February 11, 20224 yr A key ring may stay burnished through pocket wear; but I really would suggest putting a finish on a bottle opener. I like to warm up the piece and apply wax to them.
February 11, 20224 yr I've forged it below welding heat, but only by taking great care and reheating frequently. Do NOT fall into the temptation of trying to sneak in "one last blow"!
February 11, 20224 yr It also depends on the grade of wrought iron; the lower the grade the less you can get away with. Anchor chain is usually high grade; so if that's that...
February 11, 20224 yr A couple of the links do appear to have crossbars, so I suppose it could be anchor chain. Speaking of which, I just ran across the following, from the glossary on the website of a New Zealand chain supplier: Quote Break Force This is the load at which the chain will fail. It is found from representative testing. It is quite possible the chain will exceed that number but by how much no one knows so don't try to find out, that would be dangerous and stupid.
February 11, 20224 yr Are they trying to chain the North and South Islands together? Never work in the long term!
February 11, 20224 yr That's some sound advice from the New Zealand chain supplier, especially the last sentence! I've got a big ol chunk of natural bees wax, would this work as a wax coating?
February 11, 20224 yr Yes. While the piece is at a black heat, rub the lump over the surface so that it melts and covers the entire surface. Buff with a cloth as it cools. Do not allow it to cool completely before you buff it, as this will leave a coat that is too thick, lumpy, and soft. If the wax smokes, the piece is still too hot. Think hot cup of coffee hot.
February 11, 20224 yr Perfect, thank you again for the advice much appreciated. I'm just learning from scratch so any advice is a huge help. I'll post my results in a new thread when I've finished making a few things
February 12, 20224 yr I’ve recently discovered a local welding supply place that — unlike the two larger places nearby — is open on Saturday mornings. Went by this morning to get a fresh cylinder of O2 (for about 20% less than Airgas), and this little out-of-certification tank followed me home as well: The guy there says I can basically have any out-of-cert tanks I want, no charge. Guess I know where I’m shopping from now on.
February 12, 20224 yr I also picked up some unplated wrenches at the ReStore, so I’ll definitely be making him a bottle opener as a Thank You.
February 14, 20224 yr I finally hit the tool section of the storage units and it's all following me home.... My back ain't what it used to be.
February 14, 20224 yr Cool score Nodebt. That anvil looks in great shape. Whats in the back with the pulleys?
February 14, 20224 yr Rojo, that's the countershaft for my Wards lathe. I shipped it and a South Bend from Ne to Nc. The lunatics at the moving company stood the South Bend upright on the gearbox cover. It's a miracle it didn't break it. I guess I got lucky because the only thing that got destroyed was my favorite 2'x3' framed picture from 1910 of a steam engine and gleaner that crashed through a bridge. It was pretty cool, all the locals were standing around on the wreckage drinking beer, gawking at the destruction. I have the newspaper clipping and original photo from it. Nobody died....
February 14, 20224 yr 2 hours ago, Nodebt said: I finally hit the tool section of the storage units Yee Haa! Scott getting ready to be back in black!!!
February 14, 20224 yr 1 hour ago, Daswulf said: It would be sad to lose such a photo. It will be missed, there was family history involved in it. It somehow wound up underneath the washing machine and got ground to pieces. Back in Black, Billy!!!
February 14, 20224 yr I noticed an Acetylene tank in the new section of the pile on Saturday's scrapyard visit and drug it out for the owners----they get gigged big time is that type of tank goes to the re-melt load!
February 15, 20224 yr Roadside find. I hit a chicken this morning. No idea why it was crossing the road, but when I turned around to go pick it up I saw this out in the ditch. No houses nearby to claim it so I grabbed it. Don’t know what it’s lined with. Almost looks like someone’s attempt at a forge actually, but no holes in it. Unfortunately, the chicken wasn’t salvageable.
February 15, 20224 yr Oh boy you did it now, cant wait to see the responses to why the chicken was crossing the road. Used to see a lot of chickens on the side of the road between Denham Springs and Hamond on 12. They would come flying out of the trucks hauling them. Most of them did not make it to the other side either.
February 15, 20224 yr Way I figure it, I’m in no position to question the motivations of a chicken. The ones that watch me at work probably question my sanity and intelligence too, so fair’s fair.
February 15, 20224 yr I once worked in NW AR with a guy who ended up missing a couple of days because a chicken hauler had turned over near his Mother's place and filled the woods with fowl. They packed their freezers solid and boy was he happy to get back to work that didn't involve fowl language whilst processing live chickens!
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