Fire went out mid-bill on a forge weld last Thursday

Was working on a railroad spike knife for a customer in Akron, and my coal fire died right when I was about to hit the weld. Had to rush to relight it with a torch while the metal cooled, and ended up with a cold shut on the edge. Has anyone else had a fire die at the worst possible moment and managed to save the piece?

2 comments

2 Comments

sarah1981mo ago

Gotta ask... is a cold shut on a railroad spike knife really that big of a deal? I mean, it's a spike knife. People use them for prying open paint cans and splitting kindling. Unless your customer is some kind of knife snob in Akron who's gonna cry over a little cold shut... seems like you could just grind it out and call it character. I've burned through plenty of welds with a torch and never lost sleep over it. Maybe just tell 'em it's a "forge seam" and move on.

kai_bennett1mo ago

Telling someone a cold shut is just character is a good way to get a knife thrown back at your face.