[TheForge] Identifying Wrought Iron

[schade at acegroup.cc]

On Jan 29, 2007, at 10:11 AM, Jim Beard wrote:

> Also (I'm sure this is a can of worms here) but I've read some
> information about Wrought that says it was not as nice to forge as
> mild steel, yet I hear smiths talk about finding it and liking it too,
> so I'm a bit confused.  Is it easy / hard / fun / boring to forge
> with?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Jim
>


I guess everyone goes out and collects wrought iron when they first 
start smithing. I did. Still have a couple of wagon rims around. Years 
ago I salvaged quite a pile of 1-1/4"? or so WI when they tore down the 
old Winona County Jail. May still have one or two of those. I sold a 
pile of the jail bars to Bill Fiorini.

The biggest attraction to wrought (for me anyway) was that they didn't 
make it any more. Had to get some of that!

But forging it was never much fun. I only played with it a few times. 
If not kept really effing hot it would fray like a rag. Mild steel was 
way more forgiving and for me easier (relatively!) to forge. I'm 
guessing that if the smiths of the day when the change from WI to "mild 
steel" didn't like ms better that wi would still be around. But maybe 
by that time there were so few guys forging the stuff that they had no 
voice.

Have fun.

Bob