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Forged Eye Bolt with a Welded Eye
An eye bolt is a bar with a closed loop at one end for ropes, cables and hooks. This one is bent from 1/2-inch round wrought iron 12¼ inches long and the end of the loop is forge-welded to the shank, so the eye cannot open. The end is scarfed (thinned to a bevel) first so the weld blends in; the bar is bent on the anvil's edge and horn around a drift, welded at a welding heat, smoothed in swages and drifted round. The finished shank is about 7½ inches long.
Intermediate
1–2 hours
Instructions
1
1
Scarf the end
Scarf the end
Heat one end to a welding heat and scarf it to a bevel about 1 inch long.
Materials for this step:
Wrought Iron Rod1 pieceTools needed:
Blacksmith Forge
Anvil
Forge Hammer
Blacksmith Tongs2
2
Mark
Mark
Bend the scarf over the anvil's rounded edge and centre-punch the marks for the bend.
Tools needed:
Center Punch3
3
Bend the eye
Bend the eye
Heat about 7 inches at the scarfed end to an even yellow heat. Start the bend with the punch mark above the anvil's rounded edge, striking the projecting end with the hammer's peen; finish on the horn, striking on the scarf so the bar is not marked.
Tools needed:
Forge HammerAnvil4
4
Close on a drift
Close on a drift
Put a drift slightly larger than the finished hole in the eye and bring the scarf and shank together.
Tools needed:
Drift5
5
Weld and finish
Weld and finish
Heat slowly to a welding heat and weld the scarf down, rounding the shoulder with a top fuller and finishing at the anvil's rounded edge. Smooth the weld in top and bottom swages, drive the drift in to make the eye even, and file off the scale while it is hot.
Tools needed:
Blacksmith Forge
Fuller
Bottom SwageDrift
Metal FileMaterials
1- 1 piecePlaceholder
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