Forging an axe eye drift - basic blacksmithing
Following the recent videos on making an axe I have had numerous questions concerning the axe eye drift. today, lets take a look at forging the drift used in making the axe eye.
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Sucker rod comparison chart www.bladesmithsforum.com/inde...
The following list provides just a few resources to help you find supplies and equipment for blacksmithing.
www.piehtoolco.com/
www.centaurforge.com/
www.blacksmithsdepot.com/
www.blacksmithbolt.com/
www.oldworldanvils.com/
www.nimbaanvils.com/
fontaninianvilandtool.com/
www.abana.org/
www.mcmaster.com
kensironstore.com/
Blacksmithing and related activities can be hazardous. These videos are not a substitute for competent professional instruction. Your safety is your sole responsibility. Always use appropriate safety equipment including eye and ear protection when working in the shop. Follow manufactures safety guidelines for the use of all equipment. In the event something shown in one of these videos seems unsafe, it is up to you to make the appropriate changes to protect yourself.
These basic tooling video are my favorites. When my classes get done with their work early we sometimes watch you make something. So far the kids are pretty into it.
I am glad they are helpful. I enjoy them, but fear they start all seeming the same.
⁹
Thank you for not using power tools and doing everything by hand, because most people watching these are just starting out and don't have a power hammer. The way you're doing these videos is much appreciated.
You are welcome. Although I am sure there will be some videos featuring power hammers and presses for those that are interested as well as to save my arm on occasion.
Sir, you never talk too long! Your talking along with the video is how folks learn. I love both the hands on forging and the explanation of the procedure. Thank you!!!!
Outstanding! Thank you Black Bear Forge!
Another informational video! Thank you John!
Love your vids, very informative and interesting, thanks .
Thank you for the information. 👍
Thanks so much for the info.
I really enjoyed this video, thanks.
Enjoyed that. Thanks John.
Very informative thanks
Great job thanks for the information very informative
I have learned so much from you, thank you.
Thanks ,priceless ,real cool upset block and tooling.
Thanks for posting john
Thanks for sharing your knowledge
Great tutorial John. Thank you for sharing...
Thank you again for you knowledge enjoyed this video
Thanks John for the video
Thanks John!
Thanks a ton! Great info! Headed to the forge to see what I learned!
:D Love it! I am still working on my early tools. Thanks for all the vids!
fab tutorial.. many thanks
Thanks for the lesson of the day.
Thanks John! Guess I'll have to make my own drifts from now on😁👍
Thanks for the video ive been thinking about making an axe
As always i really enjoy the amount of detail in your videos. Thank you very much for sharing your experience. Keep on keeping on.
Another excellent video on the basics of Blacksmithing. Thanks John, you are awesome.
Thanks for a very complete discussion of the subject. All that's left is for me to start firing the forge.
I like how you can explain and show the details on making axe drifts
You go through everything so clearly I can run the videos at 2x speed, still get all the info and still clearly see how it was done. Cheers for great video production and education values.
Exellent viedo and information ! Its Never a miss when I watch you viedos!
Thanks
I'm never bored with your videos!
Thanks
Thanks Professor John. great info.
im just getting into blacksmithing this was a big info video thanks
Glad you enjoyed it
Making a metal drift to match the dimensions of a wooden handle is something only a blacksmith would suggest. Great episode, thanks John!
I plan to use a piece of an old truck axle to make my drifts. Recycling old steel is a lot of interest to me.
Thanks so much for the drift video John! Will be trying a small axe pretty soon. I appreciate you giving the examples with and without the “big more expensive “ tools. A power hammer will be nice to own but as for now the basic anvil and hammer method is what I’m using and I’m ok with that. I’m learning the fundamentals of blacksmithing right and your videos have been a God send. God will bless you for it 😊
You are certainly welcome. I am glad it helps
I used a small drift for my first axe. Just from mild steel because it’s all I had but I will be making a axe drift from 4140. I only needed it once and will probably make another axe or two from it
Best video on the topic I have ever seen. Heck, that was better than the descriptions I’ve seen at hammer-ins. Thanks so much for your insights.
