Part 14

_To temper the blade:_ The blade is tempered by heating it on a coke fire. Place the back of the blade down, on a piece of flat iron. The iron will heat red hot. The iron under the knife prevents the flame striking the blade and heating it unevenly, in spots, as it were. When the blade is red hot plunge it into a bath made of linseed oil. Take it out of the oil and polish it. Use the piece of iron the blade was heated on to draw the temper. This hot iron is put on the anvil, the back of the knife edgewise is placed on the iron and moved forward and backward to insure a uniform heat. As soon as the straw colour appears take out any buckle or bend caused by the hardening. Place the other side of the blade on the anvil. A few quick, sharp blows with the peen of the hammer will straighten the blade. Continue the tempering until the purple colour shows. The blade should be tempered so that a very smooth, sharp file will just cut it when rubbed over the surface. Place the blade in the handle and rivet it in place, polish it, and then grind.

ORNAMENTAL IRON WORK

XXVIII

PROCESSES, ANDIRONS, FIRE TOOLS

The handling of wrought iron when making ornamental work often brings in, besides the usual smithing operations, the processes of embossing, impressing, engraving, etching, inlaying of copper or brass, grinding, and polishing. Embossing is done by heating the piece and raising the metal from the back into an iron above the surface.

Impressing is done by cutting an impression in an iron block and driving the metal into it.

Engraving consists of putting the design upon the iron with a diamond point chisel or any sharp tool, with the aid of a hammer. When the design is cut out by means of acid the process is called etching. It is done in this way: The surface to be etched is first covered with a layer of wax. The design to be left is scratched through the wax into the metal by using a very sharp tool. This lays bare the surface of the metal to be etched. The acid or etching fluid is then applied. When sufficiently etched the acid is removed from the surface of the metal by means of turpentine. This stops the action of the acid immediately.

Inlaying is hammering one metal into the surface of another. It is done by cutting a groove in the surface of one metal and hammering the other metal into this groove.

Impressing, engraving, etching, inlaying, etc., are used on fine pieces of ornamental work, such as door knockers, drawer pulls, door handles, sword blades, ornamental hinges, fire sets, etc., or on small pieces of work such as initials or coats of arms, etc.

_Splitting of iron or soft steel:_ Splitting iron or soft steel is done for many pieces of work. All solid rings, rings without welds, handles for carrying ladles in foundries of all kinds are made in this way. Most of our ornamental work, where we require two pieces of iron running from a stem in opposite directions, calls for this process.

We are now going to make a pair of andirons. The process of splitting iron comes in with this problem.

_Pair of andirons:_ It is always best to make a sketch of the large pieces of ornamental work to be made, in order that they may have the proper proportion to their setting and bear the right relation to their surroundings. For instance, a grill made from either wrought iron or soft steel must fit the opening when finished, iron gates must fit space for which they are intended, yet not be too tall or too short to be in good proportion to their setting, etc. Andirons must fit into the fireplace and occupy the space so as to give the eye a sense of fitness and proportion to the whole hearth. This sketch shows a pair of andirons that can be made suitable for any size hearth. No inlaying, etching, etc., is used upon this work, the only decoration being the hammer marks left by the peen of the hammer. Andirons are much used in country homes where log fires are in use. They can be made of iron or brass, and coal or wood may be used on a hearth fitted out with a pair.

_Stock:_ One piece soft steel, 1-1/2 × 1-1/2 × 20 ins. Two pieces, 7/8 in. square, 9 ins. long. Two pieces, 7/8 in. square, 14 ins. long. Two pieces, 7/8 in. square, 20 ins. long. One piece 3/4-in. square iron. One piece 1 × 1/4 × 6 ins. flat iron.

