Metal work project

[Nathan]

hey i made this in metal work, still needs a finishing coat of paint but you get the idea. Its a foldable spade. Everything was made from scratch by lathing welding etc. Heres some pictures of it on a A4 piece of paper so you get an idea of size. Fits nicely into the hand, i gess i will need to go camping now and give it a go :P

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c60/fah_cue/a2e05dac.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c60/fah_cue/ed69aa21.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c60/fah_cue/P8230061.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c60/fah_cue/P8230056.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c60/fah_cue/P8230057.jpg

[NormGunston]

Looks pretty gutsy, Nath! Home-brew projects almost always last longer than bought gear. Good job.
Ant

[Hefty]

Those welds look pretty hardcore!! I agree with Ant, She'd outlive most of the ones on the market these days.

[Nathan]

hehe thats the first time i have ever welded

[jlw712]

Great job for a first timer at welding. You'll be a pro in no time. Good on ya. Jo

[XTfreak]

Great job, I bet it will last ya years. Whats next? :)
Bill

[Shano]

Nothing better than seeing the youth of today making something and being constructive. :)

well done mate!

Just make sure you don't get lumped with digging fire places and dunny's when you go hunting, seems to me you have done your bit by making it :P

Shano

[Nathan]

thanks for all the kind comments,
Great job, I bet it will last ya years. Whats next? :)
Bill

well this is my second project, my first i did a toolbox, nexts its a cold chisel, the only time comsuming bit with the chisel is the heat treatment like tempering and hardening etc.

[benhohnke]

I finished my cantilever toolbox on tuesday i will post pics i f i can be bothered :D

[jpbon]

top stuff, nice looking spade

[Uba Tracker]

Top stuff mate, I see a promising career as a boilermaker. You'll enjoy the cold chisel mate, it's a realy interesting blend of skills, and the heat treatment aspect of the job is a relatively minor component. I did my trade as a Blacksmith some 23 years ago and I found tool making to be very rewarding. Most of the cold work tooling I still use today is stuff I made when I was a apprentice.

[benhohnke]

i got my marks for my toolbox got 9/10 becuase sir says he never gives out 10's and by the way what type of welder were you using mig or stick?

[Uba Tracker]

Sorry about the slow response mate, been away. I've had the opportunity to use most welding processes MIG (GMAW), TIG (GTAW), STICK (MMAW), SUBMERGED ARC, I spent some time using a FLASH ARC RESISTANCE WELDER which had it's own substation 'cos it drew about 12,000 amps. Not forgetting THERMAL SPRAYING and the good old OXY-ACETYLENE WELDING, haven't done any underwater welding yet, but life's not over yet.
Cheers
Harry

[jpbon]

Very nice Nathan, i'm sure you will put that to good use.