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

My Dad made this Schürhaken (Poker?), he was into blacksmithing some years ago.
He would do little workshops at schools - so kids could forge a poker or some mighty big nails.
I still use it and beeing without it.. i wouldnt like that at all.

Ive seen some mint stuff on the previous pages! I hope we've get the chance to see more in the future!

 

Same here!

 

Nice hook. That is useful for sure.

Here is two of my latest projects done over the last few weeks. The first one went to Barcroftb for his Secret Santa gift.

The first one is a 1/2 scale log Peavey loosely based on an improved cant dog made by a Maine blacksmith, Joseph Peavey around 1858. It has rings around the tapered end. It has a very interesting history to it.

The wood handle was made from an old shovel that has been sitting around for about 10 years. I cut it down and turned down the business end on my lathe to a slight taper. The rings and clasp are all hand forged mild steel as well as the hook and point. Each ring was smaller in size as they progress to the point.



Here are the three forged hooks with the tops of them leaning out to and drillwd to hold the Peavey off the board, almost like it is floating.



Here the hardware is fitted and set to the handle with modified pointed rivets. The board is a slab of oak with nice flecking and some shellac finish on it.



The Peavey was fixed to the hanging hooks with screws. The board was a little thin and screws would not work to hold the brackets. I ended up using rivets through the board with burrs on the back, and peening the rivet ends over. All the hardware, screws and rivets were coated in beeswax.


Here it is all done.

 

The second project has done a bit of traveling. If I have the story right, Eric VW had a Collins felling axe head that he cut in two and showed it to walt for advice on making a pickaroon head. Walt ended up restoring the half axe head into a beautiful trade hatchet for Eric. Scotty Overkill mentioned the other half would make a nice trade hatchet. Eric's wheels got spinning and asked me if I could make the half into a trade hatchet. Sure.

I felt the eye was too big for a colonial trade hatchet. I asked Eric if he could cut the poll out and I would fold the iron around to make a smaller eye.

This is what it ended up like. A little fat on the right side but I could sand that out. The left was perfect. The mushrooming left on the poll was ground and hammered out.




I did a spark test to see what the carbon content looked like. Not too bad, good sparks and it should hold an edge.




I had to open the right side up a bit to fit the sanding wheel in there. A little heat and it opened up fine. I cut the right side back a little and formed it around a bick to start the new eye.




I heated the piece up to form the left side that would overlap the right and meet with a forge weld. I have no pics of the forge weld in progress but both formed sides are now fused as one piece. The weld is complete in the middle and as I hammered to edges, the lap in the weld is visible.



I was surprised how nice and even the left side laid up after the overlap. The bit end was flared out before the forge weld was done. I really wanted a squared toe and heel on the bit end, but I would have had to cut back too much to get there.




I ended up making a walnut haft flared at both ends and thinner in the middle. Three coats of Danish oil I believe it was.




Here the finished hatchet is in the middle, flanked by another trade hatchet and trade knife I made this year. All walnut handles. These were all great projects and I was glad to finish this last one. Truly an honor to have worked it up for Scott.

 

The damper makes a huge difference, especially these past two cold nights. The exhaust is slowed down, the secondaries are slower and floating versus the jets they normally do. It is working well.

 

All beautiful tools FP!!! I'd be torn weather to display them or work'em.

 

All of them are users. Great excuse to make more for display.

In the spring I have a project lined up to make a colonial cooking tripod for a friend who is having an outdoor cooking day at his place. He has a huge wood fired oven, open pit cooking, cast iron dutch ovens, etc. He has another request I am planning out that I will start in a few weeks.

 

I like, the Trade Knife caught my eye there... incase you got a spare ones let me know

 

Awesome work fishingpol I hope that I can be that good! I can get by I just need to get more time at the forge to practice. Me and Scotty Overkill are going to be hitting the forge here at some point in the near future to make a few items. I'll make sure that we post the stuff!

 

I'd love to watch of you don't mind!

 

Looks good! Have you ever messed around with blacksmithing at all?

 

Sure TurboDiesel your always welcome we'll have to give you a heads up when we get into it! It is very smokey I must warn you . Heck you can even pick up the hammer and make something if you want. Here within the coming weeks I need to get out and get some steel for my projects I'll make sure there's extra in case you want to try your hand!

 

Thanks, im sure he will be delighted tae hear that. Yeah i tried a few times but nothing to show off - i would usually leave the iron in for too long and ignite the thing into spark oblivion.
But i sure appreciate something hammerforged, Dad gave me a hammerforged spade made in a Town where we used to live when i was a wee kid.
That thing is solid and the quality is mint!

 

Just be careful, and don't burn down the city like this guy almost did:
Man copying TV starts huge New York fire

 

VelvetFoot, had not seen that news article. WOW. Just read through this whole thread, you folks are very talented. Thanks for sharing the pictures of your work. In my welding classes at school I spend a couple of weeks with my students making "letter openers" (you know knives would never be permitted to be made at school!), we make them from horseshoes. Half of the shoe stays original for the handle and then we forge the blade and harden in oil quench. I went to horseshoeing school in '77 and have messed around with forges since then. I am not a professional nor do I play one on TV!

 

I try never to invite myself buuuuut..... can I come watch?

 

Yeah we can have a little party. And give you and TurboDiesel a call when we go to do it!