and in good to great condition. The fellow said, please take all you want. I thanked him and brought the truck around to the loading bay. Two lifts with the fork truck and my truck was loaded. 

 3 hops with TPAAAT and found the pallets nest by GTTS.  

 

Forking? lol sorry I couldn't help myself.

I have forked my share of metal over the years.

My wife found a junk shop that had 4 post vises, Went to look them over and 3 were only good for parts but this one with 4 inch jaws and weighs 40 pounds was in pretty good shape. Missing the wedge pin and the end of the screw box.

The screw and screw box are in very good shape and I made a wedge pin. Now all that is needed is a cap to cover the end of the screw box to keep dirt out of it. Any suggestions?

Nice score! If it where me, I'd just use it as is. Plenty of open box vises in use.

Irondragon , How about an axel wheel bearing dust cover ?

Something like this

 

Dale Russell

I have a hub cover off the old Jeep somewhere, I'll have to see if I can find it.

Funny... I bought an old jeep with a wagon tongue vise welded to the back. Looks good on the front too xD 

Solder a tin can on the end of the screwbox? hose clamp some heavy foil over it?  Apparently the screw does not protrude so you could chase and repousse a face in brass sheet.... 

Greetings Dragon,

         How about a cast fence cap from Home Depot...

Forge on and make beautiful things 

Jim

I was thinking of a bearing buddy but the chased and repousse cap sounds like the winner to me. Heck, you get to learn to raise a cup from copper or brass then chase it into something stunningly creative. People will drive for days just for a glimpse! Sounds like an all round winner to me!

Don't forget, we LOVE pics. 

Frosty The Lucky.

Well the hub cap from the Jeep wouldn't work (too small) but the resource pile inventory came through. A reducing coupling, bushing and plug did the trick. The coupling fit snug enough that it swedged onto the screw box very tightly.