It wouldn't be a complete Sunday morning without a cup of coffee and an episode of HOOK OF THE WEEK. Another great hook thanks for taking the time and sharing.
I always messed up forge welding before I watched you. I always hit it hard, probably because I watched people clobber their work in power hammers, but the gentle tap that you taught me works - and I can do most of the "basic" skills now. It's more than a technique - it's an attitude. Helps remind me that I started smithing to relax. Thank you!
Caught you in the suggested vids while watching big dog forge and you did not disappoint. I am wanting to start smithing just looking for a decent anvil. Plan on binge watching your vids to learn more. Thank you for your in depth explanations.
Hello John I worked today as Santa at the Rammelsberg Mine in Goslar I am very glad to see your hook of the week when i returned home Very inspiriering and out of your hands all the welding and forging is very teachfull Go on Good bless you Yours Frank
Superb Lesson in apply multiple skills and practice again. 32 Great Hooks so far in this series. How do you dream them all up John ?. For me HOOK Of The Week is Highlight of the week. Thanks for all you teach us out here and set us the challenge to try these projects.
That one really came out nice. I blew the final picture up as much as I could to look at the forge welds. Surely passes my inspection. I'd be proud to hang it in my home.
HOTW is always instructional, and I often learn something unexpected, like what that white stuff is that keeps appearing on my "finished" work! Now I know it's the borax I was using for forge welds, and now I know to soak it in vinegar to get it off. Thanks!
John, I enjoy all the hooks of the week but this one was great. The final hook is very interesting but the concept opens up possibilities I was not thinking about. Thanks for another great demo.
It's always good to see small stuff forge welded in a gas forge. I've used a gas forge for years and have made a lot of Damascus for knives. High carbon steel has a lower welding temp than mild carbon which I suspect you were using. I do know that it's time to re-line my small forge and possibly upgrade my blower. Great video.
.....with music to match the motif no less! With all the proud LSU and Saints fans 🏈coming out of the woodwork I expect these to sell quite well on Etsy. Next we need a hook that supports the Denver broncos!🐴
A very elegant hook. It was also another one where you could see all sorts of other uses as an element. I think a couple of decorative head nails would be the way to fasten it ; would set the finial off.
@@glenndarilek520 but he has the wholesomeness and calm, some say when he leaves the shop his perm can be seen as he also wears kind of open button up shirts
Fantastic hook. I absolutely LOVE this series. It's one of the most unique, and creative I've ever seen. This one had a very good technique involved, and one that can be applied to loads of things. Axes obviously came to mind, but other decorative elements for sure. I know a lot of people say that this is their favorite series, and am wondering.... Any chance of you making merchandise based on this video series?
John, thanks, a great project with a few good elements to refine skills and a project that looks very good, I will try to make several that look similar for a coat rack. Have a happy Christmas and a safe New Year. Best Regards Stephen
#HookMeUp! I look forward every Sunday to these episodes. I don't smith but love to watch you at your craft. Thanks so much for sharing what you do. Have you thought about revisiting the basketweave hook for HOTW?
Rather like the implication of a fleur-de-lie in this design. The fleur-de-lie is a strongly used symbol when it comes to my home city of Louisville and my recent Alma mater (graduated on the 13th) The University of Louisville. Beautiful hook for sure. Thanks for including this one in the HotW series. Saved for future reference.
I remember your bucket was empty, Today I don't see the one of several you are using out of, I do how the plastic buckets fall apart so thinking might be why you not on the work table. Thanks the teaching helps but I don't get into my forge lately Having to remodeling upgrade on a new for me 1995 Ranger truck should be a nice little truck to have around Thanks John Switzer I hope to fire up the ribbon burner I built in a slow build last fall.
nice hook thanks for the video .disclaimer not about your content just the youtube ads. i let them play through to support you usually just scroll through the comments while they play. then youtube puts a 13 minute ad in the middle of your video . not enough comments to take up that time .so open another page while that plays through. youtube maybe punishing me for immediately skipping the guy telling me about the soap my mommy bought me . sorry for the rant .again thanks for your content
I learn so much from your channel. Thank you. I have a question about “upsetting”. I notice when you do this operation, it involves hitting the workpiece head on to thicken the metal. It seems that this process pits the smith’s arm against the power of the hammer strike. It’s a pretty unfair competition! Have you ever considered making a specialized set of tongs for upsetting? The tongs would have a piece of steel extending perpendicular to the tongs, close to the boss, so that when you go to upset a piece, you rest this metal finger against the side of the anvil. That way, the tongs catch and hold fast against the anvil when the hammer hits the workpiece. The smith would still need to grasp the workpiece firmly in the tongs, but the hammer blows would be absorbed more by the workpiece, and less by the smith’s elbow. I’ve looked all over but never seen such a thing. What do you think?
