Forging

I am having difficulty making a good weld on my bar shoe. I have found that if I heat the shoe to the same color as the inside of the gas forge (which is as hot as I can get it) I can bring the shoe out and apply flux then put it back in the forge. Melt the flux and then bring it out and hit it once or twice on the scarf, put it back in and reheat and repeat for the other scarf. Repeating this process multiple times until the weld is secure. But when I quench the shoe the weld seperates. Help!

1.) What type of flux are you using? I have had it for a year and the label has worn off. I forgot what brand it was.

2.) Are you brushing all of the slag off of the shoe prior to fluxing it? Once I have a white heat I am using a wire brush prior and then adding the flux once the flux melts I pull the shoe and make my weld

3.) What type of scarf are you using (e.g. chain link scarf)? I tried a chain link scarf but was having more success with an overlapping scarf.

4.) After your last heat, are you immediately quenching the shoe in your water bucket? Are you quenching the toe first, or are you quenching the weld first? After immediately quenching the shoe and losing my weld I began to let the shoe sit and cool off before finally quenching the shoe. When I did though I just dropped it in the bucket.

Hey Derek,

When forge welding in a gas forge, flux is extremely important. Also, flux is tempermental. It likes to absorb moisture. Since you say that you've had it for a while and label is worn off, I'd suggest getting a new can. I use Sure-Weld, but Swan Magi-Weld is equally good. If you go with Sure-Weld, I prefer to keep the container in one of my wife's Tupperware containers to keep moisture out. The only downside is that I had to explain to my wife where the missing Tupperware went. Simply put, old flux will cause you hassles.

When I weld a barshoe, I like to overlap the area to be welded and then make an abrupt step-down using my cross-pein hammer. I then try to get my joint as tight as possible. You do not want flux getting inside the joint. I'll brush most of the slag off and place into the forge (with the area to be welded directly under my flame). When it reaches a red heat (not white), I'll bring it out, brush it again, and apply my flux. It then goes back into the forge. When the weld reaches the same color as the liner, I'll bring it out and brush it again (not hammering at this point.) With it again at a red heat, It'll get fluxed again and go back into the forge until it attains the same color as the line.

When I bring the shoe out the next time, I grab it with my tongs in a position when as soon as I take it out, I'm ready to hit it. I have my hammer ready to go as well. This is where it becomes a bit of a ballet. As soon as the area to be welded touches the face of the anvil, the hammer must only be a split second away. I'll give it a couple light taps, and switch to a heavier hammer blow to finish the weld on that side, blending my seam until it is gone.

Now I'll repeat the process on the other side of the shoe.

After the shoe is welded, you can take another heat to clean up the weld area, and do an final shaping of the shoe. I then prefer to let it sit on the anvil for a time before quenching it. When it do quench a barshoe, I prefer to hold it by the toe (assuming the weld is at the heel), and rather than dropping it into the water bucket, I'll kind of swirl it around.

It is important to note, that when you weld in a gas forge there are a lot of enviormental issues to worry about. A windy day or the dead of winter will have an affect on your ability to weld with gas. Also, forge welding on a cold anvil will make the entire process miserable. One way to remedy this is to make some other shoes first, or heat a price of 1/2" x 1 1/2" stock to a high temperature and lay it on the face of the anvil. It will transfer the heat to anvil and thereby warm it up rather quickly.

At any rate, good luck and don't worry it will take time. I've ruined more welds over the years than I can count. Keep practicing and be patient. As you get more comfortable with the steps involved, it will become second nature.

Have fun.

Derek, i stopped welding in the forge many years ago,and got a set of acceteline,oxygen welding

outfit,the time you save welding bars on shoes,

making fine adjustments to shoes etc, will save

not only time, you will get the horses shod a

lot faster, time spent at the forge is

time away from the horse, time is money.

Brian Hull.

Hey Derek,

I got ambitious and put a couple of videos up on YouTube. One of them deals with forge welding. If you have a high speed internet connection, check it out at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEJsJg_h24c

I hope it helps.