Iron Kiss 75

LongRifle

LongRifle

Joined
Apr 5, 2000
Messages
2,018
Does anyone have experience with the IK 75? I'm considering it for general forging and Damascus forging. Billets 1.25x1.5x6". My shop is only 700' sq., so foot print matters.
 
A few guys on here have raved about the IK hammers, Matt. I know that Sam Salvati has played around with one at a minimum. Didn't you used to have a Big Blu? Oh, and by the way, last time that I checked, 700 sq ft is at least 40% larger than the typical 2 car garage which is the size a lot of us are operating out of, so stop yer belly achin'. ;):D
 
Yea, I had a Big Blue. Not a bad hammer but I was always annoyed by the play in the ram. I want something more rigid and precise. I'm also not going to spend more than $10k on the entire rig... might be a tall order.

As far as the shop goes big machines have big foot prints. 700' goes fast when machines and motorcycles are combined. :).
 
I have not used either hammer but I really like the vids of the kz100. More ram weight, crazy control and a little less expensive too.
 
One showed up at Ashokan a couple of years ago. I didn't get to play with it but the people who
did (Delbert Ealy, JD Smith and Sam come to mind) were very happy with it. Seemed to be a very
solid, sturdy, simple machine. Note that it was solid with no foundation under it. It was running
off of a long air hose from a gas compressor.

In terms of size, it's tall (almost 7.5 feet), only about a foot wide and three? long.
 
I've used one a fair bit. A local buddy has one. I love it.

I'd take one over any similar sized utility hammer, and a few bigger ones. Low air consumption, hits very hard, highly tune-able.


With a decent sized press, and a 75lb Ironkiss, you'll be able to make bigger damascus billets than you'll likely want to handle.


In all fairness, I haven't tried the KZ hammers or even seen one in person. They do look very nice.
 
I haven't forged a Damascus billet on it yet but I did a san mai blade and the hammer had no problem. If you are just going to use it for making Damascus you might want an even bigger hammer like in the 100 to 150 pound range. I bought the 75 to fill the role as a general purpose hammer that can forge a billet every once in a while. You should call one of the Thomas brothers up about what size hammer you need for making certain types of Damascus. Together they have probably forged more of it than 90% of the ABS combined. I've seen Rob's new shop. Nothing like seeing a bunch of nazel hammers lined up.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1137225-Iron-Kiss-Hammer
 
Thanks for the info. I haven't discounted another Big Blu, but I really appreciate the improved guide design of the IK...forging diamonds is a royal pain.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top