I saw a picture of these tongs on another website, they were made by Jeremy K, I studied the pictures and honestly...I couldn't really see how they worked. Our guild is having it's monthly meeting tomorrow, and the trade item is a pair of tongs, so I figured...what the heck, I didn't get the ring on the end the same as Jeremy's, but I think they came out pretty good, almost tempted to just take an old pair for trade item...ha.

when you open them up the ring lowers and you would slide the ring over the stock you want to grip and then you close the handles and pick it up or atleast thats how i would use them
nice work on them

Ya i think orgtwister is right, theres groves on the bottom where the ring pulls up, but i dont understand how there would be better than normal tongs?? where they ment for a specific type of stock....

I had seen a picture in a magazine put out buy the British Artist Blacksmiths Association. That's were the design is from and it was just a line drawing - I just made a pair cause I hadn't seen anything like them. I did the same - took them to one of our meetings and all I got was "what are they, how do you use them, and "WHY MAKE THEM LIKE THAT". They never even stopped to look at them cause they were not what the "normal" tongs look like. I have used them in certain instances and they work just as good as any other tongs do. I did a blue print on them BP0303 Swivel Link Universal Tongs - JK

tgsmith1 - you did good and you got some forging time in which is practice and practice is really good for anyone.

Edited February 28, 200917 yr by jeremy k

"Tongs" can be used by many industries so this may have originally been designed as a pair of specialty tongs. You often see odd tongs in old shops with no readily apparent function but the smith obviously had some intent when he put the time into making them.

looks like you could use a wider variety of stock in it as you are cinching it as opposed to making the tong a particular shape. they would take round or square or anything in between. also maybe with a part with a ball on the end or different size balls it might work also. just a thought i could be way off though.

I made a pair using Jeremy's BP, They work well, and they always make for a good conversation piece.

John

Edited February 28, 200917 yr by JWBIRONWORKS

I would think there is more torque on the piece your clamping with the same hand pressure that you would use on regular thongs and im guessing it would hold on to odd shapes pretty good.

Force one x length one = force two x length two.

Just levers and mathematics.
Oops, did I say the math word? (grin)