CHAPTER 1
THE BLACKSMITH'S EQUIPMENT:
Forge equipment consists of the Hearth, the Blast, the Anvil and the Bench and Vice.
THE HEARTH
As cast iron is resistant to corrosion it is an ideal material for a hearth
in constant use, but where the work is intermittent, a hearth made of mild
steel plate is satisfactory. The steel hearth (Fig. 2) is simple to make,
either by riveting or arc welding. It is important that the hearth should
be well proportioned to allow the fire to form its own bed amongst the burned
cinders and ashes. In addition to the place for the fire, a water trough and
a container for fuel are needed. The most convenient arrangement is shown
in Fig. 2, where the water and fuel troughs are made in one piece and fitted
to the front of the hearth.
THE BLAST
An important feature of the hearth is the Blast Pipe, called the tuyere orrue
iron. The most efficient tuyere is water cooled (A in Fig. 3) so that it can
stick well out into the fire without the nose getting burned. In a well designed
hearth, the tuyere passes through a cast-iron backplate which is detachable.
The cooling water which circulates through the tuyere is contained in an open-topped
tank just behind the hearth or, if space is short, it can be piped to a tank
in a convenient position. The tank should have a lid to keep out dirt and
reduce evaporation; it is wise to use rain water to avoid scaling up the inside
of the tuyere. For general repair work a tuyere 16" long with a 4"
air hole is suitable. It is set horizontally on the centre line of the hearth-back
with the hole 3" below the level of the top of the side plates.
The blast is produced by either a bellows or a hand- or power-driven blower.
The electrically driven blower (C in Fig. 3) is by far the most convenient,
and a size suitable for the average hearth will consume less than a unit of
electricity per day. The normal size will blow a second fire for occasional
jobs. If electricity is not available, the same type of blower fitted with
a petrol engine (D in Fig. 3) can be obtained. One type of set, driven by
petrol engine, is fitted with a dynamotor and battery which makes it self-starting,
and also provides 12-volt lighting for the shop. Although it may be possible
to vary the speed of an electrically driven blower by a regulator (E in Fig.
3) or an engine driven set by the throttle, a valve is essential for accurate
control of the blast. This may be a sliding shutter (F in Fig. 3), a butterfly
valve, or an ordinary full-way rotating plug-cock. Whatever type is used,
the control should work perfectly smoothly and be within easy reach of the
blacksmith's free hand.
THE ANVIL
A good quality anvil is made of wrought iron or steel with a hardened steel
top and is well worth the extra cost. Working on a bad anvil is like jumping
on a heap of sand, whereas working on a good anvil set on a proper foundation
is like jumping on a springboard-the rebound from one blow helps towards the
next. Anvil patterns may vary for different purposes, but for general work
it should have a long and finely tapered bick as shown in Fig. 4 which is
a `London Pattern' anvil standing on a welded angle steel stand.
Although the lace or top of the anvil is hardened, the bick and table, which
is the square part between the hick and the face, are usually left soft. When
cutting off with a chisel, the work should always be moved to the table before
the final blow to avoid damaging the chisel edge. On a new anvil the front
and hack edges of the face .ire left sharp and it is advisable to round these
offcarefully with a carborundum file or a portable grinder in the places shown
in Fig. 5.
There are two holes in the face of an anvil; the square or hardy hole and
the round or punching hole. It is a good plan to chamfer the edges of the
square hole so that the hardy sits tight to the anvil face, this is also a
convenience when using the hole for setting slightly curved bars. The liveliness
or spring of' an anvil is much improved by mounting it on a wooden block,
preferably made from a squared-up trunk of elm. This should he sunk at least
3' into the ground with the grain standing vertically. The disadvantage of
setting up an anvil like this in the modern agricultural engineering shop
is that the block cannot be moved out of' the way. It may he more convenient
to have a fabricated steel or cast-iron stand hut, where space permits, it
is a distinct advantage to have a wooden block.
THE BENCH
A well designed and strongly built bench is essential and it should beplanned
and designed to save time and labour. The one illustrated inFig. 6 has a heavy
wooden top bolted to an angle-iron frame; two vices arefitted, a leg vice
nearest the hearth for heavy blacksmith's work, and anengineer's vice at the
opposite end. It is more convenient to keep tools inboxes on a shelf under
the bench than in drawers: the additional weightwill help to stabilize the
bench. To keep the bench clear of tools whenworking, a shelf of the type shown
in Fig. 6 should be fitted to the wall above the bench.
Close against the wall is a strip of wood with ½" and ¾" holes
bored alternately at 2" intervals to take small tools which would not
stand upright in a slot. In front of this is a ½" slot for the longer
tools such as files and screwdrivers, and in front of this again is a broad
shelf fortools in current use. The ½" holes drilled horizontally in the
front edge of the broad shelf are for pencils, scribers, centre punches, etc.
To keep these holes clear of dirt ¾" holes can be drilled from the
underside of the shelf as shown inset in top left corner of Fig. 6. A rack
for pliers, shown inset on the right, can be made from two bars of 1"
x 3/16" iron about ¾" apart and fixed to the front of' the
shell or in any other convenient place. Where space permits, the bench should
be backed against the wall on the working side of the hearth and receive natural
fight from either a window or a skylight. It does not matter if the shelf
cuts across the window as the bench will still get the light and, in addition,
the tools can he seen easily. If the smith cannot afford to install fluorescent
lighting, which is ideal but expensive, ordinary electric lamps for the bench
and machines should he fitted on adjustable brackets to give light where it
is most needed.
THE VICES
A steel leg vice (Fig. 6) is still the best for smithing. Heavy bending or
hammering should always be done in the leg vice, as the strain and shock on
the jaws are taken by the leg which is usually let into a steel socket set
in the concrete floor.
The parallel jaw or engineer's vice should also be made of steel, and it is
an advantage to have a quick release action for the jaws. A cast steel engineer's
vice will stand almost anything, but the cheaper malleable variety should
only be used for fitting and precision work; it is not designed for heavy
hammering or excessive strains on the jaws, and must not be used for these
purposes.
TOOL RACKS
One type of rack for taking hardies and anvil swages is shown fitted beneath
the hearth in Fig. 2.
Chisels, punches and drifts can be kept within reach of the anvil in another
type of rack which is made by drilling a series of '" holes in a piece
of 2" x 2" timber secured to the wall or other convenient place
with a piece of 2" x l" below it, as shown in Fig. 7. In this type
of rack both ends of each tool can always be seen; nothing can be lost down
the holes, and dirt cannot block them.
TONG RACKS
These can be made of round or flat bar and are usually bolted or hung on the
water trough where they are near the hearth.
FLOOR MANDREL
The Floor Mandrel (Fig. 8) is a hollow cast-iron cone, often standing breast
high, which is used for rounding up small tyres, rings and hoops.
THE SWAGE BLOCK
The swage block (Fig. 9) is a rectangular block of cast iron with different
sizes of half round and V-shaped notches on all four sides and various shaped
holes through the face. It is best mounted on a stand which enables any of
the edges or the face to be used at a convenient height.
This completes the essential equipment of a blacksmith's shop. No heights
for the bench and anvil have been given because individual craftsmen vary
so much in their own heights and opinions. It is a useful guide to know that,
when standing normally, you should be able to rest your elbow on the top of
the vice.
Make up your mind what height suits you best and see that you have it right.
It is all too easy to accept the height of a forge, an anvil or a vice as
you find it and go on putting up with it without realizing that a small alteration
will make life and work much easier for all time.
