c/blacksmiths

Found out I was oiling my anvil wrong for 3 months

I kept getting this weird sticky residue on my projects and couldn't figure out why. Turns out I was using too much WD-40 instead of a light coat of 3-in-1 oil, and it was gumming up from the heat. Anyone else make that rookie mistake when they started out?

Took me three months to figure out why my forge blower kept seizing up

Turned out it was just dust building up in the motor vents, not some fancy mechanical failure like I thought, anyone else wasted that long on something simple?

I used to hate power hammers until I watched one work for an hour

Last weekend I stopped by a shop in Birmingham and watched a guy use a 50 lb Little Giant to draw out a 2 inch round bar into a leaf spring in like 15 minutes. I've always been a hand hammer guy because I thought power hammers were cheating or something, but seeing how consistent his blows were changed my mind completely. The metal moved so much faster and it made me realize I'm just wasting time swinging a 3 lb hammer for hours. Has anyone else switched over after seeing one in action?

TIL some old railroad spikes make terrible knives

I always figured railroad spike knives were the coolest thing, right? But I watched this old timer at a meetup in Tulsa last month hammer one out and then he pointed out most modern spikes are high carbon steel but actually have a lot of impurities from being beat up on tracks for years. He did a spark test and it barely threw any sparks compared to a file. Now I get why a lot of those decorative spike knives are more for looks than actual cutting.

Why does nobody mention how much quieter a well-tuned anvil is?

I spent 6 months hammering on an anvil with a dead ring before I finally wedged a chain under the heel and now my shop sounds like a library and my neighbors actually talk to me again, has anyone else noticed how much ring affects your hammer control?

Hot take: Should you quench in oil or water for a cleaner finish?

I ran into a problem with my last batch of knife blades that took me three weekends to sort out. I kept getting cracks and warps with water quenching, so I switched to canola oil and it slowed the process way down. The oil gave me softer steel but less risk of breakage, which I guess is the trade off. My buddy swears by water for carbon steel, says oil is for beginners who can't control their heat right. I spent about 20 hours testing both on five blades before I settled on oil for my shop. What do you all use for your projects? Has anyone else found a middle ground that works better?

Burned $80 on a cheap anvil from Amazon. Big mistake.

I figured I'd save some cash two months ago and grabbed a 66lb cast iron anvil for $80 shipped. Looked fine in the pics but the first time I hit a hot piece of 1/2 inch round on it, the face chipped right near the edge. Like a whole chunk flew off and nearly hit my leg. The rebound was terrible too, basically zero. I ended up buying a used Fisher anvil off a guy on Craigslist for $200 and it's night and day difference. That cheap anvil is now holding my garage door open. Has anyone else had bad luck with those budget anvils or did I just get a dud?

Rant: I think fluxless forge welding is way overrated

I tried it for a solid two weeks back in March, and of the 15 welds I attempted, maybe 3 actually held. All these guys online saying you just need clean steel and the right temp are leaving out the part where you spend an hour grinding every speck of scale off. Am I the only one who just sticks with borax and doesn't see the big deal?

That $600 forge welding kit I laughed at actually works

I was dead set against those pre-made flux packs and fancy tongs. Seemed like a total gimmick. But after ruining my fourth billet trying to weld canister Damascus, I grabbed a kit from Dark Iron Forge. First try came out solid. No voids. No delamination. Has anyone else caved and bought a kit they thought was overpriced?

Coal versus propane: I spent a year with each and coal wins every time

I started forging with a propane forge because everyone said it was cleaner and easier. After six months I was tired of the inconsistent heat and the cost of refilling those tanks. Switched to a coal forge last spring and wish I had done it sooner. The fire is more work to manage, sure, but I get way better control over the heat zones and it costs me about $40 a month in coal versus $80 for propane. Anyone here ever make the switch and end up going back to gas?

Hit 500 hand-forged hooks before I even noticed

Honestly I was just counting inventory for a craft fair I'm doing in March and realized I've made over 500 of my little J shaped hooks. I started making them two years ago just to use up scrap from railing jobs. They're nothing fancy just utility hooks for hanging tools or pots but seeing that number on paper made me stop and think. Has anyone else hit a random milestone with a project they thought was just filler work?

Stop using plain steel for your hot cut chisels, switch to S7 tool steel

I was burning through cheap hot cuts every season, my old ones would dull after 50 hits on a 1 inch bar. Then I spent $30 on an S7 blank and hardened it myself with a torch and oil quench, it's held an edge through three months of heavy use. Has anyone else tried S7 versus something like H13 or 4140 for striking tools?

