I had this old coil spring from a truck and wanted to make a small tomahawk head out of it. I heated it up with my oxy-acetylene torch till it was bright yellow and tried to weld it to a piece of mild steel. The weld just crumbled apart after a few hammer blows, no bond at all. I learned coil springs are usually 5160 steel and it needs a more controlled heat, like a coal forge or a kiln, to stay hot enough. Also my torch flame was probably too oxidizing for the weld to take. Has anyone else tried forge welding with just a torch and hit this problem?
Been fighting with forge welding for months, couldn't get a solid joint to save my life. Stumbled into an old timer at the Billings hammer-in who said to pile on some coke instead of coal for the weld heat. Tried it with a simple wrought iron billet last weekend and it stuck first try, no joke. Any of you guys run coke for welding or just me?
I had a chat with a retired farrier at the county fair last weekend, and he said I was drowning my welds in flux - turns out he was right after all. I cut back to half what I was using, and my joints came out cleaner with less cleanup time. Has anyone else had to unlearn a bad habit from a pro who called you out?
I used to think coal forges were just messy and old school, not worth the hassle. But last month I watched a guy at a meetup in Portland take a rusty truck spring and turn it into a usable knife in like 3 heats. With my propane forge that same piece would have taken 8 heats and tons of scale. The difference was the heat control and the reducing atmosphere you get with coal. He showed me how to manage the fire with a simple water spray and a rake. After 4 weeks of trying it myself, I'm getting way cleaner welds and way less decarb on my blade edges. Anyone else made the switch and found their steel behaves totally different?
Two weeks ago I was forging a 1/2 inch bar and grabbed a piece of rebar to flip it on the anvil. Stupid move. The rebar bent after maybe 3 heats and dropped the steel right on my boot. I always thought having a backup set of tongs was overkill, then I ordered a cheap pair from Centaur Forge for $35. Total game changer. Anyone else burned by using random scrap as tools and lived to tell about it?
Last month at a hammer-in in Ohio, a guy named Ed pulled me aside and said 'son, you're standing too close to that regulator when you light it.' He showed me a scar on his arm from a flashback that blew a regulator 6 years ago. Anyone else ever had a close call with a gas forge?
I had been using coal for almost 15 years, ever since I started blacksmithing in my buddy's barn outside Columbus. The smoke and cleanup always bothered me, but I figured that was just part of the trade. Then last September, I picked up a used propane forge from a guy who was retiring. First time I lit it, I couldn't believe how clean it burned. No more fiddling with the fire or breathing in all that smoke. The heat control is way easier too. I can go from heating a 1/4 inch rod to a bigger piece without adjusting much. Anyone else made the switch and found it worth it?
My buddy Mike kept telling me he quenches his knives in used motor oil and they come out harder than with water. I laughed and said no way that works right. So last weekend I forged two identical blades from the same 1080 bar. One went into warm water, the other into his old Mobil 1 drained from his F150. Tested them on a file and the oil quenched blade definitely skated more. Still not switching for everything but I was dead wrong about it being bunk. Anyone else find a trick they were sure was myth until they tested it?
I spent the last 3 years swearing by propane for small work, you know, thinking it was cleaner and easier. Then this guy Frank at the Scranton blacksmith meetup last Saturday showed me his coal-fired forge and how he gets way better heat control for shaping tool steel. He straight up said I was missing the 'feel' of the fire (which I thought was nonsense) but after trying his setup for 10 minutes, I get it now. Has anyone else switched back to coal after going gas?
I was at Quad-State last year watching a demo where this old timer from Missouri was cranking out perfect leaves by hand in like 2 minutes each. Meanwhile the guy next to him with a 50lb power hammer was doing the same thing in 30 seconds but had to fix way more mistakes. Which method do you think produces better work in the long run? I'm starting to wonder if we rely too much on machines now.
