Almost Practical Blacksmithing

[gfish]

Saturday I finally hung the coathook I forged on the first day.

A month or two ago the handle on our refrigerator broke. Not a big deal, but I wanted to fix it. Since it was cheap plastic crap, fixing was out of the question. So instead I decided I would replace it, with something designed a bit more for the ages. Like, say, solid, hand-forged steel. Today I finished it.



Tricky work for a n00b, but I'm quite pleased with the result, and it was an excellent learning exercise. Onward and upward.

Comments

[ashley-y.livejournal.com]

Is it attached at the bottom or just at the top?

[9thmoon.livejournal.com]

That is beautiful. Will you make a matching style for the freezer on top?

[brithistorian.livejournal.com]

It looks great! Two thumbs up!

Cool!

[mdlbear]

But watch out; now you're going to be expected to make everything else match...

[sistawendy.livejournal.com]

Dead cool! If I let Her Nibs see this I bet she'll want one. Or maybe something plant-related.

[rollick.livejournal.com]

That is damned nifty. Though I too instantly wondered if you're going to make a matching one for the freezer.

[zaggers.livejournal.com]

that's really cool!

[damiana-swan.livejournal.com]

Wow, very nice work!

[gfish.livejournal.com]

Bottom and top, using the same mounting holes as the original. I was afraid they wouldn't be overly solid, but I'm pretty sure the door hinges would fail before the handle would come off.

[gfish.livejournal.com]

I'm thinking about it. There isn't a lot of clearance between the two, though, and this one is a lot thicker than the original. And it would be hard to make the freezer handle symmetrical, given how it attaches at the top. The only decent looking way I can think to do it requires forge welding as a step, and so far I've been unable to get my forge hot enough for that.

[gfish.livejournal.com]

I'm not completely adverse to doing projects for other people...

[randomdreams.livejournal.com]

That is rocking wonderful and a great illustration of how useful it is to have a forge around.

You know what might be pretty for next time, is to use a piece of square stock, like 1/2" square, which is wonderful to work with, and heat the center section and twist it. It gives a beautiful look and is wonderful to touch, and would add a nice extra touch to your handle.

I think a set of forged handles for the cabinets/drawers in the kitchen would be a great project because you'd get a lot of practice at reproduceability, AND they'd look just incredible.

[gfish.livejournal.com]

If I'd had some on hand, I likely would have. Right now I'm mostly using welding stock from Lowe's. I have a whole bunch of nice 1" and 1/2" square stock now, but it's coated in a lead based primer that I have yet to deal with. That's my next project, if only to be able to use the larger sections to make some hardie tools. Using a cutoff chisel by yourself leaves a lot to be desired.

Actually, it's probably for the best I used round. I noticed as I was drawing out the spirally bit that it was twisting in the process. That would have been pretty ugly on square stock.

[maribou]

Neat!