Switched from coal to gas forge last month and finally understand the hype

I spent 12 years swearing by coal because that's how my grandpa taught me, but after fighting with inconsistent heat on a big commission piece in July, I borrowed a buddy's gas forge for a weekend. The even temperature control saved me 3 hours of rework on a set of gate hinges. Has anyone else made the switch later in their career and regretted sticking with coal for so long?

A guy at the hammer-in told me my anvil was too loud...

He was a old smith who said my ring was hurting the shop atmosphere. I put a heavy magnet under the heel and it quieted everything down way more than I expected. Anyone else had to adjust their anvil setup based on shop noise complaints?

Coal vs coke debate finally settled for me

Old timer at the guild meeting showed me his forge running straight coke. Said he burns 30% less fuel per hour. Now I'm ditching the bagged coal I've been using for 5 years.

Reached 1000 horseshoes forged before I ever sold a single one

I kept a tally in my shop notebook and hit 1000 shoes last Tuesday, but I’ve never sold a single one cause I give them all to the local riding school for free. Everyone told me I should have started selling after 50, but the practice taught me way more about steel flow and hammer control than any dollar amount could. Has anyone else held onto a milestone for the learning instead of the profit?

That $40 oxy-acetylene tip cleaner set I almost skipped

I picked up a cheap tip cleaning kit from a flea market last month for $8, figuring it would be a waste but worth a shot. Turns out it cleared a clog on my favorite welding tip in under a minute, saving me from buying a $60 replacement. Has anyone else found a simple cheap tool that ended up pulling more weight than expected?

Old timer at my shop showed me why my hammer hits kept glancing off

I was struggling with a curved chisel for maybe 20 minutes, getting frustrated because every hit would slide sideways. This older guy, must have been 75, watched for a bit and then said 'you're holding it like a screwdriver, not a hammer.' He took it from me and showed how to choke up on the handle and let the weight do the work. First hit was dead on, no bounce. Had anyone else had a moment where one small grip change fixed everything?

Why does nobody talk about how bad cheap tongs are for forge welding?

I keep seeing posts from beginners using those cheap stamped steel tongs you get on Amazon for like $15 and trying to do forge welds. Tried that myself back when I started about two years ago in my garage here in Denver. The tongs just don't hold the billet steady enough, they flex and twist when you try to set the weld. Lost a couple good billets that way, just flew right off the anvil. You really need some decent forged tongs that lock onto the steel tight, otherwise you're just wasting your time and fuel. Anyone else have trouble with flimsy tongs ruining a weld?

Warning: that new forge refractory might crack on you in 3 months

I switched to a premixed refractory from the big box store last January. Looked fine at first, smooth finish, held up through about 40 heats. Then last Tuesday I fired it up and found a hairline crack running from the firepot to the shell. Six inches long. By Friday it was wide enough to stick a quarter in. The old mix I used for years never did that. Anyone else see these new batches fail faster?

Blew a hole straight through my forge firepot after 3 years of using it wrong

PSA: Stop quenching your hot work in the same spot in the bucket every time

I was at my forge last week making some bottle openers (you know, the usual) and kept getting weird soft spots near the bend. I noticed the water in my quench bucket was actually steaming way more on one side. Turns out I was always dunking the steel in the same corner for like 2 years. That water was basically hot bath temp while the rest of the bucket was still cold. Now I swirl the piece around or even swap buckets if I'm doing a bunch of pieces in a row. Anyone else had their quench water get uneven like that?

Heard an old timer swear by vinegar for scale removal, tried it last week

I was at a flea market out in Millersburg and overheard this guy telling someone about soaking his tongs in white vinegar overnight to get rid of heat scale. Figured I'd give it a shot on a set of pliers that were caked up. After 12 hours in a bucket of undiluted vinegar, the scale just wiped off with a wire brush. No grinding or sanding needed. Saved me maybe an hour of elbow grease on just those two pliers. Has anyone else tried acid soaks for cleaning up old tools?

Took me 3 years to try a diamond grinding wheel on my chisels

Saw a video from a shop in Ohio where a guy flattened the back of a chisel in about 20 seconds. I'd been using wet/dry sandpaper on a granite slab for years. Took me 30 minutes sometimes. Picked up a 6 inch diamond wheel from a local tool supply for 40 bucks. First use I was mad at myself for waiting so long. Now I sharpen everything in half the time. Anyone else make the switch and find it worth it?

I finally gave in and tried a propane forge after years of coal

I've been burning coal in a side blast forge for like 8 years now at my shop. Always thought propane forges were for people who didn't want to do real blacksmithing. Then I did a weekend workshop at a place in Portland that only uses propane and man, I was wrong. The heat control is way more consistent and I didn't have to deal with clinkers or ash every 20 minutes. Has anyone else made the switch and actually stuck with it?