I was working on a set of porch brackets at my shop outside Nashville and got into a rhythm. Lost track of time and kept going on the same beveling pass for maybe 3 hours straight. Counting it out later I realized I'd swung that 2 pound cross peen over 2,000 times. Has anyone else pushed through a project and then paid for it the next morning?
Honestly, I thought I was being smart saving money on a 50-pound cast iron anvil. It showed up with a soft face that dented after my first real hammer strike on a 1-inch round bar. The rebound was basically zero, so I spent more time fighting the anvil than the metal. Has anyone else gotten burned by those budget anvils online, or is my local scrapyard the better bet?
I was heating up a 6-inch spring-steel piece for a demo and a coal pocket popped, sending sparks into my canvas apron... caught a corner on fire before I could even react. Neighbor's kid saw the whole thing from his window and yelled "you're on fire, mister!" over the fence. Anyone else ever have a forge mishap turn into an unexpected spectator sport?
Thought I'd save $50 and forge my own set of tongs from rebar I found behind my shop, but after 3 hours of heating and hammering all I got was a twisted mess that snapped on the first grab.
I went with gas because I was worried about smoke in my neighborhood. But after 6 months I realized the gas bill was gonna eat me alive. Local blacksmith near Columbus told me coal is actually cleaner if you run it right. Now I'm saving up to switch. Anyone have luck switching after starting with gas?
Old cast iron finally gave way and flooded about 3 inches of water before I got the main shut off. Had to rent a wet vac from Home Depot at midnight and I'm still figuring out how to replace that section myself. Anyone else dealt with unexpected pipe failures in an older home?
I spent about 2 years just guessing on when to quench. This guy walks up, maybe 70 years old, watches me for a minute. He says "you're looking at the color too bright. Look at the shadow under the steel. That's where the real temperature shows." I tried it on a 1095 blade and my hardening got way more consistent. Has anyone else heard of this trick or is it just something the old guys kept to themselves?
So I'm at this blacksmith meetup in Omaha last summer, and this 70 year old guy named Hank swears by quenching your hammer heads in pickle brine to make the steel 'live longer'. I tried it on my new rounding hammer and the brine splashed back into my face, plus the whole shop smelled like a pickle factory for two days straight. My face stung for hours and the hammer ended up with these weird pitted spots. Has anyone else gotten terrible advice from the 'old guard' that backfired like this?
I always thought it was a myth that WD-40 was the go-to for every rusted lock or hinge, but after trying it on a 1950s anvil stand last month it unstuck everything in 10 minutes. Anyone else find a common household product that actually works better than specialty stuff for your shop?
I cleaned off the rust and tried using it to drawfile a set of bottle openers and man that old steel holds an edge way better than the cheap Nicholson files I've been buying at the hardware store - has anyone else noticed old files outlasting new ones or am I just lucky with this one?
I was working on a set of fireplace tongs a few months back and this retired guy named Dave walked by my station. He watched me struggle with a piece for a minute and said "you're fighting the metal, son, heat it up again." I used to think I could save time by taking one more hit after the color faded, but he showed me how much easier it bends at the right temp. Now I reheat way more often and my hammer marks look cleaner, plus my shoulder doesn't ache after two hours. Has anyone else had to unlearn a bad habit like that?
After burning coal for 5 years I finally switched to a propane forge and the difference in scale and slag on my steel is night and day. Has anyone else noticed cleaner welds after ditching solid fuel or is it just my setup?
I was working on a 3/8 inch scroll bracket when the legs on my cheap wooden anvil stand just buckled. The whole setup tipped forward and my anvil hit the concrete floor with a crack that echoed through the whole shop. Luckily it didn't land on my foot but I was stuck holding a half-hot piece of steel while my ears rang. Turns out the screws holding the legs had stripped out over time from all the hammering. I spent the rest of the afternoon building a new stand out of 4x4 pressure treated lumber and used lag bolts instead of deck screws. Cost me about $35 total and I swear the anvil feels more solid now. Has anyone else had a tool support fail on them right in the middle of a project?