Century Old Stripes & Blacksmith Styles Surface | Engels Coach Shop

[@jeffhovey1810]

Im 66 with ALS and you have no idea what a joy I get watching your videos. Thank you so much Dave. Please stay safe sir!

[@Hertog_von_Berkshire]

Sorry to hear about your ALS. I have a possible early symptom … occasional jaw twitches. No weaknesses though; I'm strong as an ox (smell like one too).

[@timeflysintheshop]

I recently learned that "engel" was an old english form of "angel". So we are watching Angels Coach Shop! 🙏😇❤🎉😊

[@brh4115]

I met a striper once that said if you want perfection from left to right buy a decal. Imperfection is part of my artwork!

[@plainnpretty]

I'm Wabi Sabi beauty in imperfection

[@brh4115]

@ It’s the chance of owning something truly one of a kind!

[@AffordBindEquipment]

I was measuring cabinets in a doctors office and he was complaining that the color on a wood cabinet someone else had installed wasn't uniform from one end to the other. I told him that if he wanted it uniform, he should paint it.

[@grahammorgan9635]

Thank you Dave ,you encourage us all to look a little closer, things aren’t always what they seem.

[@horatiohornblower868]

Your quest for the original striping shows how painstakingly accurate you work, Dave! This demonstrates your admiration for all those craftsmen who came before you. In a far future some serious blacksmith or coach builder will show the same admiration for your work, I hope.

[@billbutler3578]

I want to share with you because of your videos when I watch a western and they show a wagon I can identify most of the parts am a mechanical engineer and always love to learn how things are built thanks for the education 🙂

[@gregorymacneil2836]

To observe serial numbers and stamp impressions, you can occasionally turn off the room lights and shine a flashlight at a low angle (raking light) across the surface while viewing it from above. You may need to adjust the flashlight beam around the impressions. There is an actual process in conservation called Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI), which I have used with great success. Great video!

[@cotton-Dave]

greg-- Take one of those powerful penlights to your next party invite. When not being watched, hold it parallel to the floor and turn it on. YIKES!!

[@gregorymacneil2836]

​@@cotton-Dave I often use the penlight to detect mould on varnished surfaces in buildings, as well as former window and door openings beneath plaster or drywall patches, and for locating studs behind drywall. If you've dropped something small on the floor, you can turn off the lights and impress your friends with your party trick. When observing people searching, like CSI folks, they often use the penlight to keep their eyes focused. If you want something scary, try raking light on your keyboard - you will certainly wash your hands.

[@davepost7675]

The good thing about variations is that whatever you end up with will be "correct".

[@lancekincaid5610]

I've been watching your videos since you built the Borax wagons, I don't miss ANYTHING you show. I was planning a cross country trip on my motorcycle and wanted to going stop to meet you. Then I had my stroke right before the trip. THANK YOU! for all the videos. After all these years I feel like I have a good friend

[@dianeengel4155]

We're sorry about your stroke. Thanks for watching.

[@FarmsteadForge]

I find the blacksmithing work and wagon building very interesting. Thanks for explaining how things were done.

[@Marcus_Aurelius_1978]

Mr. Engels, you are the Indiana Jones of the stagecoaches! Fantastic!

[@mergrew0110]

About 100 - 150 years ago there was a fashion to paint the Narrow Boats that carried cargo up and down the English canal system. Very ornate and colorful. It survives today, owners often decorate their boats, which are sometimes their homes, in the traditional way. It is very stylized and varies around the country. The painting was not limited to the boat (some were up to 70 feet long) but included the accessories like galvanized water containers. They we’re working boats, and whole families lived on board in very cramped quarters. Because they were constantly on the move they were sometimes known as water gypsys. The railways and roadway improvements eventually led to the demise of the commercial use of the canals, they are now used mainly for leisure activities nowadays.

[@UncleMelB]

Engel Forensics. Always learning something new on your videos. Thanks.

[@garthbutton699]

Your investigation goes much deeper than just normal cleaning ,you probe the depths of the wood and iron to reveal identifying traits and maker marks that are a century in the past.I have to tip my hat to you for taking us along on this mentoring journey that so many of us enjoy🤗😎🤗😎

[@paulsmodels]

Really fun to watch you do this! 👍

[@Ural_stories]

Отличная работа, Дейв! В предыдущих комментариях, я упоминал о том, что в молодости, я ремонтировал вагоны на железной дороге. Часто мне приходилось разъединять старые соединения, которые подверглись коррозии. И я тоже скажу, что самый лучший способ это сделать - нагреть детали на углях до красного свечения.

[@YouShouldThink4Yourself]

That's the difference, something that's been "crafted" by a craftsman or made by a machine. Everything made by craftsmen has their signature (not a hand written name but a look and feel) Something made by machine is just another part . There is a part of you in every coach you restore/rebuild/make. no matter how hard you try to make it "like original" it will still have your unique signature, something to be proud of.

[@BillOwens-vt2wi]

Interesting and good to see how its built and how you will make it come together again. Looks good thank you.

[@glencrandall7051]

Dave doing his archeology stuff again. It's amazing what can be determined when one knows what to look for and where. Well done Dave. Thank you for sharing. Have a great 2025 and stay safe.🙂🙂

[@railbirrd]

Looks like this will be a fun project to watch this winter. Thank you for sharing it with us.

[@bigredc222]

Very good.

[@oldspokes]

Amazimg detail on these coaches

[@bryceanderson4864]

Thank you- this kind of information is not easy to find elsewhere.