You're welcome
Great video. I was thinking about making some drifts to make small hatchet or hand axe after watching your videos on the small axe's. I was playing in my shop today. Made a hold down for my anvil like you and Big Dog Forge made last week. Thanks
Sounds great.
Excellent videos sir, your explanations are perfect and thorough.
Thank you
Articulate as well as very educational. Thanks very much!!!
Ha and there was me making a drift that was 12 inches long, took ages. Next one is going to be 4 inches long. Thanks for the tip.
You'll like the 12" one. They're just lots of work.
It was a hammer eye drift from high tensile bar and it took hours to upset and forge. The starting material was too narrow to start with. It ended up being just one inch wide at the top. But learned a lot from it so not all bad.
I'm a bit of a newb and I've never seen hot rasping. Wow. Gonna try that.
You have a huge set of tools to help you forge anything. It's years of work and accumulation. I really appreciate you taking the time to video record your work for us to learn. I hope colleges will realize they need to hire Master Blacksmiths and offer college courses. Currently ours do not. Thanks again.
Many years of collecting stuff
I know one college in Illinois offers it as a fine arts degree.
I know one college in Illinois offers it as a fine arts degree.
I love your workshop! (I also love your teaching style, it's really helpful to have everything explained in depth, otherwise I overthink everything)
Thank you
Thank u fore good info. I lurn mush frome u
Thanks John, this is an excellent video that did help me a lot. I was struggling with drift making. The block next to your anvil is superb. keep it up. Greetings from Holland.
I'm glad it helped
As always you are my leader as I try to follow your teachings. Thank you Sir.
Thanks John for the advice on your take of dimension on drifts ,very helpful for me . I normally make my own handles because of the way the grain runs on commercial axe ,or hammer handles you buy from the hardware store.in Ohio I can go to the lumber yard an pick out lumber with the grain running the way that I like,an cut the handle out.thanks again for insight.
Hey John. Just wondering why you chose to draw down for the narrow end of the drift into the mass of the bar rather than drawing the tip down. Was it because you got the best upset at the free end for target size? It was not apparent to the viewer of the video.I didn't catch it in your description.
Enjoying your vids...have been looking for a "hook rule" like yours, to no avail; mind sharing the vendor? Wally
Can't say how much I appreciate all of the knowledge that you are sharing. I have always wondered why the axe heads that I have re handled were made like that. Makes a whole lot of sense.
really helpful set of guides as a greenwood worker ihave always fancied making my own carpenters axe and broadaxe for squaring timber trunks, vital info, i started on blacksmithing at school and picked up a nice old english anvil (150€) and a small original hand blower farriers forge French updraught "le mistral"(50€)!!! took the blower apart cleaned and oiled worked straight away, you are reforging my enthusiasm, thankx
I am pleased that you are enjoying the videos.
That was great John, very informative! Explanation at the end about annealing and hardening was valuable!
As always, this video was exactly what I was looking for! Thank you for sharing a little wisdom, and experience!
Glad it was helpful!
@@BlackBearForge So far, everything I've seen from you, has been very helpful. You're my go to guy on here. I'm a highly skilled tradesman, 37 years under my belt; so I'm not completely in the dark. But with blacksmithing, there's a lot I need to learn, and a lot I have already learned... from you. I'm smart enough to accept knowledge when it's offered up. And the other upside is, I get to start buying NEW TOOLS😂... I've got tools for days, but this is a new endeavor, that calls for some new power tools...that I don't already have. ( I've only been forging tools, so far, and I'm addicted.) Anyway, a genuine "Thank You", to you sir!