Thank you for yet another entertaining Sunday morning hook. Good fun... I have not forge welded yet, seems ambitious for me this early in the learning stage. I wonder if you forge is full of borax, I wonder if that has an adverse effect on the lining. Good times... Thanks...
John, I came back (a year later!) to re-look at this hook. Question....at about 9:30 to 10:00 minutes on the video, the hook appears to be about white to v. bright yellow. Approximately what would have been the real color? Yellow, orange, red? Picking your brain here a year later, sorry.
Speaking of 20 mule team borax have you seen the video series Engels coach shop did on remaking the borax wagons for the 20 mule team very interesting a lot of black smithing and wood working
Borax sold for industry makes good flux, if thats where your getting 100% of course i think the 20 mule team borax is just plain borax as well, no soap
John: I really look forward to Sunday mornings for Hook of the Week. The 3/8 inch stock, welded and forged was very different and, as soon as we get back from our Christmas vacation, I'm going to give that a shot. One QUESTION: What do you recommend I use to insert on the floor of my Gas Forge to protect the liner from the Flux and distortion (destruction) of the forge liner?? Thanks for your assistance.
@@BlackBearForge Thanks John: I have 1 inch Fire Brick and will use that. I appreciate your response. I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a HEALTHY, Happy New Year. PS. You new Trikes look Great.
Nice hook of the week .I have a question about coal and how many hours of forging you could get out of a 70 pound bag.I built a wood forge and it works great also have a majestic propane forge .coal is 45 bucks a bag here plus shipping .just like to try it.
John. The Kevlar Gloves from Carolina at Piels, do you purchase Jumbo or Large..?? I see Jumbos available, not certain of size. I know you're busy. Please respond when you have time . Thank you. Charlie
@@BlackBearForge John: I have found that Ken's Custom Iron lists the same Carolina Kevlar Gloves in Large. Piel lists the Mens Gloves as Jumbo. I guess I'll just order a pair from Piel in Large and hope they fit sufficiently. Thank you very much for your response. Best Wishes, Charlie
Awesome hook John, enjoyed the welding part. Question: How much does your anvil weigh? It looks very large on video or maybe its just the angle in the camera?
You are the Bob Ross of my metal work world. thankyou
It wouldn't be a complete Sunday morning without a cup of coffee and an episode of HOOK OF THE WEEK. Another great hook thanks for taking the time and sharing.
I say ditto but I don’t get time until lunch on Mondays. 👍.
Hard to believe it's been 32 weeks already 👍👍👍👍👍
I still enjoy these series. Thank you john for continuing to come up with awsome hooks
I always messed up forge welding before I watched you. I always hit it hard, probably because I watched people clobber their work in power hammers, but the gentle tap that you taught me works - and I can do most of the "basic" skills now. It's more than a technique - it's an attitude. Helps remind me that I started smithing to relax. Thank you!
I’m glad the videos helped.
Very advanced hook.... the plot thickens. lol Love it
Caught you in the suggested vids while watching big dog forge and you did not disappoint. I am wanting to start smithing just looking for a decent anvil. Plan on binge watching your vids to learn more. Thank you for your in depth explanations.
Glad you enjoyed it
Good stuff, now I really need to practice my forge welding, only been marginal so far. Thanks John.
This a a neat way to get practice for the andirons. Your're a genius.
Thanks
Hello John
I worked today as Santa at the Rammelsberg Mine in Goslar
I am very glad to see your hook of the week when i returned home
Very inspiriering and out of your hands all the welding and forging is very teachfull
Go on
Good bless you
Yours Frank
Superb Lesson in apply multiple skills and practice again. 32 Great Hooks so far in this series. How do you dream them all up John ?. For me HOOK Of The Week is Highlight of the week. Thanks for all you teach us out here and set us the challenge to try these projects.
Yay! It’s time for hook of the week!!
That hook looks great! 👍👍👍
Thank you for the smile you hook of the week generates on my face each week. Keep up the inspirational work.
Great hookups again John, really liked the bit about the white Borax residue and how to remove it. Well done again :)
I look forward to all your videos. Thank you.
That one really came out nice. I blew the final picture up as much as I could to look at the forge welds. Surely passes my inspection. I'd be proud to hang it in my home.
Thank you again John your videos truly inspire ....I look forward to these Sunday videos every week!
Nice hook, Enjoyed.
That was great to watch as always! Thank you and God Bless you sir!
