What did you do in your shop today?

[Joshua States 1,782]

Ahh. Trouble with the corporate office issuing clearance. I know it well.

[Garry Keown 994]

Got a safari and a SS damascus Light Hunter ready for handles and then played with my table knife patterns and finalised them into solid decisions. I made one with  the tapered ended handles for myself about 6 - 8 months ago to test the blade shape and that is set in stone as it is sharp pointed enough for any meat or other food on the plate and has enough belly to spread butter on a bread roll on the side plate etc. 

 

 

[Bill Schmalhofer 124]

Spent 8 hours in the workshop today working on an EDC ( and staying out of the wife’s hair; she’s  working on a video project for work and didn’t want me “tromping around”). 4.5 of those were spent hand sanding the Cru Forge V blade to 800 grit. Was a good day.

[Martin Tiney 44]

Started to make myself a gas forge this weekend, got the tank cut, legs on, rear access door welded on, and front tong rest made, 

I made the gas nozzle a few weeks ago, 

I'm waiting for the postman to bring the ceramic mat and the refractory bricks for the bottom to insulate. 

Next job make adjustable feet for it because the space outside of my wooden shop is uneven and I don't want the whole thing wobbling about when it's at temperature. 

Edited August 30, 2020 by Martin Tiney
Typos again

[Jeremy Blohm 511]

2 hours ago, Martin Tiney said:

I made the gas nozzle a few weeks ago,

 

Just out of curiosity....how does the burner work? Is it a forced air setup?

[John N 266]

Not done any making for 5 months since the main factory fire, just started to get a bit of hunger back for making today though!

 

Spent 3 hours tidying and arranging my 'knife shop' (which was being used as a temporary HQ for Massey) - so it looks like my workshop again now  

 

Easing myself back into making, spent more time looking for stuff than actual doing! This seemed like a nice easy project (not over faced by it) - Its a re-handle on a 240mm Gyuto a chef commissioned just before the fire. The blade is very lucky as it was on my desk in the unit that went up and I managed to find it before the building got demolished. It did not get too hot thank goodness.

 

So, sum total of the work is 2 pieces of wood sized and squared up! - small steps. 

 

 

I was milling the slot in the bolster on a little jig borer before the fire, which is out of commission at the moment. I nearly bought a benchtop mill today, but then remembered we commissioned the big, new to us, 'Huron' mill a couple of weeks ago. It weights 10,000 lbs, 2 meter table. I will try and mill the 1/8" x 3/8" slot in the bolster on the Huron I think (Elephants eat peanuts after all! ) - Ill get some pics of that process for sure.

[Garry Keown 994]

Good day in the shed with four knives having the handles on and in the clamps over night. Then I cut these steels and heated the ends so I could do the hollow in a spring fuller. When they had cooled later in the day got the holes drilled and countersunk for the split ring and ready for shaping before heat treat.
Have had a (spec) Hunter skinner on the bench and wanted to do a straigh backed bronze bolster (with buffalo horn handle and as the bolster only has the two pins, they are supposed to be the same material and not having any pinstock, I was in a bit of a bind, so got on with a project I had decided to do some time back for this application. Starting with a piece of 3/8 plate I squared some lines accross it and scored them with the narrow cut off disc then cut the plate in half and drilled and tapped some holes to bolt them together with the scored lines matching up.. With them in the drill press vice I could then drill down from each side with a 1/8 bit to make a die for 4 x 3 1/2 inch long x 1/8 pins. I have got some clean band saw swarf from the bronze bar and a few  off cuts. My friend has a small crucible so when she comes back next monday for her half day a week of learning we will smelt the bronz and cast the pins. I have a jewelers draw plate so can draw them down to the needed 3/32 for the bronze bolsters where I dont want the pins to show.

Edited August 31, 2020 by Garry Keown

[Joshua States 1,782]

17 hours ago, Jeremy Blohm said:

 

Just out of curiosity....how does the burner work? Is it a forced air setup?

Looks like a venturi to me.

[Joshua States 1,782]

17 hours ago, Jeremy Blohm said:

 

Just out of curiosity....how does the burner work? Is it a forced air setup?