FYI, Speaking of a "boy's axe"... I still have the axe my father bought in the 60's, and I actually like it better than the full size axe I bought myself in the 80's. It"s a Sears 5102 2-1/4 lb. (1.02kg) Boys Axe. From the top of the head to the butt is 27" (683mm). Still has the original painted handle.
This video contained some upsetting content :) really bulked up that sucker rod. Another great video/project
Thanks
Newbie…. Being the sponge… but you are quite informative and thank you
Glad it was helpful!
John, excellent video on making the drifts. I have been somewhat aprehensive about making any, but your video has encouraged me to give them a try. In your commentary, you mentioned that you were posting some information on the composition/specs of sucker rods. I have replayed the video looking for it and searched the links in your introduction, but can't find it. Help key pressed......LOL
Sorry, I forgot to add it. I will look for it this evening.
Here it is
Thanks for the sucker rod link. :-)
I don't comment enough on your truly excellent videos. You have really helped me tremendously. Your videos are well planned out, thorough and just a pleasure to watch. My girlfriend will even watch and she does not work any metal. I like the new closer camera angles at the anvil. In some you might try raising the angle a bit, not a top view, just a little higher. I appreciate your explanations of some of the details and alternate ways one might do something. I think that in telling of the different approaches, I personally get a better understanding of the end goal. Thank you, thank you, thank you! You might not realize it, but you are a rock star. Keep it up!
I appreciate the comments. I will look into raising the camera angle, but it may require a new way to mount the camera
Just caught this older video. Fascinating to watch you work the metal into shape. Thx...
So much good information in this video. I pick up something new everyone I watch it. Thanks again, John.
thankyou John, another fantastic video mate. it's interesting and great to see, as we grow as budding smiths, you too grow and flourish in front of the camera. you're a natural! i made a drift a while back for set hammer handles (i need a flatter) out of a 1" diameter stabilizer from a car. really tough to forge and i haven't heat treated it, but there's not even a mark on it after three hard uses. it even turned dull red one time! just another option i guess. my next will be a peice of 1' 3/8" jackhammer bit. this video is the best I've watched. thanks again mate, til next time
Thanks, there are days I feel like I have never been in front of the camera and have no idea what to say.
Hey John thank for another awsome video I learn alot from you. Can you post a Link to the sucker rod chart you where refering to. Sorry if you already have I must of looked over it.
www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiBuZTO4b3aAhVD5YMKHb7kBIEQjRx6BAgAEAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bladesmithsforum.com%2Findex.php%3F%2Ftopic%2F12109-oil-field-steel-and-rods%2F&psig=AOvVaw3_9bGqV7V__as9D1S9Ce2Y&ust=1523932629003321
Black Bear Forge thank you John
Muito linda tomahawk show.
Thank you for making these videos, sir. They help young guys like me who want to blacksmith gain knowledge to put into practice. God bless and keep it up!
I am glad it helps
Love your channel, but something I would love you to cover is quenching oils. I know you said No to used motor oil. I have seen it said canola Oil was not a great option even though many use it. What would but a fast quench oil that could be had around home with out buying high $ oils.
Thats a good question and one that I may not be qualified to answer with any degree of accuracy.
Could you show the hold down piece being made or where i could buy one? Love your channel !!
perhaps in this video kzhead.info/sun/ZKmdpJuJfpxpmYE/bejne.html
I would have thought that the heat from the drift would have ruined the rasps temper? I had no idea you could do this "hot rasping " . Thanks for the info
You would have to set the rasp on the hot work and leave it in one place for several minutes to transfer enough heat.
i like a lot of your video but i haven't notice you use a tire iron ,would a tire iron make a good drift?
Have you made a video on how to mount a leg vice? I just got one and want too do it right.