_Directions:_ Take the 20-in. bar and split it 10 ins. To do this rub a piece of chalk on the two faces of the bar. This makes clear any marking put on the surface. With the square mark off 10 ins. from one end. Now with a pair of dividers set at 3/4 in. run along the bar with one leg of the dividers on the outer edge to the 10-in. mark. Do this on both faces. Now mark on this centre line with a cold chisel. Put the bar into the fire and heat the end of it. Take it out when red hot and put it on the anvil. The marks made by the cold chisel will show plainly. With the hot chisel cut along the lines made by the cold chisel, cutting from both sides of the piece until the bar is divided into two equal parts. This will require a number of heatings to do. The last inch should be cut from the top down. To cut this, up-end the bar on the anvil or any solid base, placing the hot chisel in the crotch of the piece and striking it with the sledge hammer. This cuts the last inch down square with the axis of the bar. The sledge hammer work is heavy and one requires a helper here. The bar is now divided into two wings. Before shaping these two wings into the base for feet the upper part of the bar should be drawn out according to the drawing and the end rounded or squared as suits the taste. The wings are now shaped up and form the two feet on the bar. (See drawing.)

_To shape the feet of the andiron:_ The drawing shows the shape and length the legs should be. To do this heat the bar at the crotch, and flatten both sides out almost straight. This prepares for shaping according to the drawing. Measure off 3 ins. from the extreme end of each leg and mark off with a centre-punch. The 3-in. lengths form the feet. Taper the iron between the centre-punch mark and the crotch so that when finished the leg should measure 1-1/2 × 5/8 in. close to the crotch, and 1 × 1/2 in. at the centre-punch mark. Repeat this on the other leg. Flatten out the feet so that they will measure 3-1/2 × 2-1/4 ins. These feet are slightly impressed. To do this place the feet over a hollow iron block and force the metal down so that the under side is raised up about 1/2 in. above the level of the foot. (See dotted lines on the drawing of the feet.) Repeat on the other side.

The leg is now ready to be bent into shape. Heat up at the crotch and then bend both legs back toward the top end at an angle of 60°. Heat again and bend the legs forward, shaping them like the drawing.

_Back part of the andiron:_ The drawing shows a short upright piece placed so as to prevent the logs rolling out in front. The 14-in. piece is welded on to the upright, as shown in the drawing, and fastened on to the andiron. The 20-in. piece is welded on to the andiron and forms the leg on which the wood is placed. These pieces are welded upon short uprights by what is called jump welds. (See description of jump welds.) The end of the iron is bent on the anvil as square bends are always made. (See description of square bends.) The end that fastens to the andiron proper is also bent square, but tapered slightly to make a nice fit. Fastening the frame to the andiron is done with a stud and bolt. The stud is screwed into the andiron and into the frame as shown by the dotted lines. A square headed bolt fastens the upper part, thus preventing any twisting out of place. The only finish given to the andirons is that left by the marking of this peen hammer. This leaves a mottled surface, which gives an old look to the finished piece.

_Chain ring bolt:_ Ring bolt is made from a 3/4-in. square iron piece. This is drawn down at one end until it is 1 in. long and 1/2 in. round. A thread is cut on this end. Drill a hole through the centre of the square head 3/8 in. in diameter.

_Ring:_ Take the 1 × 1/4 × 6 in. piece of flat iron. Draw it out so that it tapers toward each end. (See drawing.) On the extreme end of each is a 1/4-in. pin 3/8 in. long. Bend ring into shape. The lower centre of the ring has a knob. This knob is made out of a piece of 3/4-in. square iron pulled down 1/4 in. in diameter and 1/4 in. back from the end. The fullered end makes the pin and should be cut long enough to project through the ring 1/8 in. to allow for riveting. You have sufficient stock to round up on the edge of the anvil into a ball shape. Drill a hole in the centre of the ring and fit the pin on the end of the knob into the hole in the ring. Rivet tight. The design you see on the ring may be put on with a diamond pointed chisel. The ring is now heated, opened out, and pushed into the hole made in the ring bolt so that it swings easily into place. Two rings of course should be made. The chain fastened from one ring to another is used as a guard against fire. The chain rings are made out of 1/4-in. square iron which is cut 10 ins. long. Then they are bent square and welded as chain links are usually welded. Notice that the last two links show an opening just wide enough to allow them to be slipped into the rings of the andiron. This completes the set. The finish is made by the indentations left by the peen of the hammer.

On page 369 is shown another pair of andirons. They are made in the same way as the pair just described, splitting it down to form the legs. The wood rests are riveted through the body of the piece, forming a large rivet head in front to hold it in place and at the same time adding to the decoration.

