My First EVER Try At Blacksmithing,, Using A "T-6" DIY Forge,,, HELP!!

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I have always wanted to try shaping metal with heat, and a hammer.Rather than using acetylene and oxygen, I want to try low cost,, coal or propane.It is winter, I am burning some propane to heat my shed anyways,, why not try beating some hot steel??A week ago, I wanted to make a logging cant hook (for rolling logs)I went to a neighbor, to borrow his cant hook, and when we were at his shed, I saw a set of hooks hanging up.He said the hooks are called log dogs, or bulldogs,, or even snake hooks. they are for pulling logs behind a horse.I asked to borrow those, also.Well,, I am going to "try" to make a set of these log dogs,,I have been watching blacksmith videos FOREVER on YouTube,, I thought I was gonna use charcoal,, but, propane seems easier.Recently, a couple videos showed the importance of aiming the flame at the part..I wondered if positioning the part wasn't more important than insulating the forge? The only was to find out,, was to try.I have had a TurboTorch for 30 years, a couple years ago, I got a "T-6" tip for the torch.I got it out, and set up the torch outside,,

I simply used a leftover scrap of 4X4 inch square tube, with the torch aimed in it.Two pieces of 1 inch diameter steel round bar were put in the tube, and the torch was aimed in it.

(The day before I took these pics, I had used this torch to bend the bars)On my first try, I heated one bar at a time,, I had both bars, so I figured I would try heating both.Well, in about 5 minutes, the steel bars were HOT!!

I was really surprised,, I had tried this before without the piece of square tube,,after 30 minutes, without the square tube, the piece of bar was barely dull red. the tube helped heating a lot!!The T-6 tip consumes about 2 pounds of fuel an hour,, so a standard barbeque tank will last ~10 hours.Here is a pic of my "anvil",, a worn out front wheel off of a 953 CAT,, it does not move when you hit it.

My other "blacksmith" tools,, blacksmith gloves,, blacksmith tongs,, and blacksmith hammer.

After trying the first hammer,, not much was happening,, so I got out an 8# sledge,,THAT 8# sledge was way too hard to swing one-handed,, then I remembered another hammer I had put a handle on.The short handle helped,, even though the head must be pretty close to 8#...

After three heating and poundings of each pin I stopped to check my results,,Mostly, I had lengthened the pins, rather than making them wider,,I will have to study up on how to make the steel get wider, rather than longer,,,

I will try again, the next day it is not snowing,,,AND,, my question is,, How do I make the part wider, rather than longer??
Reply:Flatten the rod slightly with the bottom hammer in your photo...the cross pein hammer.  Flatten with the flat face, then when it's flat enough to strike accurately, use the tapered pein end.  If you hammer with the straight edge of the pein parallel to the rod, it will expand away on each side.  Practice on a piece of scrap to see how the cross pein hammer works.You don't need a sledge hammer to forge with.  For a beginner, something on the order of a 3# hammer is sufficient.  Really heavy stock you might need to go up to approx. 4# hammer.  Anything larger will just be overkill...the hot steel (yellow to orange) is much "softer" than cold steel and you can work it just fine with a 3# or even as small as a 2 1/2# hammer.  My go-to hammers are 2 1/2# and 3#.Last edited by shortfuse; 1 Day Ago at 06:27 PM.
Reply:Between the uninsulated "oven", the snow and the cold anvil, I don't think you're getting things hot enough. That pic looks like a low red range rather than yellow to orange.The harder you fall, the higher you bounce...250 amp Miller DialArc AC/DC StickF-225 amp Forney AC Stick230 amp Sears AC StickLincoln 180C MIGVictor Medalist 350 O/ACut 50 PlasmaLes
Reply:Well, the "forge" is blocking the wind and adding thermal mass, so it's no surprise that your steel would heat up faster/better than without it.  Still, it's no match for quality Kaowool insulation.Second to that, if you're wanting to make a Cant Hook, you're starting with the wrong material and just making more work for yourself.  Not knowing the alloy you're starting with, the chances of ruining it by too much repeated heating and beating is very high.By starting with the wrong stock, you have to first transform it into the right stock.... before you can get started forcing the hook proper.  That's just more work on you and more fuel burned.Here's a very good video showing Master Smith Peter Ross forging a Cant Hook.  He starts with 1/2"x1" mild steel bar and is done in a few minutes.  Granted, he has some experience to help him move the metal, but staring with the right size stock to begin with is a big help.  The hook doesn't need to be anything more than mild steel.https://ga.video.cdn.pbs.org/videos/...-64-2500k.m3u8Always wondered why they call it a Cant Hook when it obviously can.


Reply:I am now trying to make the log dogs,, the cant hook was made last week,,the hook for the cant is simple mild steel round stock (1 inch)  I heated it a little, and bent it with my wood splitter, then PortABand cut the point.


The cant hook was mostly started because I found that new wood handle at a surplus shop,, I am a sucker for a $5 project!! LOL!!Here it is when I was starting,, copying my neighbors cant hook as I went,,



Reply:I wondered about the name also,, it turns out that "CANT" is the name for a square or rectangular shaped beam made of wood.So, a cant hook is used to rotate that square beam.If it was not called a cant hook, it would be called "Hook for rotating a square or rectangular shaped beam made of wood"I can see it now,, at the saw,, "Hey Charlie,, go get the Hook for rotating a square or rectangular shaped beam made of wood"

Charlies response,,, " HUH !!?? "

Instead, they tell Charlie,, "Hey Charlie,, get the cant hook"Charlie goes and gets the cant hook,,,,


Reply:... and because the sky hook was taken...The harder you fall, the higher you bounce...250 amp Miller DialArc AC/DC StickF-225 amp Forney AC Stick230 amp Sears AC StickLincoln 180C MIGVictor Medalist 350 O/ACut 50 PlasmaLes
Reply:Cant refers to angle.  Off-cant is not favorable.  So, cant it by twisting or bending or rotating.
Reply:No wonder Charlie had a hard time finding the cant hook,,he was always a little off angle,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,





Reply:

Originally Posted by whtbaron

... and because the sky hook was taken...
Reply:

Originally Posted by SweetMK

I wondered about the name also,, it turns out that "CANT" is the name for a square or rectangular shaped beam made of wood.So, a cant hook is used to rotate that square beam.If it was not called a cant hook, it would be called [B]"Hook for rotating a square or rectangular shaped beam made of wood")
Reply:SweetMK, good job on the cant hook!!