I Forgot How Hot It Is

Laredo7mm

Laredo7mm

Joined
Jul 8, 2002
Messages
1,240
Well, it has been a while since I fired up the forge, and man that thing is hot! :D

Started a new billet for a new knife order and got to use my press for the second time. It was the first time using it to set the initial welds, and it was way to cool.

I think I lost 5 pounds in two hours, while I was sweating like a goat. One of these years I will forge all my damascus in the winter, and grind all summer. :rolleyes:
 
I have a thermometer in the shop. Once last week it read 110 degrees. Doesnt make work go faster thats for sure :D
 
The way it's been here in west MI I'll bet your shop was cooler with the forge cooking than it was outside, Sean! ;) Even my little paint can forge kicks out serious heat. We were nice and toasty down there in the dead of winter, so I'll bet it sucks this time of year. :eek: How many 2 liters of Pepsi did you go through during that 2 hours? :D
 
Hehehe, it was definitely toasty. I only went through one 2-liter and I never even had to take a pee break. :D
 
"It's a dry heat..." at least. If you start thinking the neighbors are cooking up one hell of a pig roast, you may want to take a break!
 
Hey Ken, good to "see" you again. I have tried a few times in the past week to find you all on PT, but I can't ever seem to find the group. Is it still around?

Here is some info on the press (from a thread a while ago):

She is about 31.5 inches tall and 24 inches wide with a 12 inch wide "working window" inbetween the uprights.

frame.jpg



Here are some dies and spacer plates. I have flattening dies, 1/2 inch squaring dies, and 3/4 inch squaring dies. More to come in the future.

dies.jpg



And here is the power plant. A Rexroth 5 hp, variable displacement, variable pressure, 20 gallon reservoir, and solenoid valve.

pump.jpg



I have a 5.5 inch bore with 3 inch shaft and 3 inch stroke cylinder to do the pushing. With such a short stroke, I designed it to always operate at max stroke. That way by removing and adding the shim plates, I can vary the shut height. When I tested the pump and cylinder a while ago, I was getting about 1.5 inches of travel per second extending, and even faster for the return.

Here she is all put together and still a bad paint job :rolleyes: :

press.jpg
 
Lo Sean, good to see you too. If you come to PT tomorrow evening, around 5:30 CST, I will give you an invite into the room and then you can bookmark it. Really nice press, I am all envy.

Ken
www.wacoknives.com
 
Nice to see that press again Sean. I really like its short stature, very friendly-looking. Almost makes me want to build one. ;) Now let's see what you're making on it.

As to the heat - you guys don't know nothin. Iowa totally blows when it comes to summer. We're having 90+ temps and 80+ humidity. May as well take the soap with you and just get your bath while walking into the office.

From July to about September around here I stay in the A/C - it's straight to the car, straight to the office/grocery store, and straight back to the car and home. None of this outdoors crap for me! That's why my lawn dies every year - I don't want to go outside to move the sprinkler. :grumpy: Can't wait to retire and move to the desert where it's bearable...at least your sweat evaporates in the desert.
 
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