[TheForge] RE: cranes

[Bob Ehrenberger]

Mike,

When I was in high school my best friend's dad ran the local welding shop. 
One of the things that they did was repair and sharpen sickle bars. For this 
they had a section of barn rail with a trolley to support the free end and 
allow them to work on one end while the other end automaticlly adjusts to 
the position of the work.  The loop that held the sickle bar had a spring on 
it which made it seem like the bar was just floating out there.

I was thinking something like that might be nice for moving and adjusting 
the direction of my big swage block.  I haven't figured out just how to do 
this and am also thinking that jib crane would also do the job.

Robert Ehrenberger
Shelbyville, Mo.
eforge at centurytel.net

---original message----
Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 01:04:56 -0300
From: mspencer at tallships.ca (Mike Spencer)
Subject: [TheForge] Re: forging steel bamboo

Ben wrote:

> Bruce's suggestion reminds me of the old forging videos I've seen
> where a huge bar is suspended by crane and made able to roll on its
> support;

I saw one of a yellow-hot [1] billet maybe 2 or 3 feet in diameter
supported by a chain loop that went over a pulley which in turn was
suspended from the big crane.  I think the pulley was powered so that
they could rotate the billet with the sling.

When I had to draw long tapers on 8' 1x2, I made a (tiny and of course
not powered :-) version of the sling with loop of 3/16 chain and an
old pulley rope-pulley wheel.  I just put a eye bolt in the ceiling
where I needed it but if you had a crane, track or whatever it would
be more versatile hung on that.  It worked much better than a stand
support because the chain accommodated the rectangular shape more
smoothly.  I'm guessing that a sprocket and a piece of roller chain
would be even better.

- Mike