It followed me home

[ThomasPowers]

My 10 year old grandson just left for Okinawa for 3 years...

Bought a heller 1/2" punch at the fleamarket today for US$3  and was tempted by the rest of the hammers in the box and the 10# Warwood straight peen head on the table; but decided to hold tough. (he didn't have an anvil at home---I asked, of course!)

I did pick up a stainless fork stamped US that has a hole in the handle that I think I can tweak into a bottle opener...great camp eating set addition...cost a quarter.

[Les L]

Thomas, I know you will be missing your grandson and that he will be missing you. My dad was 26 yrs in the military and I grew up everywhere except where we considered home, but I was always thinking about the time when I could get back. One thing I missed out on was being able to learn blacksmithing from my grandfather, but I was rewarded with the travels we had during those years. The time will pass and before you know it you will be showing him how to forge a project at "his" anvil you have set up for him.

[Chris C]

Wish I had a family member who was a blacksmith.  Would have been fun to be taught by a relative.  As it is, I am destined to be taught by a bunch of yahoos on this forum.

We have an older gentleman in our club who teaches the craft.  (older than I, but only slightly!)  Like him a lot and found him very helpful.  He was the only one in our Thursday night group who stepped up to help me with my beginners projects.  I spoke with him yesterday at our country fair about lessons.  Said he was extremely busy right now, but gave me his card.  Don't have any idea what he charges, but will see what comes of it.  Of course, there's not much real learning going to happen at my place until I get my forge up and running.

Chris

[Gazz]

Laynne, rather than lowering your hood, add some sides, either hinged or hooked on so that they can be moved out of the way if necessary.  You may need to heat a portion of an odd shaped assembly someday and the movable sides will allow you to get it in there.

[Laynne]

Gazz, I am going to give that a try and see if I like it. I will post how it works for me. It will be a week or so. Heading for Norfolk, VA Wednesday. My daughter is getting promoted to Chief and the wife and I are going to be there for the ceremony. Regards

[ThomasPowers]

Well 4 of my grandsons are headed to okinawa---only one was 10 years old.  Hopefully the next posting will be easier to visit...

I'm really happy they get a chance to travel and several will be old enough to remember it. It's important that kids learn that people can learn that people may live differently and not be WRONG!; just different!

[Dax Hewitt]

There is only one thing to say about Okinowa,  wax on wax off. 

It's making light of things but it sounds like a great opportunity for them. 

[51 Papy]

After 7 years I found a gal to follow me home.  1909 150 lb Fisher. The edges are rough but the sweet spot rebounds 85%+. The face is almost flat and the price was right.  It seemed to have lived part of its life buried up to the waist in concrete.  I have one spot on the edge that will have to be eased over.  Pictures are after a light brush with a wire cup.

[JHCC]

InterLibrary Loan is a wonderful thing. 

[picker77]

Shorts and steel-toe flip flops. Take that, OSHA!

Man, I'd love to read that paper. Bet it's interesting.

[AR. Hillbilly]

The small Champion forge is sheet metal not cast and so is the blower that goes with it. The cast forge was a handle/belt driven. The Bufco blower doesn’t go with it. The post drill is a big heavy Champion #4 in excellent condition. I don’t know much about the shears yet. Both blowers work well. I intend to make a tuyere and adapt the Bufco blower to the cast forge. All one hail just a few miles from home.

[ThomasPowers]

Actually I've found that a good thick layer of sweat does a pretty good job dealing with scale pops.

[arkie]

Nice haul, Thad...have fun with them.

[AR. Hillbilly]

Thanks Tom. If you see anything in that stuff that you want or need let me know. I plan to keep the post drill.  I may Hillbilly the cast forge to a usable but not collectible stage just for times when one isn’t enough on forge night. 

[BillyBones]

Took a load of scrap to the scrap yard today. While unloading i noticed what i think was an old thresher. I noticed these laying on it and and inquired.

The guy standing there said throw em in your truck, so i did. This is a scrap yard that did not sell to the public last i checked. He then told me that they had sectioned off an area where people could go dig through and take out what ever they needed. He then told me that the steel has also been sorted by bar, plate, HC, springs, etc. I did not inquire as to how much, but i will be back. He also told me the old what i think is a thresher came out of a barn clean up, so these things may not be a part of the machine but they were on top of it and being held by what looked like 75 year old wire. 

