Hammering technique?

[Will Leavitt]

My $50 forge has $7.5 in pipe for the body, $5 for the burner and coupling, $15 for the blower motor (from a local motor rebuiling shop) $10 for the propane regulator and $15 or so in refractory. I have a bunch of refractory, one of the guys in the local forge group runs a foundry so he has a bunch of refractory at good prices when he has extras.

 

[unky_gumbi]

Thanks for the heads up, I thought it may be too good to be true, but your right the price was very tempting. Well my search for something decent to pound on continues

 

[unky_gumbi]

My $50 forge has $7.5 in pipe for the body, $5 for the burner and coupling, $15 for the blower motor (from a local motor rebuiling shop) $10 for the propane regulator and $15 or so in refractory. I have a bunch of refractory, one of the guys in the local forge group runs a foundry so he has a bunch of refractory at good prices when he has extras.

Yeah your part are much cheaper then mine After you mentioned your build price i went hunting and found another guy that had built a forge simular to mine, he made his in '88 and it came out to $218 USD. So with inflation and exchange things are about right for me. Heres hoping the extra money will force me to try harder at becoming good with it

 

[Mungo Park]

It is what it is, no point getting bent about what you bought now, build it and enjoy it.
Be sure to get the burner at the right angle to produce a good swirl for more even heating.
Where are you planning to fire this thing up? It has warmed up but it is still a little cool outside for forging. The metal will heat but cools rather rapid when you take it out of the forge to pound it on a cold anvil.
Something I noticed at Princess Auto was ammo cans for sale, I bought one to put my quench oil in works great and seals up when not using so you do not spill it on the floor or down your leg. I put it right on the stove to warm it up to the right temp. They also have welding gloves which is a good thing to wear when forging, a burnt hand takes the fun out of forging for the day.:foot:
I bought wood handles for my cheapo hammers which I custom shaped to my hand which makes them much nicer to use. I ground the face of one to make a cross pein, to make the stick tang.
My fave is a 3lb. If you hammer in one spot and move the metal around under it you will do better, if you make a bad hit/dint stop and re heat. I will do 2 at once so one heats while I hammer and then you can keep going. I will hammer the spine flat after each heat to keep the blank going straight. Also tilt the blank up onto the bevel on the down side, the bevel on the anvil that is, as you hammer the top one, this will go a long way to keeping the bevels even.
I wanted to be able to forge a knife as a finished blank to minimize the after work, instead of thinking oh well I will fix that later, a few more min forging saves hours of after shaping, even more so if you do not have a 2X72.
Cheers Ron

 

[unky_gumbi]

No 72X2 here yet still using files and sandpaper. I am not bent about what I payed to build the forge, I think its worth it and I wasn't planning on using it till the weather changed, I jut was going to fire it up to cure the seal on the ceramic wool and test the burner out, then put it away till spring comes. We have a few millitary customers here, I should see if I can get an ammo box or 2 through them.

 

[Tai Goo]

Here's my new hammer prototype,... and I have a DVD, "Hot Forging Basics" on my website.

 

[Mungo Park]

Ah, Yes the P51 Mustang of the Smithy, with that baby the knives would forge themselves.
Course up here in the pink bits, Canada, we would have to call it the Spitfire, sounds better when forging anyways
I did not mean you getting bent, it is the other guys that chime in saying they can always do it for cheaper without offering any help as to how this is done, oh well, just the cost of being part of the forum.
Cheers Ron.

 

[unky_gumbi]

Here's my new hammer prototype,... and I have a DVD, "Hot Forging Basics" on my website.

I would really be interested in that DVD, any idea of shipping up here to the great white north would cost? That hammer is a work of art in its self, but I am sure that its out of my current price range. In the winter my cash flow drops because being a bike mechanic is seasonal and no overtime to speak of

 

[Will Leavitt]

Ah, Yes the P51 Mustang of the Smithy, with that baby the knives would forge themselves.
Course up here in the pink bits, Canada, we would have to call it the Spitfire, sounds better when forging anyways
I did not mean you getting bent, it is the other guys that chime in saying they can always do it for cheaper without offering any help as to how this is done, oh well, just the cost of being part of the forum.
Cheers Ron.