I may talk about it some inthis video - kzhead.info/sun/ateGiMyPpGhrnHk/bejne.html but I am also planning on a new vise in the near future and will talk about mounting in that video. Probably be mid April though.
you are always talking about Annealing and heat treating, Could you do a video to show what you are talking about . you talk about Vermiculite so I would really like to see what your set up is like
The vermiculite is just vermiculite in a 5 gallon metal bucket. You bury your work in it to cool it as slowly as possible. Heat treating has been covers in numerous videos here is a playlist with some of those videos kzhead.info/sun/msaJg72wnKqQjI0/bejne.html
Also John been meaning to ask what is that fan with the decorative leaf blades for that's hanging on your Kennedy tool box?
That is a repair for a little windmill
This is the first video of yours I have seen, very enjoyable, my question is what's Sucker Rod?
It is connected to a Jack pump, like an oil well pump. and drives the in ground pump.
I am envious of all my smithing friends who live in oil drilling territories. They always brag about how easy it is to come by scrap sucker rod. The stuff doesn’t exist in the Northeast.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucker_rod Ask around, not terribly hard to find.
Thank you sir for answering my questions, great video and great instructions as always thank you. I have to ask though sir, what would you charge for that drift if you would sell it?
I suppose $30
Black Bear Forge ok sir I’ll get back with you I am interested in it for sure
Another fantastic video! I look forward to every one. I'm dying to know what the story is with the leaf bladed fan on the wall behind you. Was that a project in progress, or a repair waiting to happen?
That is a repair for a neighbors little decorative windmill
Black Bear Forge ahh OK.
John, where do you purchase your scale the very one your using in this vid. It looks like a good size for larger hands. ...perhaps a vid on layout tools would be in the future...maybe you already made one...I need yo paw through your list of vids Thanks William
There is one on that hook rule. Just search black bear forge hook rule
We get your drift...lol!! No shame is recycling steel...blacksmiths have been doing it since the beginning!
In this video at 12:10 we have a great closeup of your anvil. It looks like your anvil has a different piece of steel that makes up the surface, (maybe 3/8"-1/2" inch thick.) Is this the case? Would it be a hardened piece of steel to improve the long-term endurance and keeping the surface flat?
While those old forged anvils did have hardened steel faces welded on, that isn't what you're seeing here. Someone had used hard facing rod to repair the edges at one point and just didn't get good penetration around the edge.
This video show just how physical blacksmithing can be! I think I’d rather make roses, that just me.
Thats a good thing about blacksmithing. There's a style and size of work to suit everyone
Thought I wanted some sucker rod until I watched John work this. Stuff is stubborn!!
Most higher carbon steels can be quite tough.
What is that block called to your right in the video?
Do you sell tools is my question at this point for the green horn? Saying at the moment I want to build rail road spike knifes, hatchets and tomahawks and which of these item are best for the beginner?
I sell tools from time to time, but it isn't a big part of my business. There do seem to be more and more small shops specializing in selling tools for other blacksmiths. As a beginner I really recommend starting with simple items like hooks, utensils and fireplace tools. Then start working on making your own tools such as punches, chisels and tongs. That will help develop your skills and introduce the hardening and tempering process before getting into knives and hatchets that require more skills.
I understand the metallurgy of hardening your drift, I just have a hard time understanding why you need to go through all those extra steps when the drift is used when the axe is at forging temperature and will move around the steel. If you use mild steel aside from mushrooming, I don't see that much draw back. Thank you for your thoroughness, I will make one and have my own experience. Ty
Mild steel drifts are OK for limited use. But they don't hold up well over time. A hardened drift will get tempered way back in use, but it's still harder than mild steel and will provide years of use.
Hello john. Just wondering is the eye of an axe tapper more on the the bottom of the eye or the top. Or should it have the same tapper. Thanks Mariano
I prefer them to taper equally so that the narrow portion is centered in the eye. With the exception being a removable handle, in which case the taper is all from the top so the handle can slide in until it fits tight.
Where do you buy your tool steel? I get most of my steel from the salvage section of altitude here in Denver, but they do not have tool steel.