FIRE TOOLS AND STAND: POKER, SHOVEL, TONGS

Fire tools form part of the andiron set and are used for grate fires or open hearth fires of either coal or wood. They are always in evidence in country homes where open fireplaces are still in use. They can be made of brass, iron, or soft steel. If an andiron is in place the fire tools are usually made of the same metal and finished in the same way so as to match.

_Poker:_

_Stock:_ One piece of 7/8-in. round iron or soft steel 8 ins. long (for handle). One piece 1/2 in. round. One piece 20 ins. long (for rod).

These drawings show a simple design in fire tools. All have handles after the same design, slightly curved, with a ball as an end decoration. The making of the handle is described below, and this method, of course, applies to the making of all the handles of this set.

_Handle:_

_Stock:_ One piece 7/8 in. of round stock fullered down 7/8 in. from the end to a thickness of 5/8 in. Knock the four corners down and round up into a ball. Five inches from this, fuller the piece to 5/8 in. thickness. Draw the piece out any length, keeping the thickness 5/8 in. Weld the 1/2-in. rod to the small end. The extreme end of the poker may be finished in various ways. It is sometimes turned at right angles to the rod. It may be pointed, flattened, etc. The centre of the handle is slightly curved. To do this heat the rod and reduce it, then place it upon the largest part of the horn of the anvil. With the hand hammer, hammer until the thinnest part in the centre measures about 3/4 in. in diameter. In this way the handle is reduced 1/8 in. at that point, and curved in slightly.

_Shovel:_

_Stock:_ Handle, 7/8 × 8 in. round iron or soft steel. Rod, 1/2 × 10 ins. long, iron or soft steel. Shovel blades, rectangular piece of No. 20, soft steel, 6 × 9 ins.

_Directions:_ Handle is made in same way as you made the handle of the poker.

_Rod:_ The rod is welded at one end to the handle. The other end is flattened out to be riveted on to the shovel blade. To do this, upset the extreme end of the rod back about 1 in. and about 3/4 in. in diameter. Flatten this out and shape it up as shown by the sketch. Holes are drilled in for 1/8 in. rivets.

_Shovel blade:_ Cut a paper pattern just the shape of the blade. Mark on the inside of the pattern the width of the edges to be turned up. Place the paper pattern on the metal and cut out the outline with a cold chisel. Now mark off the inside line for the turned up edges. Heat the metal in the forge fire, a little at a time, beginning at the centre part of the round. Bend it upon a round stake, tapping gently with the hammer until the blade is well shaped, according to your design. This size metal will buckle up the same as the copper did. Give as much care in rounding up the iron as you did to the copper. (See copper bowl.) When the piece has taken on the shovel shape place the end of the handle to be riveted on the blade, and mark the holes. Drill and rivet the handle and the blade with 1/8-in. round head iron rivets. Notice that the shovel blade is not in an exact line with the handle and rod. It forms an angle with them. This bend is made after the riveting is done. Heat the piece where the blade joins the rod and bend it back gently either with the hand or by tapping it with a hammer, keeping the hot part of the shovel, all the time, on the horn of the anvil.

_Tongs:_

_Stock:_ 7/8 × 12 in. round, for handle. Two pieces 1/2 × 16 in. round rod.

