[TheForge] inspiration

Fri Jul 14 17:13:12 EDT 2006

All I can say is. . . wow.  At this point I am extremely greatful for the 
helpful instructions, and inspired.  I have plans to take a 50gal drum (from 
a local scrap yard) with a large hole on one side a a small hole near the 
bottom, attach a pipe (from the same scrap yard) for air flow, surround it 
all with local river rock and a basic dirt/clay morter, toss in some 
charcoal or other burnable fule, and use some more if that local scrap for 
stock, and simply . . . get it hot and hit it. :)  Hopefully that scrap yard 
has a suitable anvil, and my wife doesnt catch me using her hair dryer.  
Only one thing is preventing me...90-100 degree clear sunny days.  I am not 
gonna work next to a "hotter then the blazes of hell" fire in weather that 
makes me sweat just looking out the window.  Wish me luck, and if anyone has 
some pointers on improving my 1st fogr design, I appreciate the advice.

~Jesse

>From: "Jerry Frost" <frosty at customcpu.com>
>Reply-To: Sponsored by ABANA <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
>To: "Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
>Subject: Re: [TheForge] tools
>Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2006 11:10:52 -0800
>
>Don't apologize Bruce you weren't stepping on toes, I was just teasing you 
>a little.
>
>I didn't describe how to drill and bolt them together on the possibly false 
>assumption it wasn't necessary. If we need to start at that basic a level, 
>heating and beating is a number of virtual lessons away.
>
>On the other hand, for someone with basic metal working skills or even 
>general shop knowlege discovering improvised tools and just how much can be 
>done can be a real eye opener. Being able to bootstrap yourself from 
>nothing to a working smithy only requires imagination, knowlege and a 
>little practice. Good scroungins help's of course. <grin>
>
>Following is a tale from the Frosty files. If you only want the unvarnished 
>facts hit your delete key right NOW! <grin>
>
>Most of my hammer time up till a few years ago was in primitive conditions, 
>literally making stuff around a campfire somewhere in the Alaskan bush. 
>After work while the other guys on the drill crew were killing a half rack 
>of Bud, I'd forge up weird little thingies from found stock or bent, 
>twisted, broken, etc. drill tools. I'd been banging away using the casing 
>jack or a safety hammer as an anvil for a long time before I finally welded 
>up a RR track anvil. Other than the track anvil I didn't even pack a pair 
>of tongs, I just used whatever was handy.
>
>The summer of 93 or 94 we were doing a job for the FHWA along the 
>Resurrection River out of Seward for at least three months, nearly the 
>whole summer. We'd brushed a "road" down to a nice bar on the river to set 
>up camp and moved in. During the summer we spent there, there was a large 
>quantity of beer consumed so I had to find something to occupy my time 
>instead.
>
>Scrounging on the Resurrection River near where we were camped is rich 
>pickins. There used to be quite a bit of industrial (by early Alaskan 
>standards) shops, yards, etc. in the area till the 64' quake wiped them 
>out. Anyway, the river is GOOD scrounging. I found and dragged an axel from 
>a (I don't know what, but it was BIG) vehicle back to camp and implanted it 
>flange up for my anvil.
>
>The wind always blows down the river valley/gorge from the ice fields in 
>the mountains so making a wind powered forge was simplicity. I hammered 
>stakes into the sand in a 3'+/- circle. Using this as a frame I stacked mud 
>mortared rocks and sand into my forge table. I ran a piece of bent drill 
>casing up through the forge mound, facing into the prevailing wind. I made 
>the firepot from hard rammed mud and used found rebar as a grate. I later 
>replaced the firepot with a brake drum I got from a local repair shop. I 
>made a wind facing funnel from found tin siding for my blast.
>
>I burned forge made charcoal generated as I worked. This was REALLY 
>unpleasant till I scrounged a steel barrel to use as a combination forge 
>hood, charcoal generator. I cut the ends out of the barrel and spiked it on 
>end to the top of the forge and cut a couple openings to access the fire. I 
>simply cut wood, mostly alder and birch and tossed it into the top. It 
>burned down to charcoal by time it got to the openings I was working 
>through. It was hot as hell standing in front of the burn barrel forge 
>thingy but it worked just fine.
>
>Along with the usual fire pokers, branding irons and other fun with beer 
>things I normally made, I made a pair of rebar tongs. They were basically 
>the same as twist tongs and ugly as hell but they worked just fine. I made 
>hanging hooks for camp, tripods for the camp fires, pokers, skewers, 
>tent/tarp stakes and all sorts of little utensils for around camp.
>
>After a while word got out I had a "blacksmith's shop" down on the river 
>and I became kind of a small scale attraction. So I started making hooks, 
>stakes, tripods, toasting forks, fire pokers, branding irons, etc. for 
>locals and tourists that found us. I didn't charge much but made a nice bit 
>of change for off duty fun with fire. <grin>
>
>The ONLY tools I didn't improvise or manufacture were the hammers, large 
>and medium crescent wrenches, a hack saw and a handful of files. I even 
>made a vise though I didn't hammer on it.
>
>Anyway, I did this kind of "smithing" for 19 years on the drill crew and 
>dearly LOVE improvising "shops". This is the basis of my perspective when I 
>answer the, "What do I need to get started?" question. I don't put limits 
>on how high tech a smith should go either. If you want to make a living at 
>this stuff you'd damned well better either be a VERY in demand smith OR be 
>willing to do any metal work that comes in the door.
>
>So yes. I can most certainly describe AND post pics of wooden tongs made 
>with stone tools though I prefer knapping obsidian. I haven't tried the 
>local chert, too much on my plate. Still, the chert will make a much better 
>hand axes and scrapers than the obsidian if not as sharp, it'll be much 
>more durable.
>
>Frosty
>-------------------------------
>If it ain't forged
>it ain't real.
>Wrought iron is.
>The FrostWorks
>
>Meadow Lakes, AK.
>
>http://www.artmetalradio.com/
>
>From: "Bruce Freeman" <FREEMAB at pt.fdah.com>
>
>
>>Sorry, Frosty, I didn't mean to stomp on your toes. Really, your twist
>>tongs description was excellent (though pictures would help), and those
>>(punched and riveted) should probably be the >second< pair of tongs a
>>beginner makes.  If we REALLY want to be purists, we could give
>>instructions on making tongs of wood, made with a flint knife...
>>
>>But I operated for so long (before learning to forge) by making do with
>>capabilities I had (drilling, bolting) that I still often think in those
>>terms.
>>
>>Bruce
>>NJ
>>
>
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