Anyway, now to figure out what to do with them. 

Edit: I forgot to add that it was at Dayton-Xenia auto parts in Xenia, for anyone close that may want to stop there. 

Edited September 11, 2019 by BillyBones

[JHCC]

On 9/10/2019 at 4:20 PM, JHCC said:

InterLibrary Loan is a wonderful thing. 

On 9/10/2019 at 5:16 PM, picker77 said:

Shorts and steel-toe flip flops. Take that, OSHA!

Man, I'd love to read that paper. Bet it's interesting.

It did turn out to be fairly interesting, although not quite as expected. The general thrust was in studying how blacksmithing affects the physical environment of the smithy and what traces that leaves. The idea is that such knowledge can help interpret archaeological evidence more accurately.

For example, many archaeologists will not the presence of "slag" residue and deduce that a site was therefore a likely center of industry or manufacture. However, the author points out that there are differences between the slag produced by smelting and that produced by forging (what we would call "clinker"), and that distinction can have significant implications in understanding the material culture of a past society.

There was some overview of how different types of bolo knives are made from truck leaf spring, but not in a ton of the kind of detail that would interest a smith. 

On 9/10/2019 at 7:15 PM, ThomasPowers said:

Actually I've found that a good thick layer of sweat does a pretty good job dealing with scale pops.

Interestingly, one common piece of equipment described in the book is a vertical piece of sheet metal or plywood between the anvil and the smith, to protect bare legs from flying scale.

[Dax Hewitt]

Didn't exactly follow me home, it was delivered whilst I was on site.  The previous owner of my workshop put up the shonkiest lifting beam you have ever seen. It's 5 inch wide I beam tack welded to the roof trusses and it gets in the way of my forklift loading the racking so I decided its removal is a good excuse to buy a small plasma cutter. 

[Daswulf]

Ooh, you'll have all kinds of fun with that Dax!

[JHCC]

1 hour ago, JHCC said:

Interestingly, one common piece of equipment described in the book is a vertical piece of sheet metal or plywood between the anvil and the smith, to protect bare legs from flying scale.

 

[671jungle]

the recycle center is getting busy with winter coming in a ritzy town.

scored this pretty cast frame fitted with a mirror. The leg was also cast. $2.50

a metal box with no markings also seems cast, but what is it for? There are slots in it's lid. $2.50

A pair of small coil springs. free

I also purchased the book someone posted earlier for 5.00 online.

[Glenn II]

Jungle, the cast iron box with slotted openings is called a "Smoke Box." Used to fill with wood chips and add over a gas grill to infuse a smoke flavor to grilled food.

[671jungle]

Thanks Glenn II. that will be handy! funny how we grab interesting things even if the intended use is not realized

[671jungle]

Made a 2nd trip to the metal recycle bin after work cause you never know! The corner of this was sticking out of the pile. Dug it out to find it being the base of a Redbox machine. 29 1/2” x 24 1/2” x 1/4” plate.  I think my post vise would like to stand on it.

[Owen Hinsman]

Just picked up a 146# Peter Wright at the NEB fall meet, along with a Picard cross peen, a hot cut hardy, and a scythe peening anvil. 

 

[JHCC]

It was Sale Saturday at the industrial surplus warehouse, and I made out like a bandit. In addition to a box of safety glasses ($4.99) and a partial set of nutdrivers ($5), I got:A 53” x 56” x 52” flow rack for $5.85:

I really only wanted this for the casters, but I was glad to break it down for the steel as well (especially the plates that the casters were attached to: I think they are the right size to use as die base plates for The Pressciouss). The roller assemblies have been stripped of their plastic wheels, and I’ll be taking the aluminum rails to the scrap yard.

A roller assembly in a heavy steel frame for $4.80:

With the rollers removed and the whole thing flipped over, this will become a new stand for my bench vise. I'm keeping a couple of the rollers and will be taking the rest to the tailgating at Quad-State. 

And the big score: a Acco-Campbell chop saw (less motor) for $14.40!

Here it is with the handle and one side of the blade cover removed.

It still had the blade wrench and a Brown & Sharpe vise with its handle:

Since I'm not locked in to an existing motor's horsepower and speed, I'm thinking about whether or not I could use a 1.5 hp / 1725 rpm motor that I have sitting around (the original motor of The Pressciouss) and gear it down to work as a cold-cut saw.

For less than $40, I think I did pretty well today!