Fired up the old rivet forge after a decade, first job went sideways

Holly Lane · 2026-08-25T01:15:38.945194+00:00

I dug my granddad's rivet forge out of the shed last Saturday to heat some 1/2 inch stock for a gate hinge repair. Got it roaring good, but I forgot how touchy the air blast is, so I overheated the bar and it started throwing sparks like a dud firework. The scale flaked off and left deep pits in the steel, so I had to scrap that piece and start over with the blower dialed way back. It set me back about an hour, but I got the hinge shaped and hammered in the end. Anyone else played with old rivet forges and got burned on the learning curve again?

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Fired up the old rivet forge after a decade, first job went sideways | Blacksmiths - Chatter Central