Whats a bored knifemaker to do.....
Got a repair done on a friends knife, finished epoxying handles on a commission knife and handles epoxied on the crazy zombie knife I am building. Got a little bored while waiting on everything to setup, so whats a knife maker to do when he has a forge, 5 lb coffee can of lead #9 shot and two mini Lodge cast iron skillets, make ingots that's what.....
Been wanting to make them for awhile, need them as counter weights on a wood and two metal chips/sparks shields for the bench. The 4 1/2" angle grinder really makes a mess in the garage when cutting metal strips and the two new sheet metal chip guards are for the new milling machine. Being limited on bench space I can't anchor them in place, so they need to be movable to clear space or adjust position as needed. The ingots placed on top of the 1x4" sections of wood on the back of the shields will keep them in place.
Even with the propane valve turned down the forge made quick work of the lead shot, considering I could only get 85% of the Lodge skillet in the opening, it melted quick. At times I had to move fast to keep up but once the thick metal cooling pads started heating things slowed a little, only took a few minutes turn around time from filling, melting, cooling to refilling and back into the forge. Still have a couple of inches of shot in the coffee can and two full bags but I think I have enough for now, actually, too many but better to have too many than not enough.
Gunner
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41 Mags rule, Baers rock!