Most regular suppliers don't bother with tool steel. I buy most of mine online from McMaster Carr. It isn't cheap but they ship quickly and have always had what I needed in stock (assuming it is a type and size they carry). www.mcmaster.com/#steel/=1cfcuto
i need a hammer drift made can u do it?
Hola buenos día guiero aprende asé todo eso
Linda tomahawk
I really like that cross peen you use. Do you sell them?
That is a hammer made by William Bastas
What kind of oil do you recommend for quenching a blade? Also, what kind of steel is best for making a drift?
I buy commercial quenching oil. However many people like olive oil. Motor oil has to many impurities and should be avoided.
For drifts I like S7, but 4140 or 5160 are excellent choices.
I was wondering if you could make a drift from something like 0.5''x1.5'' or bigger peace of steel just by remowing material. Can someone tell me if this is possible. I have access to a forge but I don't really have anything to make a drift from.
Sure, grinding or machining is always an option
Is it possible to carburize a mild steel drift (Clickspring did this for making files) for increased durability? I have lots of mild steel and unknown steel, kinda hard to get my hands on tool steel however. Just nobody in Finland seems interested in selling small stock, going to the machine shops and buying off cuts resulted in lots of mystery metal and they told me it's mostly mild steel. Local junk yard closed this year to letting people go in and scroung the heaps and buy scrap by the kg, feels like a noose is tightening...
It is possible, but I have never found it to be as good as starting with better material. A better option for mild steel is what people call super quench. Its a special mix that provides a quench fast enough to add to hardness to mild steel. You should be able t find the recipe online.
Will that drift fit in the hardy hole of the anvil?
I don't know if this one fir that anvil or not. But there are ways around drifting into the hard hole. Such as opening you leg vise just the right distance or using a swage block with an assortment of holes.
Is an old axel decent enough steel for hardy tools, drifts etc?
It should be. Axels are pretty tough material and are generally a medium carbon.
Black Bear Forge ok thank you
One question I have is couldn't I upset it, then work the steel in reverse so I can leave a decent amount of the round bar on the top end of the eye drift? If I were to do it that way and taper out the end thinner and work my way back with that work? Because I know with an axe handle drift I'm not trying to push the drift all the way through, I want the top of the eye on the top of the head to be a little bit narrower because I don't use Hardy tools too much and I'd like to be able to drift it by hand and if I could leave a decent piece of round bar top end of the drift itself I wouldn't have to try to hold the drift with a pair of pliers or tongs and I could just hold the handle then I would be making also with the heat transfer even though I'm dipping it into a 5 gallon bucket of oil to keep the drift cool I still get a lot of heat transfer on my other drifts and I usually we're just a pair of work gloves I don't really like using welding gloves over the work gloves which is what I end up having to do with the dress I have that don't have a decent sized handle on the end
There are many was to approach any given task. Whether to draw out heavy stock vs upsetting smaller stock is just a matter of what materials you have on hand, what tooling is available and how you prefer to work. Most of my drifts are made long so I can hand hold the struck end. But I also have a power hammer to work big stock.
Does it matter what hot rasp you buy? Do you have a preference?
I only use old worn out farriers rasps. Frequently free for the asking or at least very cheap I have been using the same one for years.
Do you or anyone out there know what the cutting edge for like a dozer blade or loader bucket is made from. And the blades of a commercial wood chipper are made of I have several of both.
I suspect the dozer blade is a high wear steel. Tough stuff to work with. I have no idea on the chipper blades.
Black Bear Forge would it be good for tool making. Chisels punches drifts and such. If it's what you think it is. I'm going to thro the chipper blades to the side for now
The tools would probably be good but it is a whole lot of work to forge
Black Bear Forge thank you sir
Done some research the chipper blades are A8 tool steel.
Could you use a automotive axle
Yes, its generally pretty good material for this type of tool
@@BlackBearForge awesome thank you