Forging Bicycle Tyre Irons

I found an old bicycle in a jumbo bin. It was missing the seat, which is no problem. I had an old seat lying around. The back tyre was flat, so I pumped it up. Water started coming out which was unusual. Nevertheless I kept on pumping, then bang! The tube exploded a 3 inch hole in it (not the tyre). I had another wheel lying around (on top of the shed, I think), so I put that on. But it was too buckled and the sprockets were badly worn and broken. So I thought I would just pull the tube out of that tyre. But that would mean finding tyre irons. I thought it might be quicker to make new ones instead (more fun too). So I got out the forge, and looked around for some suitable steel. As I stared at a likely piece of steel, I suddenly realised that it was a tyre iron! It is probably for a motorcycle, but it worked on the bicycle, and gave me a pattern to make the others.

Lawnmower Flywheel Key Replacement

The second time DD mowed No. 18 with No. 18's own mower, he forgot about a 2 inch steel pipe that must have been an old clothesline pole (I don't know why that would be in the front yard). He hit it with the blade and then the mower wouldn't start.

Symptoms: Won't start. Kicks back (back fires). Blows exhaust out of carburettor. Plug fowls with black oil.

Diagnosis: I was worried that the rings were compromised with all the oil on the plug. But I called the mower repair company which had put a sticker on the mower. The man told me it could be a bent shaft, or the flywheel key.

I searched the internet for some clues and found a video at http://www.small-engine-repairs.com/replace_lawn_mower_flywheel_key.html which explained the process. About this time DD came home and he did most of the work. Once we uncovered the flywheel we could see that the key had sheared and the wheel was turned 1/4 turn out of place. This makes the timing wrong which causes all the symptoms. We went to the mower parts shop and bought a new woodruff key for $2. Installed it, and the mower started right up. Then we returned the mower to No. 18 and dug down around the pipe and cut it off well below ground level. No more problem.

Making a G Clef

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Bent Lawnmower Blade

After hitting a steel pipe with No. 18's mower, DD then hit a lump of earth with ours. It bent the blade down but didn't do any other damage. No. 20 still had to be finished. We couldn't use the tractor because the gate to the back yard is too narrow. There was nothing to do but to break out the forge. I haven't used it for about 18 months. All the clutter that buried it had to be moved away. I wasn't sure if the fan would still work, but it did. We soon had a nice fire and Daniel hammered the blade straight with two or three heats. We used the new anvil for the first time. We hadn't used the forge since JJ bought the beetle (since the anvil and beetle came at the same time, from the same seller). We let the blade cool slowly since it wasn't bent near the cutting edge. Then replaced it, and Daniel finished the job with no problems. With such a nice little fire going I didn't want to waste it. So I started making an S hook, which turned out to be a G clef for Lynn Cunningham, retiring from West Point band.