HOTW is always instructional, and I often learn something unexpected, like what that white stuff is that keeps appearing on my "finished" work! Now I know it's the borax I was using for forge welds, and now I know to soak it in vinegar to get it off. Thanks!
I loved the way you made this hook. It's a simple hook but you made it worth with your way of making it. Love ur way of thinking👍👏👏
John, I enjoy all the hooks of the week but this one was great. The final hook is very interesting but the concept opens up possibilities I was not thinking about. Thanks for another great demo.
Ty so much for all you do. My son 15 and i are getting into forging he loves your you tube
It's always good to see small stuff forge welded in a gas forge. I've used a gas forge for years and have made a lot of Damascus for knives. High carbon steel has a lower welding temp than mild carbon which I suspect you were using. I do know that it's time to re-line my small forge and possibly upgrade my blower. Great video.
There is so much detail in this hook, it looks great!
Grate Hook John ,A bit of extra skill level in this one.so thanks for upping the challenge.
That's a great hook build! A good demonstation of different forging techniques.
Nice forge welds! The hook turned out great!
Thanks
.....with music to match the motif no less! With all the proud LSU and Saints fans 🏈coming out of the woodwork I expect these to sell quite well on Etsy. Next we need a hook that supports the Denver broncos!🐴
I love hook of the week but really love this hook going to make two of these today or maybe I should say try to make two
I love hook of the week keep it up as long as you can
A very elegant hook. It was also another one where you could see all sorts of other uses as an element. I think a couple of decorative head nails would be the way to fasten it ; would set the finial off.
Another great hook John thanks
Hey John, another fantastic hook of the week. Thanks for sharing with us.
enjoy watching you, just started on finding and making my own forge and anvil. thanks for the videos
I have learned so much from your techniques on hook of the week, keep them coming.
Beautiful hook
Another great hook! Thanks for the content 👍
Another great hook of the week!
Oh yeah, another iron bob ross video to enlighten our weekend!
John still does not have the Bob Ross subdued talking voice yet. Hard to do with a gas forge blasting. 😊
@@glenndarilek520 but he has the wholesomeness and calm, some say when he leaves the shop his perm can be seen as he also wears kind of open button up shirts
Good job John. Take care n God bless.
Fantastic hook. I absolutely LOVE this series. It's one of the most unique, and creative I've ever seen. This one had a very good technique involved, and one that can be applied to loads of things. Axes obviously came to mind, but other decorative elements for sure. I know a lot of people say that this is their favorite series, and am wondering.... Any chance of you making merchandise based on this video series?
John, thanks, a great project with a few good elements to refine skills and a project that looks very good, I will try to make several that look similar for a coat rack. Have a happy Christmas and a safe New Year.
Best Regards
Stephen
Love the hook and the welding part.
I like this one👍
Awesome informational educational video experience Y'alls
#HookMeUp!
I look forward every Sunday to these episodes. I don't smith but love to watch you at your craft. Thanks so much for sharing what you do. Have you thought about revisiting the basketweave hook for HOTW?
Rather like the implication of a fleur-de-lie in this design. The fleur-de-lie is a strongly used symbol when it comes to my home city of Louisville and my recent Alma mater (graduated on the 13th) The University of Louisville. Beautiful hook for sure. Thanks for including this one in the HotW series. Saved for future reference.
Glad you enjoyed it
Nice work as usual.
I remember your bucket was empty, Today I don't see the one of several you are using out of, I do how the plastic buckets fall apart so thinking might be why you not on the work table.
Thanks the teaching helps but I don't get into my forge lately
Having to remodeling upgrade on a new for me 1995 Ranger truck should be a nice little truck to have around
Thanks John Switzer I hope to fire up the ribbon burner I built in a slow build last fall.
I'm not working out of any one bucket at this point. So I chose what to use out of any of them
Great looking project. Have you had any time for the ribbon burner build?
nice hook thanks for the video .disclaimer not about your content just the youtube ads. i let them play through to support you usually just scroll through the comments while they play. then youtube puts a 13 minute ad in the middle of your video . not enough comments to take up that time .so open another page while that plays through. youtube maybe punishing me for immediately skipping the guy telling me about the soap my mommy bought me . sorry for the rant .again thanks for your content
I learn so much from your channel. Thank you.
I have a question about “upsetting”. I notice when you do this operation, it involves hitting the workpiece head on to thicken the metal. It seems that this process pits the smith’s arm against the power of the hammer strike. It’s a pretty unfair competition! Have you ever considered making a specialized set of tongs for upsetting? The tongs would have a piece of steel extending perpendicular to the tongs, close to the boss, so that when you go to upset a piece, you rest this metal finger against the side of the anvil. That way, the tongs catch and hold fast against the anvil when the hammer hits the workpiece.
