Forge Attempt 1
800*600


I built a bumper/drawbar for the VW bus so that it could tow a trailer. I also wanted something fairly armored since the motor is in the back.

Summer 2011, I got rear ended at a stop sign by a drunk. It was a short distance ram as the drunk thought that I had jumped the bus into a small window of opportunity. He did not bother to notice that I had not gone.

The bumper protected the bus as there was no damage to speak of. The bumper, was quite bent. I had to take it off in order to replenish the Oel. The stresses caused it to twist and I could not get it back on.

I dropped a Bus disk brake (retired) onto a Karmann disk (also retired) and filled it with ordinary grilling charcoal. I hit it with 5 pounds of air. I managed to hammer the Bumper Mark I back into shape enough to put it back on and use it until I had built the bumper Mark II.









It is not perfect, but it went back into service.

Thus, was my first attempt with a forge. Crude, but effective.