"Backyard Blacksmithing" pounding iron on the forge this evening!

I used cheap HF vise clamps as tongs to complete this set of tongs. Not exactly optimal; I dropped hot metal several times.

 

Does anyone know why the tongs are turned up at the tips?

 

On these slot jaw tong jaws? For clearance of the round, square or flat stock to fit into the slots, and so they don’t spin when you’re hammering on them.

If you pick up a pair it makes sense. Otherwise it can’t grab the stock. Here’s photos I found on the net.

 

Ah, I zoomed in a bit more on your first pic. I couldn't quite see the slots. Looks secure.

 

Yeah, I figured they were the best ones of the five in the Kens Iron Rapid tongs kit to do first. That way I could use it to hold all the other blanks to forge and assemble them.

 

I was walking the dog out around the barn and the frost must have pushed up this.



Just under a foot long. Tapered ends. Not really pointed, but I guess it could have been driven into a beam for a hook at one time. Amazing what the frost moves to the surface. Lots of broken glass too.

 

Nice find!

Will you hang it someplace for display?

 

I'm not sure Mike. Maybe set it in a barn beam and use it to hang tools. I'll clean it up a little and go from there.

 

As I try my hand at blacksmithing, this is a good reminder of that which lies behind and above it.

The Village Blacksmith
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - 1807-1882

Under a spreading chestnut-tree
⁠The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands,
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.

His hair is crisp, and black, and long;
His face is like the tan;
His brow is wet with honest sweat,
He earns whate'er he can,
And looks the whole world in the face,
For he owes not any man.

Week in, week out, from morn till night,
You can hear his bellows blow;
You can hear him swing his heavy sledge,
With measured beat and slow,
Like a sexton ringing the village bell,
When the evening sun is low.

And children coming home from school
Look in at the open door;
They love to see the flaming forge,
And hear the bellows roar,
And catch the burning sparks that fly
Like chaff from a threshing-floor.

He goes on Sunday to the church,
And sits among his boys;
He hears the parson pray and preach,
He hears his daughter's voice
Singing in the village choir,
And it makes his heart rejoice.

It sounds to him like her mother's voice
Singing in Paradise!
He needs must think of her once more,
How in the grave she lies;
And with his hard, rough hand he wipes
A tear out of his eyes.

Toiling,—rejoicing,—sorrowing,
Onward through life he goes;
Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close;
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.

Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend,
For the lesson thou hast taught!
Thus at the flaming forge of life
Our fortunes must be wrought;
Thus on its sounding anvil shaped
Each burning deed and thought.

 

I found a 5” post leg vise on FB Marketplace for $100. The original mounting bracket and screw cap were missing and because of that the vise had been modified years ago, and I had to straighten out the bent post leg, but it seems to work just fine.

I just built a stand for it out of 2x12s and lag bolted it with 10” lag bolts. Seems pretty sturdy.

 

No beauty queen, but it looks ready for service and will take a beating.

 

That's a nice vise Brian. And for $100 I think that's a steal!

 

Do you folks know anything about antique iron tractor wheels?

We found this buried in the woods here just off the driveway. From internet image searches, it looks like an old steam or very early internal combustion tractor wheel, or the iron wheel off an old sickle mower or manure spreader?

This whole area was farmland since well before the civil war.

It's five foot in diameter, 8 1/2” wide, and 5/8” thick. I used online calculators and it looks like it weighs 290-300 pounds.

From my research it’s probably solid wrought iron, something highly valued by artistic blacksmiths?

 

I would spark test a piece on a grinding wheel. It should be pretty definitive. Even a sanding wheel on an angle grinder should work.



Is there a weld line where the ring is completed? If not, I'd lean towards a cast steel. Wrought tends to show grain lines when rusted.

 

I'm hoping to get the gear set up by this weekend. My forge needs to be re-welded, a post set for the last post vise I picked up. It is complete with spring and mounting plate.

I have a project in mind, just have to execute it.

 

I did a spark test with a grinder wheel on an angle grinder, it had pretty straight, orangish short sparks.
The crack itself has a granular appearance.
I’m uncertain about a weld. I thought it was right where it had bent/cracked but I’m not certain:

 

I'm wondering if it is cast iron. I've cleaned up cast and it didn't throw much.

 

The FB blacksmithing groups leaned toward either wrought iron or cast steel, based on its apparent age. I can’t tell and I don’t want to cut a hunk off it for forge / vise testing.

I took a basic blacksmithing class a couple months ago, and sent an email to my instructor today. This was his reply, in part:

The embossed tread kind of throws me off as it would have to be cast or pushed into a form and then welded somehow. Do you see a seam where it was put together? If not, it could be cast steel and may not be as forgeable.

If it is wrought iron there are several types. Just regular non-processed iron which I call rotten iron. This has the grain opening up while forging and you have to constantly keep forge welding it back together. Then there is double refined. This is nice material as it doesn't split open, is softer than today's steel and easily forge welds.​

 

If it is wrought, it should be worth something.

 

Without cutting off a piece, I’m not sure how to figure that out definitely. But my blacksmithing instructor figured about $3 per pound if it is decent wrought iron.