Week-end Post, What Are You Doing

[atakach]

Ummm I helped my brother move, I sat on his couch with his roommates (rugby teammates) and ummmm drank beer and ate pizza for 7 hours. I'm about to go to sleep.

you sick'en me:barf:......rolleyes:very jealous!!)

 

[Barkes Knife Shop]

May 1, 2009

I put down fertilizer on the lawn just before the rains came in the other day. And it needs cut already, but the weather man is calling for rain into Tuesday so its going to be Wednesday or Thursday before I can cut the grass. :yawn:

Also, been working on the two knives I started, I put one back for down the road and other is on my workbench just itching to get completed. I got it rough ground and shaped to my liking and heat treated and temperd. It came out a 61 1/2 on the Rockwell. Thats perfect in my book for a using knife. The other knife came out a 60 on the Rockwell. I always tried to achieve a hardness between 59 to 62 but never over or under. This range of hardness will be superb within these areas for a using knife. :thumbup:

I am planning on putting antique white bone for the handles. There will be brass pins on one and Nichols Silver pins on the other. One will have black liners and the other will have red liners. I also cut in a larger Spanish notch on this new design and I must say, it great. The two knives will also have filework on the spine as well. I usually do not add to the prize of the knife it just a bonus for my customers. CLASSIC HUNTER

I hope you good folks and planning a gorgeous week-end as well. The shop and the yard will be keeping me busy.

Terry

 

[Justin.Mercier]

Well, I will either be down at the south county museum in naragansette for their opening and some blacksmithing tomorrow, or I'll be in my shop practicing my welding now that i can run my stick welder in my shop. I did some gorilla welding last night putting doors on my welding forge and it seemed to go alright for my first time welding. If anyone in the area wants to spend a day forging and stuff at my shop tomorrow, fire me a PM, and i'll stay home instead of going to naraganset.

Sunday i'll be driving up to new hampshire to meet my older brother and my dad for lunch.

 

[Dan Pierson]

Starting to seriously deal with the aftermath of IG's latest hammer in. You see I now have
(most of) a forge. And a long line of people promising me infinite grief if I don't use it...

Need to get an order off to Darren Elliis for the regulator and stuff once a credit card turns over.

Driving down to my local used anvil dealer tomorrow to pick up a 200 lb Peter Wright and
ask for opinions on my post vise. Then I need to assemble the steel cart I got for the forge.
Then start to make an anvil stand, though that may not happen this weekend and the next
two weekends are booked.

I'm seriously thinking about mounting the post vise on a 55 gallon drum and filling the drum
with water.

 

[Justin.Mercier]

I was so happy when you won that forge at the hammer-in =D But you're right... if you dont start using it a whole bunch of us are going to have to go beat you up =)

A better stand for a post vice would be to get an old wheel or truck drum break and weld a pole and plate to the middle of it to mount it too, drilling a hole in the base for the bottom of the leg to go through. It's more portable.

My big vice currently is mounted on a small 18x18 tower of two by fours, with some forming stakes on the top of the tower, and a giant 200ish lb post drill on the back side of it. Not the best setup but it works.

Sounds like you're getting a nice anvil! If you ever make it to my shop you can see my anvils, I use a 150lb peter wright at my primary shop anvil, though i've got a couple others so multiple people can forge at once without having to share anvil space.

 

[Justin.Mercier]

That was a quick change of plans for tomorrow ! Was all set to load the truck for Narragansett tomorrow when I just got an email. Last fall at the NH Highland games i was asked if I'd like to be the blacksmith for the Historic Highlanders re-enactment group and I expressed interest. I gave them my contact info and they said they'd get back to me... 7 months later, i got a last minute email saying "Hey, i just found your contact info, but we're having a meeting tomorrow up in derry NH if you can make it" so looks like i'll be heading up to NH instead. Maybe i'll call my older brother or my dad and see if i can save a drive and crash at their place tomorrow night since I still need to be up in NH sunday morning =)

 

[T Blade]

Then start to make an anvil stand, though that may not happen this weekend and the next
two weekends are booked.

I'm seriously thinking about mounting the post vise on a 55 gallon drum and filling the drum
with water.

Dan, hook up with Justin and have him weld up a nice vise stand like this.....

Justin with his new stick welder needs the practice and it's portable

Justin, is your welder AC/DC?

edit by the way, the anvil is a #100 Peter Wright, the anvil with stand weighs over #200 and the vise stand weighs about #100

 

[indian george]

Have a few people coming over today. Paul S. to finish off a billet he started here and two new students. I have to setup a agenda for the classes, that Gary Rua and myself are going to start.
I also plan on making up a cable damascus billet.

 

[indian george]

Starting to seriously deal with the aftermath of IG's latest hammer in. You see I now have
(most of) a forge. And a long line of people promising me infinite grief if I don't use it...

I hope you got me to the top of the list for the grief. HEHEHEHEHEHE!!!
You know if you need any help, just come on down.:thumbup:

 

[Justin.Mercier]

Dan, hook up with Justin and have him weld up a nice vise stand like this.....

Justin with his new stick welder needs the practice and it's portable

Justin, is your welder AC/DC?

