Bit of a diversion...

  I haven't had forge time in over two weeks so I decided I need to do something even if it wasn't related to the clock.  I did some minor stuff today and finished with a heading tool made from a RR spike.  Came out much better than a previous attempt.  A heading tool is used to put heads on things like nails and bolts.  I still have to put a hole in it.

Even more about the saw...

  Last night, I was reading the book on the Mastermyr find and came across a passage.  It said that the original discoverer of the find, a farmhand, actually took the hacksaw and tested it on another piece from the find and was able to make a small cut.  I think if a hacksaw could still cut after 1000 years that it probably was really effective when new.

No problem with the saw...

  I can breath a sigh of relief.  The use of hacksaws in period is documentable.  I use a hacksaw on both the gears and the corner posts.  Recent information came to me that hacksaws weren't in use until 18th century.  That definitely appears to be incorrect.

  The Mastermyr Find(9th century Viking blacksmith toolbox) definitely contains a hacksaw.  The hacksaw has all of the makings of being a metal cutting hacksaw.  First, the shape of the teeth matches a modern metal cutting saw.  Also, in the same find were several axes and adzs.  These were made of wrought iron with a hardened steel for a cutting edge.  The steel's carbon content is 0.4%.  This is about the minimum carbon steel can have and be hard enough for tool work.  As a matter of fact, after checking my other materials at home, 0.4% is when steel suddenly gets to stage where water quenching it can harden it.  Unfortunately, my new book did not analyze the steel in the hacksaw.

  Another interesting item in the find was a piece of antler.  Some might immediately think of a decorative use of the antler but this was in a blacksmith's toolbox and blacksmiths have another use for antler.  If you take a piece of iron and surround with organic material such as ground bone or antler, then take it to critical heat for a length of time, the iron will become case hardened.  What that means is that some of the carbon from organic material actual enters the iron, increasing its quality as a steel.  Case hardening has one major drawback, the amount of penetration of the carbon is usually somewhat minimal but a depth of 1/32" is fairly easy to achieve.  With the hacksaw blade, this is okay.  Since the blade is so thin, the carbon could penetrate from both sides, possibly all the way to the interior.

  Whew, one less thing to worry about.  Oh, and here is a drawing of the hacksaw.  Click if you want to examine in detail.

Checking things out...

  Well the storm disrupted things for a bit and work has been busy so haven't had as much chance to do forge work but I have been working on the clock in another way.

  When I was speaking to my contact at the British Museum, he cast some doubt on whether or not metal cutting hacksaws existed in the middle ages.  This took me off guard because in his original info he sent to me, the going theory was that was how the teeth were cut.  He said that he had some others in his field jump his case about suggesting such a thing.

  Well, I'm been digging around on the internet, talking to some of my blacksmithing friends around the country, have some books on the way, etc...  and I think I have enough evidence to argue that the middle ages did have hacksaws capable of cutting metal.  There is not, as of yet, any definitive proof but I suspect that a book that should arrive within the next few days has what I am looking for.  According to one of my contacts, the book actually makes reference to a hacksaw being used to cut metal so we shall see.

  Getting some more coal on Friday.  It will be a lower grade coal but it will get me by until I can get the better stuff.

  Also, I think I am going to make some Viking artifacts, maybe even a lock and key.  Just think it would be cool.

Lucked out...

  Charley completely missed Tampa.  Unfortunately, the storm slammed into people who only had a few hours notice.  I hope to get back to smithing tomorrow.

Lousy weather...

  Finished the tent stakes but now have to get house ready for Hurricane.  The current track for Charley takes they eye directly over my house...

Factory work sucks...

  Because of my limited coal supply at the moment and because I'm making a trade, I have put aside the clock for a short time.  I'm making about 16 tent stakes.  Now, stakes are very easy but I hate doing repetative work.  I've got them all cut but I have to take a break so I can get on a conference call for work.  Since I'm working on a major website for our human resources department, they let me work from home.  After the call is over, I hope to get back to the stakes and finish them.  However, with that much hammerwork, there is a good chance that I will only be able to forge about half of them.  I want to get them done before the tropical storm moves in later this week.

Voice from the past...

  So, about 2 years ago I had an exchange of emails with a gentleman at the British Museum.  He provided me with a rich source of documentation for the clock.  At the time, I did not even have a forge.  Well, with starting the clock I decided to try and get in contact with him again.
  I just received his reply today.  He is very interested in helping me further with the project.  He is a very accomplished horologist and is head of a large portion of the collection at the museum(specifically, late medieval).  I think he is interested in hearing how my reproduction is going.  In his article, he made some suggestions on how the clocks were made.  I have offered some possible alternatives that I think he is very interested in hearing more.
  So, this has a bit more incentive (and pressure) to do the clock.  I want to do this project right.  The greatest limitation I have at this point is my lack of advanced blacksmithing experience.

Still working,

  Post #4 is almost done.  I've also gotten into the habit of doing some simple and small at the end of the day.  Partly to remind myself that not all blacksmithing is as hard as what I've been doing.  It also helps me to "cool down" after doing the heavier work.