Lots of folks asked me how I managed to get the cuts in the railroad spike split cross, so I did a quick video to show my thought process. New Anvil fund at Go Fund Me: www.gofundme.c... Patreon Support: www.patreon.co...
Nice cross! I've never used a hot cut to split when I make one, I use a band saw. My technique is as follows. I cut the taper tip off instead of upsetting it as you did. I make the first cut from the tip to approximately half way. Cut at the base crosswise halfway through. Heat and bend the head away so the band saw can make the second length wise cut. A rule of thumb is to let the length wise cuts cross each other 1/3 the thickness of the spike. After making the cuts heat the head and bend it back into place and then flatten as you did. When spread open the upper portion of the cross will be too long so I cut mine the exact length as the arms of the cross. I don't estimate, I measure exactly. That way it looks proportional. HINT: When cutting the head halfway through, to bend it out of the way, make the cut from the heel portion, not from the tip. This will make the upright portion of the cross centered over the head and more easily balanced. If you cut from the tip of the head it will place the upright portion of the cross right at the back edge of the head and it will tip over backwards. Thanks for posting. I will definitely try using a hot cut next time.
nice splitting excellent oldschool cross holdown slipping 1.your holddown stem is long --hitting the anvil stand might loosen it 2. a hump in the hold down arm might fit over the spike head and allow the splitting chisel to work over the long axis of the anvil because -with the end of the spike on a rounded edge diagonally it might be rolling and leveraging the hold down loose when u strike over the edge
Hey Jason, I watched this one a long time ago from my old channel, but as I am getting ready to do something similar, I figured a refresher was in order. I know you're busy but wanted to let you know that we miss your videos. God bless you my friend!