It's just AC only, an old Lincoln Tombstone that's older than I am, but it works just fine. I've burned through a couple pounds of 6011 AC rod sticking things together so far. Nothing pretty, but everything's held well enough with all the force i can apply to it by myself =)

That's just what i'm talking about for a post vice stand though, but it's usually easier to find a drum break or old wheel than to get a nice big thick piece of steel like that, though I'd prefer a big piece of steel =)

 

[Bufford]

Working on a set of kitchen knives, getting some knives ready for the Ft Frances museum exhibit. Then its back on to the firewood effort. I burned more wood than usual with the decent winter we had, so I want to get the wood in now before it gets to warm for such work.

 

[T Blade]

...That's just what i'm talking about for a post vice stand though, but it's usually easier to find a drum break or old wheel than to get a nice big thick piece of steel like that, though I'd prefer a big piece of steel =)

When I made the vise and anvil stand I was working for a company that went through tons of mild steel weekly and those stand components were just scrap metal. It'd be hard for me to find scrap like that for those prices $0.00

 

[atakach]

just back from boys baseball practice, kids went with mom, so dads gonna take a quick nap, some cold and flu meds, then start banging away on some sheath work, and i got 6 blades that have to be heat treated.

Been sick:barf: as a dog with swine flu or something and ive gotten little to nothing done all week, so ill play catch up all day today.

anyone waiting on a package from me will have it this week, as there gonna go out monday....thanks for patience

 

[Will Leavitt]

I've got spring cleaning assigned to me by the wife. I'll be finishing up some knives Sunday and Monday. Go back on night shift Tuesday, so 2 months of nights. I actually get more work done on nights. Niece is sick as a dog, we hope the rest of us haven't caught it from her because there was a birthday party in her house Wednesday She's been so sick she's puked in her bed (she's 16 so it's not like a little kid being sick). :barf:

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Just finished mowing my lawn and the neighbors ( husband is in Iraq /Afg).
Sawed a large oxygen tank top off to make a 36" quench tank for a friend. It holds about 6 gallons.
Prepped and clayed a couple blades for HT tomorrow.

Going to the International Tattoo tonight....kilt time.
Stacy

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Well, the tattoo was great last night. I'll post some photos later.

Today we went to brunch with Judy's son and his wife (Down from DC for the tattoo). After they headed back to DC, about 2PM, we were going home, and while sitting at a stoplight got rear-ended by a big Ford Excursion SUV. No one was injured,and the Ford was not going all that fast (thankfully), but the sheet metal rear end of my Plymouth Voyager was no match for the big tow eye bolts and massive front bumper on those behemoths. Back hatch and tow hitch are shot. Not much else messed up. Didn't even move the spacing at the side doors or mess up anything on either side of the rear hatch. The eye bolts did 90% of the damage, so it was very localized.
The gal was very sorry,admitted total responsibility, and called GEICO on the spot. I was home in 30 minutes with all the claim info. Twenty minutes later the entire claim was taken care of. I drop my van off at my car service place ( end of my street) Tuesday AM ,and pick up the rental ( already reserved and paperwork done). They are fixing everything, and taking full responsibility of all incidentals. It is nice to see that these things can work out. That's the reason we carry insurance.
Stacy

 

[James_Terrio]

It is nice to see that these things can work out. That's the reason we carry insurance.
Stacy

Glad to hear no one was hurt and the insurance is working like it should. Could have been a lot worse.

I'll tell you one thing, I feel a lot safer driving my gf's Durango than I do a car or even a van. There's so many pick-ups and SUV's around today... ever notice how when you're in a sedan, that the bumper on an SUV comin at ya is pretty much eye-level?

 

[Dan Pierson]

Well the forge now has a resting place

. I need to order the propane hookup pieces from Darren Ellis.

IG: One question: in the picture below, the pipe doesn't seem to quite fit into the forge. Do I need to push it in further?

Got the new anvil -- a 197 pound Peter Wright in great condition. I was going to include a picture but couldn't manage to lift it up from where it's lying in my wife's car I'll need some help to get it into my shop and then I need to get something to put it on. Current options are finding a section of tree about 16"+ in diameter or making something of 2x12's.

The blacksmith I got the anvil from also gave my post vise a going over. It's generally in good shape. The bottom bolt is a replacement that doesn't fit all the way in, but can be hacked, and I need to make a new wedge for the mount. He also joins the chorus here telling me that the 55 gallon drum ideal is bad. Looks like I need to beg Justin for help to come up with a mount for it. After all he needs the welding practice, right Justin

 

[indian george]

Dan, as long as the burner is beyond the forge body it should be alright. If you want to push it in more, you need to take some meat off the 1 1/4" burner tube. How is your sweetheart taking it???? :thumbup:

 

[Justin.Mercier]

Well, i'll be at home all weekend in the shop, or trying to be in the shop. Hurt my back this last week and it's quite painfull... but iv'e gota get a lot of work done in the shop this weekend anyways. Need to finish a great bellows i'm building, and building a new coal forge for blacksmithing demos. Getting all set up because i'm now the re-enactment blacksmith for the Historic Highlander's group for all their new england highland games, and the RI games are in just a few weeks.

If anyone in the area wants to visit my shop and pound on some hot metal and stuff, feel free to give me a buzz or email or pm or something and let me know and I should be around.