[TheForge] OT, but I Just have to ask...

[David E. Smucker]

Much of the large forging capacity is still there and still in use.  The 
10,000 ton and 3000 ton open die forge press that used to be Bethlehem 
Steel, then Bethlehem Forge in Bethlehem PA is now Lehigh Heavy Forge.  The 
total Bethlehem Steel operations in Bethlehem used employ about 20,000 folks 
and started with iron ore and coal made everything.  What is left is just 
the heavy forge shop and heavy machine shop.  (Under different ownership.) 
They buy in their steel now and still handle 300 ton forgings.  Last time I 
was there in 1999 they were making very large prop shafts for the Navy and 
also for large turbines.  Most of their business is the forging, heat 
treating and finishing of rolling mill rolls.

Dave Smucker
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Andrew Vida" <osan at netlabs.net>
To: "Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Thursday, January 13, 2005 12:05 AM
Subject: Re: [TheForge] OT, but I Just have to ask...


> Where'd they come from?  As I recall, the whole naval ordnance operation 
> in VA or MD where the large 16" rifles were built have been dismantled 
> along with so much of the rest of American industrial might.  Shame. Can 
> you imagine what an operation the forging of one of those barrels must 
> have been?  I wonder if there is archive footage available anywhere.
>
> Mike Linn wrote:
>>
>> There are several cannon lathes about 4 miles from me at Tannehill State 
>> Park.
>>
>> They are really cool machines.
>>
>>
>> At 05:30 PM 1/12/2005, you wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Justin Fellenz wrote:
>>>
>>>> But the cannon. Now, that's a cool idea. Anyone tried making one? A big
>>>> one, I mean? My lathe bed is, oh, 9 feet long and I can spin about 14".
>>>> I wonder if the bed would flx under the weight...I guess you'd have to
>>>> rig up some rollers to carry it. And how would you bore something that
>>>> long? Get it close with a long (flexy) boring bar and then clean it up
>>>> with a button?
>>>
>>>
>>>         I think you really need a gun drill to do the job right. 
>>> Drilling deep holes is not an easy thing to do, if you want the hole to 
>>> be straight, that is. :)
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>>
>>
>>            Mike Linn
>>      Artist Blacksmith
>>          McCalla, AL
>>        AFC Webmaster
>> http://afc.abana-chapter.com
>>
>> ______________________________________________________________________
>>
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