Sorry if I bothered you by not chiming in on how I made my forge at the price I did. I asked why his cost that much because I was curious about material pricing in Canada. I still don't understand the cost of that forge body, junk steel is .25/pound here. There's a lot of servicable black pipe in the nearby junk yard.

 

[unky_gumbi]

Sorry if I bothered you by not chiming in on how I made my forge at the price I did. I asked why his cost that much because I was curious about material pricing in Canada. I still don't understand the cost of that forge body, junk steel is .25/pound here. There's a lot of servicable black pipe in the nearby junk yard.

The pipe came from a scrap yard their going price on steel is .45 a pound. This is not a light weight piece either. It was jus t over 22", 11" OD 10"ID, yes it has 1/2" wall thickness, The $40 also covered the cost of a chunk of plate to cover the back end with a door

 

[Mungo Park]

Will:
I might have used some strong sounding words, I was not trying to offend you, I think the nubie has some teething problems and it takes a while to be able to ferret out supplies. It takes a while to be able to find this sort of non mainstream stuff, let alone at cheap prices. Thanks for your reply.
Cheers Ron.

 

[Will Leavitt]

Holy Cow that's some thick steel... couldn't find any thinner stuff? I wouldn't have bought it simply because I'm too lazy to move it from my truck to smithy.

The main reason I asked about pricing was there is a tendency for newer makers to rush out and buy stuff when there's better alternatives that just don't occur to them until they get some more knowledge

It's all good, I'm rather snippy because my gout is flared up and I couldn't call in to work because we short one supervisor due to surgery.

 

[unky_gumbi]

Sorry to hear that, but I know where you are coming from, I have tennis elbow in both arms, and still recovering from a broken shoulder. It makes it real hard to push a file around some days. I didn't pick out the over sized pipe, the guy doing the welding did, I just payed for it. Its the same guy who made my file jig, he tends to over make things Right now I am trying to source a cart to put the forge on because I wont be able to move the darn thing once its finished.

I wont be able to leave it outside around here because of two things, one the winters here suck, and two we have scrap steel scroungers that will grab any metal that isnt locked up. They have already stolen 2 BBQ, one was locked to the side of the garage and the other I had just pulled out and when I came out with the steak it was just the base and the tank left by the back lane:grumpy: After that I switched back to charcoal, tastes better that way anyhow

 

[john0270]

I ended up spending about the same as you on my forge too, I bought most of the stuff online from the US, because there isn't a single thing availible localy, and I am not driving 300miles just to hunt for some pipe fittings ect. shipping is starting to be a real killer from the US now.

Also on the steel ect, There sometimes isn't a lot of choice when you go to a local scrap yard. I was lucky to find something reasonable locally, but they had just enough to build one forge..... pluss they couldn't even cut it to size.

I had to go to Calgary to even find 5160.... but I got many lbs for allot cheaper price than in the US, way cheaper than admiral ect ect ect.

 

[unky_gumbi]

I ended up spending about the same as you on my forge too, I bought most of the stuff online from the US, because there isn't a single thing availible localy, and I am not driving 300miles just to hunt for some pipe fittings ect. shipping is starting to be a real killer from the US now.

Also on the steel ect, There sometimes isn't a lot of choice when you go to a local scrap yard. I was lucky to find something reasonable locally, but they had just enough to build one forge..... pluss they couldn't even cut it to size.

I had to go to Calgary to even find 5160.... but I got many lbs for allot cheaper price than in the US, way cheaper than admiral ect ect ect.

I can't help you out on getting local steel, but I can help you out with other supplies, its called knifemaker.ca, good prices and even better service. Fast too, I sent my first 2 knives t oRob for HT the e-check cleared on the on the 7th nives were HT and on there way back, I should see them tomorrow. First time I ordered steel from him I had it 3 days later, but I used a credit card for that purchase. For forge supplies try a google search for The Sounding Stone, a bit more expencive but it may equal out on shipping.They are here in Winnipeg