March 27Mar 27 Hello Dagfrey. Welcome Aboard! If you haven't already, please read the pinned "read This First" article for help tips and conventions when using this site. Also, this is a worldwide forum. It helps if you'll put your general location in your header so the rest of us know what part of this big world you live in.
March 27Mar 27 After some research (internet searches and a call to customer service at ESAB, TurboTorch’s parent company), I determined that the torch is acetylene only, whereas I’d been hoping to use propane. So, I put it on eBay (handle and tips as separate items); at the time of this writing, I’ve sold the handle and the smaller tip for about twice what I paid for everything in the photo above. Not yet sure what I’ll spend the money on, but expect more “It Followed Me Home” posts in the not-too-distant future.
April 1Apr 1 I have a bit of a stockpile of things that have followed me home over the past few months. A club member was selling his old 100lb propane tanks for $20. If I'm reading the stamp correctly, it was manufactured in 1946! I'm hoping I can get it recertified (if they even have a replacement valve) but if not, I'm sure I'll find a use for it. Another club member was giving away his "little" 6-inch bench vise because he had upgraded to a Fireball. I wasn't raising my hand because I already had a bench vise - albeit a little 3-inch one but still. I figured someone who didn't have one at all should get it. When he said "little", I laughed and said it was bigger than mine! He said it was mine now. I said someone who didn't have one should get it. No one else spoke up. So it's now mine A surprising find on FB Marketplace of a unique chain-driven blower. I'll start another thread with more details on that in the blowers section. A mail call arrived last night (byproduct of the latest commission payment )
April 1Apr 1 If that’s an acetylene tank and you can’t get it recertified, I’d be reluctant to attempt reuse. Things could go boom, with expensive consequences.
April 2Apr 2 Oh, good. 15 hours ago, Shainarue said: I'm sure I'll find a use for it. Might I suggest cutting off the bottom, replacing the valve with an eye bolt, and using it as the centerpiece of a very large windchime?
April 2Apr 2 I do love a good windchime! And that would provide a LOT of surface area to get artsy on It's definitely a good fallback idea if I can't get it recertified.
April 10Apr 10 A stop at a favorite PA used tool store yielded a decent hammer and a couple of respectable pairs of tongs (NB: I’ll be cutting the fabricated box jaw off of the middle pair to restore it to its original bolt-jaw configuration.)
April 23Apr 23 A couple of goodies acquired through FB Marketplace. The seller noted that the previous owner of the property had left a lot of smithing tools when she died, but he hadn’t been able to win the bidding for the anvil at the estate auction and had to watch it go bye-bye. He said it was so heavy. They had to remove it with a forklift. I guess it’s true that everyone has a story about the anvil that got away….
April 24Apr 24 We really need a like button. I can’t control the wind. All I can do is adjust my sails. ~Semper Paratus~ USCG 1964-1970
April 25Apr 25 Yesterday I stopped to visit Ken's Custom Iron and had a very pleasant visit with Ken's widow MaryLou who continues to run the business that they created together. The stop was occasioned by my wife gifting me a selection of tools...what started out as some tong blanks mushroomed into a couple of years worth of gifts! I added a twisting wrench, hammer/tong rack, rivet sets and chisels. MaryLou had them all neatly wrapped and boxed so this morning's delight was opening and inspecting & I must say that everything exceeded my expectations. Wonderful to see a small family business producing great products at very fair prices. Of course I got the tour of their fab and blacksmith shops which was really quite impressive. I noted the quiet pride in her voice when she told me she'd just shipped MZ75 hammer #296 (I think I got that right, pretty close if not) & I smiled to see the rack of anvils ready to go for the next handful of hammers. The most impressive was the 150lb Fairbanks hammer that Ken had hauled back from Whitefish MT & rebuilt to support some of the contract forging that he was doing for a local equipment mfg...pointing 2" rounds to be used as the "spear" for a tractor attachment to move round bales of hay. Good folks & great American-made products. --Larry
April 26Apr 26 This is the first I've heard about Ken's passing. I will go into the Celtic Garden and ring the anvil to ask for comfort be sent to MaryLou and for a complete success of the business. I can’t control the wind. All I can do is adjust my sails. ~Semper Paratus~ USCG 1964-1970
April 29Apr 29 Did I need another cold chisel? Of course not. But when such a beautiful piece of steel is available at such a low price, you thank the tool gods and embrace your fate. (Also got half a dozen spring clamps for about four bucks. You can never have too many clamps.)
April 29Apr 29 Good Morning, John But it comes with previous knowledge, you won't have to retrain it!! Neil
May 20May 20 Another business trip to Boston, another visit to The Tool Shed in Waltham. Today, an 8-lb. sledgehammer, a 1/2” top swage, a nice chipping hammer (which I plan to modify for stake repoussé), a drafting compass, a spring clamp, a future twisting wrench, and a couple of needle files, all for a bit over 30 bucks. The sledge and the swage are both from Atha Tool Works, which is nice. Now, what did NOT follow me home (partly because I had neither the cash to buy it nor the luggage space to carry it, but mostly because it was already sold) was this absolutely pristine 160-lb. Fisher anvil, still with factory paint. (O heart! heart! heart!)
May 20May 20 Holy cow! That is a fantastic price for an anvil of that size and condition. I’d almost be afraid to use it… Keep it fun, David
May 21May 21 So, I’ve been scraping the old paint and rust off the 8-pounder, when I discovered that a prior owner had added his name with a series of center punch divots: Although there’s no chance of this having been his, I choose for this to serve as a reminder of family friend Tony Lord, who was a blacksmith, painter, engraver, printer, musician, and actor — a true Renaissance man. (On a side note, this is a great example of the utility of using talcum powder to highlight an inscription. Making the photo, black and white and increasing the contrast helps too.)
May 21May 21 A bit off but i love B&W photography. Back a few years ago i did a bit of photography that involved me going to a lot of concerts to take pics. I can show you pics of a show in color then in B&W and you would swear they are taken at diffrent venues. I kind of miss doing that. I got to see a lot of really great musicians and with the camera i was allowed to just wonder around. Front row to the "nose bleed" section, over the rail sometimes to get shots of the crowd as well.
May 21May 21 I'm a big fan of the "Noir" filter in the iPhone. Pretty much every time you see me post a photo of a sketch demonstrating a technique or a drawing of a project, it's been run through that filter to make it more readable.
May 31May 31 A successful raid on the town scrap metal bin yielded some treasures, viz. a pair of old railings, and a rusted-out fire ring:Which broke down into a decent amount of usable stock:
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