_Directions:_ Make handle as for poker and shovel. Look at the detail drawing and you will see by the dotted lines that 2 ins. from the lower end of the handle the stock is bent out at right angles to the axis of the handle. Take one of the 1/2 × 16 in. round rods, place it in the swage, using the top swage on this. Shape the piece between the two swages. Form it to an oval shape by striking with a sledge hammer on the top swage. This makes one half of the rounded part of the tong. If this is done without turning the piece while working it, the cross section will be oval. Bend it rounding, as shown by the drawing. It is now ready to weld to the rod, but before doing this it is best to finish the hinge. Draw out the stock between the shoulder and the bend, 2 × 5/8 ins. in diameter. Leave the stock heavy near the handle on account of the weight of the tongs. To form the hinge: Place a round 3/4-in. punch, flattened on the end, on the corner and drive down half way. This makes a circular depression, just large enough to accommodate the 1/2-in. hinge. Two of these wings of the tongs are to be made to complete the tongs. The second piece is far simpler than the first to make, and it is really the only part of the tong that moves. Draw out the stock and make the same size oval as you made with the other piece under the swages. Bend it the same shape. Repeat the work with the punch on the end, thus making the other half of the tong hinge. File these halves to fit perfectly. When that is satisfactory, drill a hole through the middle. Put a round-head rivet through, and see whether the hinge now works perfectly free. Remove rivets. The parts are now ready to be welded to the rods. Upset the ends of the small rods, scarf both for a regular lap weld (see Lap Weld), and finish by welding. The end of the tongs are flattened down. Flatten out the material and at the same time round it up. If the material is not thick enough to give enough for this rounding part, upset the end a little, or double the end over and weld. (See Welding.)

Tongs are now ready for riveting together. Place the hinge in position. Push the round-head rivet through the hole made. Let it push through far enough to allow material for a rivet head of exactly the size of the round head. The head may be rounded up if not too large, while it is cold. Since only a 1/4-in. rivet is called for here, this work can be done without any heating.

Tongs are made, as you know, for the purpose of picking up pieces of wood or coal to place them in a stove or open fire. One must keep their use in mind when making the ends of the tongs fitted to do this work, so the ends may be flat, round, claw shaped, concaved, etc. The finish will be the same as the finish on the andiron, without any attempt at ornament. The surface should show the hammer marks, but be quite free from lumps.

_Stand:_ Sometimes hooks are fastened in the fireplace for holding the fire tools. A tool stand, however, is most convenient and may be made easily. The drawing shows a plain design, with base, feet, upright, arms for receiving the tools, and handle.

_Stock:_ Base, No. 20 sheet iron, 18 × 14 ins., oblong piece. Feet: 3 pieces, 1 in. square, 2 ins. long. Upright, 3/4 in. round, 26 ins. long. Arms, 2 pieces, 1 × 1/4 × 15 ins. Handle, 1 × 1/2 × 20 ins.

_Directions:_ The drawing shows the stand as it should look when finished. Base is made first. Cut out a pattern of an ellipse, long diameter 18 ins., short diameter 14 ins. Place this pattern on the oblong piece and cut it out with shears or a cold chisel. On the inside mark off 1-1/4 ins. parallel to the outside edge. On that line turn the metal up as you turned up the rim of the copper bowl. This can be done while the metal is either hot or cold. Perhaps it is a little easier to work up most of the bend while the metal is hot and finish up while it is cold. Do not cool the metal off in water, though. This tends to harden it a little. Let it cool off gradually, and when necessary anneal or soften it. _Feet:_ The 1-in. square iron is fullered down 1 in. from the end. The ball is rounded out of this end piece same as was done in making the balls for the door knocker. This leaves part of the metal with which to make a pin for riveting. Cut off this rivet pin the length required. Rivet holes are made in the base large enough to receive the rivet pins on the iron feet. Divide the base into three equal parts. Drill rivet holes the right size, put the iron balls in place, and rivet.

_Arms:_ The two pieces of 1/4 × 1 × 15 ins. are bent and scarfed. The two scarfed edges are welded together. Then the end is welded to one end of the upright post.

_Handle:_ The handle is made separate and is then welded on to the arms. Take the 1/2 × 20 in. piece and bend it at right angles 5 ins. from each end. Heat it in the middle and bend so the two ends come together. This forms a loop. Make this loop the same shape as is shown by the handle. Weld the two 5-in. ends together, shape, and then weld this to the crotch of the arms. This forms the handle. The arms are now bent wide enough to receive the fire tools.

