FARM BLACKSMITHING.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 147, 28 July 1914, Page 11

FARM BLACKSMITHING.

SOME PRACTICAL HINTS.

Our niaii) object in introducing this subject is to furnish farmers with a few hints on general blacksmithing. The advantage of having a forge, where si in pie jobs can be undertaken, obviating the necessity of having often to travel, possibly, several miles to got small jobs carried out, at the nearest smithy, is at once apparent. A simple blacksmith shop on the farm is a good sign. Many farmers have such a shop, and fully appreciate its value. On the other hand, many other farmers do not possess a workshop of any kind, and have no idea of the loss sustained through this omission. Such a place provides a farmer with a place where he may profitably- spend' his time in wet weather. It also provides, by virtue of there being at hand the means to repair damages to machinery and tools, a

valuable saving in time, which is fro

quently of much more .importance than the cash saved by doing one's own work. 'All, who are,engaged in- agricultural pursuits know how annoying it is to- have'-to- cease harvesting operations to-have some trifling breakage repaired, but the time lost in visiting the blacksmith could in. the. majority-of. cases be saved by the presence on the farm of a simple blacksmithing outfit. Besides this a workshop is a source of pleasure to the great majority of young men and boys, bringing out, as it does, their inherent love of mechanics and develops their inborn constructive faculties, in the exercise of which the boy is drawn out and made more resourceful. While it is true that a man may spend years at a blacksmith's forge and still have a great deal to learn about the. work, it is equally, true that the of the trade .consist of but iV simple operations, which may be quickly acquired by anyone who' is willing to. give. time;and attention to the work. Skill comes, with practice. The farmer with average ability. can ,do two ; -thirds of the'work he usually has done by tlie blacksmith.'' . FURNISHING THIv SHOP. '

in furnishing a shop, which does Inot need to be an elaborate structure, the first thing to be considered is the forge. There are good portable forges on the market which may be had for a reasonable price. One with a fire pan 18 x 24 inches with a 14in fan is small enough. A cheap forge, however, which answers the purpose well enough is a box tilled with clay. It should be about 3ft square and 24ft high. A suitable sized bellows may be fitted with bellows and tuyere iron. A very cheap and good tuyere may be made of a piece of 2in iron pipe extending - through the length otthe forge. Several holes may be bored in the top for the blast, and if a "plug is inserted in the end it may be removed when it is necessary to clean the iron, and the bellows worked, thus cleaning out the pipe effectually. The most expensive part of the outfit.. is the anvil. One weighing- from 801b to 1001b will 'be found -.quite small enough. A little heavier is preferable.. Cast iron anvils are to be avoided, as they will not stand hard pounding.. A'wrought iron vice with steel jaws is the right sort. Cast iron vices are cheap, but generally unsatisfactory. A' machinist's hammer, weighing Hlb, will 'be fouud the most ■convenient size for common use, and a ; blacksmith's hand -hammer weighing 2ilb 'will be convenient to have at hand for heavier work. At-the! start a pair of tongs .and; a pair'of bolt tongs -are 1 requisites. A set of stocks and dies for jentting threads on bolts from one-fourth 'to three-fourths of an inch diameter is ■almost a necessity. Sets for ordinary use, cutting three different numbers of 'threads, and taking bolts or nuts from ifive-sixteenths to three-fourths of an inch, jare very handy. \A good upright' drill press is another part of the equipment ;fhat cannot be overlooked.

Sonic hardware houses who specialise in farmers' equipments make up outfits sompwhat as follows:—r

Anvil weighing TOUlb, has a tempered ;steel face; forge; vice with steel jaws; .postdrill; drills up to one inch hole and to 11*121 centre; stocks'and dies cut from three-sixteenths to five-eighths inches, 12, 14, and Itf threads per inch and consisting of six taps and three sets of dies. The balance of , the outfit consists of hardie, cold chisel, hot and cold cutter, 14in rasp, 2()iu fire tongs, farrier's knife and hammer, 14in farrier's pincers, one 2-lib blacksmith's -hammer, and twist drills of seven sizes to go with the post ■.(.rill. In addition to the ordinary blacksmith tools, every farm shop should have a fairly complete set of carpenter's tools—tools such as carpenter's bench, axe, steel hammer, hand saw, draw knife, block plane, jaekplane, plumb and level, square, brace and bits, chisels, screwdriver, marking gauge, oil stone, carpenter's pincers, fencing pliers, round hand .punch, mill and taper saw iiles, etc. • ' it pays to buy your bolts, rivets, and other things of this nature from the hardware houses. A supply of screws, nails, bolts, rivets, etc., should always he kept on hand. The cost/is very moderate and the convenience is great.

t'UKL.

It is necessary to have a few sacks of coal, and it is well worth while getting good coal. Many coal merchants put on the market what is known as "blacksmith's nuts, which will be found satisfactory. Whatever coal is used for blacksmithing work should be free from sulphur, as it has a deleterious effect on iron. vrxciirxc iron. To punch a hole in iron, heat to white heat; hold on the anvil, not over the hole, but over the solid face of the anvil, and drive the punch till it feels as though it were solid against the face of the anvil; then turn the iron over and you can see a clear round space where the punch tried to come through. Place the punch on this spot and drive it in; now place the iron over the hole in,the anvil and drive the punch through. This will make a clean-cut, smooth hole, whereas if it had been punched from one side only a ragged hole would have been the result. WELD IN (J. I'pset and scarf, in exactly the same manner, the ends of the.irons that are to be united. Now see that you have a clean fire, that is, a fire with no clinkers or old burned-out. ashes at the bottom. Have a good bed of coal burning nicely and a supply of coal closely banke<l about it. Do not allow any fresh coal to come in contact with your irons. Put the iron in the fire face side down, that is, the scarf side down. Have the burning coal both above and below the irons. Have your hammer lying at the right-hand end of the anvil, with the face side away from you, and be sure that you know exactly where it is, so that you can pick it up without having to look for it. Then bring the pieces of iron out of the forge and place the scarf sides together. Use the hammer quickly and lightly while turn the

now connected pieces over and over. Having united them roughly, return the union to the forge aiul heat to a melting heat (which is recognised by the white glow and movement of tiie surface iron particles) • then take out and finish welding. A weld like this is frequently stronger than any other part of the iron.