The smith would still need to grasp the workpiece firmly in the tongs, but the hammer blows would be absorbed more by the workpiece, and less by the smith’s elbow.
I’ve looked all over but never seen such a thing. What do you think?
It sounds very specialized and would probably not be just right more often than not. Using the vise is a good way to hold material while upsetting
Black Bear Forge
I see. The vise sounds like a good idea.
I like that, forge welding doesnt always have 2 b a big production.
Acid Bath ...what a band.
Thank you for yet another entertaining Sunday morning hook. Good fun... I have not forge welded yet, seems ambitious for me this early in the learning stage. I wonder if you forge is full of borax, I wonder if that has an adverse effect on the lining. Good times... Thanks...
Try not to think of forge welding as an advanced skill, that just makes it harder
@@BlackBearForge Good point.
John, I came back (a year later!) to re-look at this hook. Question....at about 9:30 to 10:00 minutes on the video, the hook appears to be about white to v. bright yellow. Approximately what would have been the real color? Yellow, orange, red? Picking your brain here a year later, sorry.
Probably a lemon yellow
@@BlackBearForge OK, thanks! I realize that the camera color response is not true color for the bright incandescant colors, so that really helps.
As always, Love your work and presentation. Quick question... what do you use for a pickling solution? Thanks!
I have some hydrochloric acid I have been using for years. But vinegar works
Oh boy hook of the day forge welded. Looks great.
Now did you use vinagar bathe as your acid or something else?
🙏 Blessings be now
Crawford out ⚒️🧙♂️
I use hydrochloric acid. I have had it for years, but its getting pretty weak. Vinegar works but is even slower
Okay cool 👍. I have questions on your borax I can't find that type of borax but I have a 100% borax is that any better than soap borax
Check at Walmart .
They carry 20 mule team.
Just don't use the borax based ant poison! 🐜🐜
Speaking of 20 mule team borax have you seen the video series Engels coach shop did on remaking the borax wagons for the 20 mule team very interesting a lot of black smithing and wood working
Borax sold for industry makes good flux, if thats where your getting 100% of course i think the 20 mule team borax is just plain borax as well, no soap
John: I really look forward to Sunday mornings for Hook of the Week. The 3/8 inch stock, welded and forged was very different and, as soon as we get back from our Christmas vacation, I'm going to give that a shot. One QUESTION: What do you recommend I use to insert on the floor of my Gas Forge to protect the liner from the Flux and distortion (destruction) of the forge liner?? Thanks for your assistance.
My current forge has a hard fire brick floor and its holding up very well. Otherwise you can try a kiln shelf
@@BlackBearForge Thanks John: I have 1 inch Fire Brick and will use that. I appreciate your response. I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a HEALTHY, Happy New Year. PS. You new Trikes look Great.
Nice hook of the week .I have a question about coal and how many hours of forging you could get out of a 70 pound bag.I built a wood forge and it works great also have a majestic propane forge .coal is 45 bucks a bag here plus shipping .just like to try it.
For me that much coal is probably 3 -4 days. Propane is much more affordable in our area
John. The Kevlar Gloves from Carolina at Piels, do you purchase Jumbo or Large..?? I see Jumbos available, not certain of size. I know you're busy. Please respond when you have time . Thank you. Charlie
I buy the mens. I wonder if they’ve changed their sizing.
@@BlackBearForge John: I have found that Ken's Custom Iron lists the same Carolina Kevlar Gloves in Large. Piel lists the Mens Gloves as Jumbo. I guess I'll just order a pair from Piel in Large and hope they fit sufficiently. Thank you very much for your response. Best Wishes, Charlie
Thanks for keeping ( hook of the week). Any tips on pricing.
Search my videos, I think I did a video on the subject a while back
Title something like/ how to price your work. Maybe.
Which acid did you use for the acid bath?
I have some old well used hydrochloric acid, but vinegar will work
The ragin cagin blacksmith
what kind of acid and how strong?
Not real strong. Vinegar will work
Good Sunday Morning John, do you have your Christmas shopping done yet?
Shopping? Blacksmiths custom make Christmas presents!
Awesome hook John, enjoyed the welding part. Question: How much does your anvil weigh? It looks very large on video or maybe its just the angle in the camera?
308 pounds
With your forge blasting at full capacity, do you ever worry about carbon monoxide?
No, its part of why I don't try to completely seal up the shop.
How can i send some cash to help you out. I no this takes alot of time
Thank you very much for the offer.
John Switzer
PO Box 4
Beulah, CO 81023
PayPal www.paypal.me/BlackBearForge
🐾🔥⚒👍