_The upright:_ Cut it off 30 ins. from the top of the arms. Upset one end large enough to make a foot 4 ins. long and about 2 ins. wide. This is flattened down and shaped as shown, for three 1/4-in. rivets. Push the rivets in and rivet the upright to the base. If the base should not be strong enough to hold the upright firm it can be strengthened by placing a brace from the long ends and fastening it to the centre of the upright. This adds to the decoration as well as the strength. Use a 1/2 × 1/8 in. flat bar of iron or steel. Place it in a vise and twist it about two thirds of its length. Bend the ends to fit the curved sides of the base and also to fit the post. A small 1/8-in. rivet on each side and one through the post will hold it sufficiently. The stand is finished to correspond with the andiron and fire tools. In this design the hammer marks seem more suitable than any special decoration. A little machine oil spread over the surface, the whole thing heated in the forge fire until the oil flashes off, gives a natural iron finish, which is most pleasing.

XXIX

CANDLESTICKS, HINGES, IRON BRACKETS

CANDLESTICK

This wrought iron candlestick is made up of three pieces welded together.

_Stock:_ Three pieces of 3/8-in. round iron 4 ins. long.

_Directions:_ The detail drawings show the steps in the making of this piece of work. Notice that the rod used to make the leg and foot also forms part of the holder or socket. Take one of the 3/8 × 4 in. rods. Mark off 3/4 in. from one end. Draw this out as shown by the sketch. Mark off 1/2 in. from that point. From this 1/2-in. mark draw the material out 4-1/2 ins. long. This should be made square and tapered slightly toward the foot. You will then have 3/4 in. for the foot.

_Foot:_ The drawing shows a conventional flower shaped foot. Spread the 3/4 in. wide enough to shape a foot as shown in the sketch. Shape it by cutting it out with a chisel and then filing. The embossing is done in the same way, as has been explained. (See Embossing.)

_Socket:_ The socket is tulip or cup shaped. Flatten out the opposite end of the 4-in. bar and shape up as shown in sketch. Make the other two legs to match this one. Weld the three pieces together at A in the following way: Put the three parts together and bind in place with a piece of binding wire. Place it in the fire and heat it to a welding heat. Weld the three pieces close to the socket and for about 1 in. below. Shape a round neck (see sketch) and at the same time reduce it to 3/8 in. in diameter. The small iron collar is put on and welded about 1 in. below the socket. This addition is for ornamental purposes entirely.

_Shape socket for the candle:_ Heat the top at a low heat and with a pair of round-nosed pincers shape up as shown.

The legs are now twisted. This can be done the last thing and while the metal is cold.

_Wrought iron candlestick:_ Take a piece of soft steel or wrought iron 1/4 × 4 × 4 ins. Heat the bar. Emboss the centre by driving it in a hole in a swage block. The centre should be about 1-1/2 ins. above the surface of the feet. Cut out the four pieces as shown in the sketch. File up and finish the base.

_Post:_ Select a piece of 5/8-in. square iron. Taper the ends to 3/8 in. square by 7-1/2 ins. long. The small end swells out 1/2 in. as shown in the sketch. Forge a small pin, 1/4 × 1/4 in., on the end of this post. Now swell the base of the post so that it will measure 7/8 in. square. The length from end to end minus the length of the pin should measure 8 ins. Forge a 3/8-in. pin 1/2 in. long at the base end. Heat the centre of the post; place it in the vise and give it a complete twist to the right. Drill in the centre of the base a hole to fit the pin on the end of the post. Heat the pin red hot and rivet the base to the post.

_Candle socket:_ This socket is made in a conventional design. Take a piece of No. 20 soft sheet steel or iron and cut a disc 2-1/2 ins. in diameter. Divide this piece equally into six parts and cut out as shown on the drawing. Bend these leaves up to form a socket. Now cut a piece of sheet metal 2-1/2 ins. square, and cut out as shown for the little ornament fastened on the top. Bend the four wings down as shown here. Drill a small hole through the centre of each to fit to the piece on the end of the post. Place these pieces in position and rivet in place. This work is to be done cold. A candlestick of this design is easily made and very attractive when finished.

DECORATIVE IRON WORK

Next to the scroll, the twist is perhaps the most characteristic detail of decorative treatment in iron. Twists relieve the plain effect of the straight lines made by the hard edges of the metal, by introducing short curves into the design. The twists are easily made and lend themselves largely for decoration on such things as fire escapes, brackets, grills, gates, fences, and smaller articles, such as umbrella stands, door knockers, fire tools, etc.