[TheForge] Using two hand hammers

[Paul Sperbeck]

Bob Bergman used to show this method to form a 90 upset bend. The stock 
was bent as tight as possible, reheated and then clamped in a vise, 
diamond like with the radius corner up and the legs of the bend trapped 
near the ends of the vise jaw. You would then strike on both sides of 
the radiused corner simultaneously with equal weight hammers which would 
upset the radiused bend into a nice 90 corner. As you work it you need 
to heat and straiten the legs, re-clamp and then whale away again.

While not forging related this is the same method that is used to break 
a Cast iron pipe fitting off the end of a piece of pipe without bashing 
the hell out of the pipe or the surrounding structure. The hammers are 
timed to strike exactly opposite,180 degrees apart on the driving band 
of the pipe fitting. 2 or 3 whacks and the fitting splits nicely and the 
pipe thread is undamaged. I don't know the name of the method, I was 
shown how to do it 45 years ago as an apprentice and just passed it on. 
If you timing is just the slightedst bit off you will n=know, the 
hammers in this instance are equal in weight.

paul

On 01/01/2015 01:01 PM, Bob wrote:
>     I saw a demo at a conference many years ago - I don't remember who 
> it was - where
> the smith had a hammer in each hand with the work in a vise did an 
> upset operation very quickly.
>
> Bob Willman
> The Eagle's Anvil
> Bowling Green, Ohio
> WB8NQW 

> <<snip>>