Looks like a venturi to me.

 

 

Nice pin mold Garry.

Edited August 31, 2020 by Joshua States

[Clifford Brewer 372]

20 hours ago, Jeremy Blohm said:

 

Just out of curiosity....how does the burner work? Is it a forced air setup?

 

Venturi it is and I like the mod on the pipe plug for adjusting air flow, have you gotten to use it yet ??

I am curious about how it performs...............

[Martin Tiney 44]

22 hours ago, Jeremy Blohm said:

 

Just out of curiosity....how does the burner work? Is it a forced air setup?

Noy entirely sure if it will work, it's based on the candle 2, that I saw on on utube, I'll let you know if it works when I get to test it in a couple of weeks 

[Garry Keown 994]

A quick pic of todays leatherwork. Some of these are for knives still on the bench but while doing leather it pays to do as much as I know there is a needs for in the next few days to

increase efficiency.

 

.

[Joshua States 1,782]

Garry has the right idea. When you have to tool-up for a task, get as much done as you can.

 

I spent the better part of the morning starting to clean and organize all the metal punches after the second great acid-rust disaster.

 

[jake cleland 442]

Working on a dirk scabbard. The main body is built up from 2mm mill board, with wet moulded leather sheaths glued to the front to take the by-knife and fork. Still a few bit's and pieces to do before it's ready for covering, but I like to get these sheaths done fairly early in the process and give the glue as much time as possible to cure while I finish the rest of the knife/knives...

 

[Alan Longmire 2,831]

Ooh, that's going to be nice, Jake!

 

And Josh, ouch.  Good on you, though.

[Charlie Jack 1]

Got my forge, and cart along with new burners done this past weekend

[Clifford Brewer 372]

Three Frosty's tee burners have ya fired it up yet ?................

[Chris Christenberry 352]

Well, I recently finished a Stitching Pony.  And made a holder for the start of what I hope to be a small batch of leather working tools.

 

 

 

 

I blame all you danged enablers for my progress!!

 

 

Edited September 4, 2020 by Chris Christenberry

[Charles dP 497]

10 hours ago, Chris Christenberry said:

Well, I recently finished a Stitching Pony.  And made a holder for the start of what I hope to be a small batch of leather working tools.

 

I love the fact that you have not only drilled more holes for tooling but also left space for more holes. You definitely know how this is going to go. Good on ya 

[Chris Christenberry 352]

Well, to be honest, I quit drilling holes because I was running out of "meat" on the chunk of wood.   Couldn't think of anything I'd be drilling such shallow holes for.  Imagine I'll find some reason to drill more though.  I don't think there's ever been a shop built that the owner made a statement like "Now I have more room than I'll ever need"....................only to fill it up quickly and need more.  Same with a tool board!

 

[Chadd S. 10]

Finally got around to heat treating the blade I've been working on, or rather attempting to heat treat it. Didn't work well. Tried 3 quenches but I couldn't get the darn thing hard enough to skate a file across. 1095 continues to kick my butt no matter what I do. Think I'm going to set that stuff aside and use some 1080 until I have more practice heat treating. 

 

I'm also dangerously close to getting a 2x72 grinder...Can't really justify it since I only do this as a part time hobby, but it's calling me...

[Alan Longmire 2,831]

Try filing a little deeper.  If your forge or whatever you're using to heat the steel is on the oxidizing side you can get a layer of decarb that won't harden atop the actual hard steel.  

[Martin Tiney 44]

The adjuster is a slightly modified out door stove burner, but the original design used a .8 mm mig welding tip. The burner  had a .6 jet  I'll try that first and either modify or replace the jet.

I'll let you know how I get on 

[AJ Chalifoux 57]

I've needed a good fire poker for years, and today I finally decided to hunker down and make one after I learned the in-laws would be over for dinner and a fire tonight. I didn't have round stock, so I used two pieces of 1-1/4"x7/16" rectangle scrap that I scarf welded together and forged round.

[Garry Keown 994]

Batch of steels finish polished and ready for the split rings with these three Old Westernss having the rough grind, hardened and in the tempering oven for the second 2 hr session now.