[@waughthogwaugh3078]

I love the detail you share and am quite excited to see these stagecoaches rebuilt. I don't know why as I have always lived as far from North America as one can get! Thank you so much for sharing your enormous experience with all around the globe. Your library of videos is going to be worth a great deal in the future and you should be commended for your dedication to creating it. I hope that KZbin realises their responsibility to protect this wonderful heritage work that you do. Thank you sir.

[@dianeengel4155]

Where do you live?

[@steveaustin4118]

When I invent time travel I'm going back and take colour photos of al the wagons you work on so you can see exactly how they looked

[@dougminnis192]

Dave, thanks for the extra detail

[@curtisanderson1830]

fire wrench is always the answer

[@daniellarrivee-ic3lg]

Thanks to you Mr. and Ms. Engel !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@RonAbgrall]

Rat Rod the patina with a clear coat on the old irons .

[@rickster4455]

Reminds me of carnival rides from long ago, gaily decorated. Thanks, Dave for the happy recollections of my childhood .

[@JAdams-jx5ek]

Two thumbs up. 👍👍

[@garychaiken808]

Great job. Thank you 😊

[@stuartstephens]

Since it was hand work I can imagine the original stripes naturally varied from day to day (maybe the striper was inexperienced, or maybe they just hadn't had their morning coffee yet), or maybe they were hurrying to meet a deadline and got sloppy on some of them.

[@tomtruesdale6901]

Another great lesson on coach building. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, skills and abilities with us.

[@redrockplumber5124]

Great editing! You and Diane are a great team. Thanks for the carbon education.

[@pdxRetired]

I am fascinated by the analysis of the old parts. The variations between craftsmen, and how much evidence is there if you look closely enough (and know what to look for). Looking forward to see your interpretation of the striping when this build is complete!

[@jackpledger8118]

Interesting tour of these old coaches.

[@barrykemp1397]

Hi Dave, boy, do you put a load of effort into getting it just right!! Now! however, in a situation where the words 'never' and 'always' ,are not appropriate to be used because all your predecessors did things in their own particular style, then it follows that if you do the job as you see it, then that will be perfectly authentic, as this is precisely as they would have done it, in the same position as you are in! Perhaps it is just this tendency to do thing as 'WE' see it, that drives change and improvement. Who knows, perhaps if we paid more attention to not using "never and always" , we still might have some great inventors that we used to, and now seem to have lost, because they were afraid of breaking " never and always" and are stuck inside of the box? Keep up the good work Dave and do it as you see it, it will always be worth the watch! Best wishes B😮😮😂

[@stillraven9415]

Clean that number with some acid. The numbers are stamped in, so it is stronger than the metal around it. CSI uses this method to recover serial numbers that have been filed off completely.

[@D989501L]

Have a great weekend Dave and Diane. Regards Richard 🇬🇧

[@mrclaus859]

Thanks for posting Dave

[@gerhard6105]

If you want the indications to be seen on the brackets, you better do mot sandblast that area. Just use a wirewheel tool. When we were supposed to do non destructive testing at a customer, we always told them to not sandblast before our investigation. This because the blast medium will close and disform the (possible) indications.

[@flywayhome8903]

Once again thanks for the video.

[@gustavogarcia3515]

Thank you Dave, wonderful as always.

[@EmilyGOODEN0UGH]

The new guy did the stripes on that coach. Everyone starts out as the new guy. Things like that rotten hub, you should dip it in shellac and sell it at your museum store as a decorative artifact. With a little card saying what it is and what history you know about it.

[@olddawgdreaming5715]

Awesome job Dave, getting all the information to be sure as possible!! Thanks for sharing with us, stay safe and keep up the great videos. Fred.

[@billschmitzer9159]

Another interesting and educational video. Thank you

[@Zane-no5dy]

I'm old enough to remember when all signs were hand painted. I have never met a sign painter that didn't like a drink when they worked. Symmetry was not in their vocabulary or work. Every one of them had their own idiosyncrasies, and it was a source of pride for them.

[@pambrewer9082]

Glad to see what you are working on.

[@mfreund15448]

Happy Friday Dave and Diane!!

[@whatdoyouthinktodd]

Heat is my first choice. 🔥⚒️

[@LTVoyager]

Hard to beat the fire wrench.

[@WarblesOnALot]

G'day, Great stuff, I'm enjoying it greatly... Kerp on keepin' on. Stay safe. ;-p Ciao !

[@oikkuoek]

What fascinates me with the pre-war stuff is, how good it is. After a hundred years, the bolts come loose, threads are still there, most iron pieces are still very much usable. Most modern stuff turns to dust in a decade. Barely recognizable, definitely not reusable. Those smaller clips are my new favorite. Relatively simple design, an average blacksmith hammers a pair of those in a few minutes, yet after a century, half of that fully neglected, clean-up and good as new.

[@arthurirwin8235]

Awesome! Thank you for sharing!

[@bertbergers9171]

Hahaha nice Dave! "My go to is heat" and i am expecting the oxy-acetylene (edit propane apparantly) burner to come out and you heating the boxing that way. But noo, Dave has another fire, and just hopla axle and all plonks the boxing in the coals. Love it! edit: Ah and with reason for having carbon in the flame, i presume to not decarbonise the iron/steel and alter it's composition/brittleness/strength? Dave you are one of a kind in your knowledge (including knowledge of where to find knowledge, this was a nice deep dive into your techniques) and will to share that knowledge! Thank you!

[@billk8780]

I could imagine long ago, in the original coach shop, they would give the youngest apprentices a pile of clips & irons and tell them to paint stripes on them.

[@stevengabalis4986]

I had assumed that the stripes were put on after the coach was assembled. Was basically a "factory" type job, and bosses everywhere want it done faster, not necessarily better.

[@ferguscosgrave7510]

Thanks

[@richardbrobeck2384]

Great Video !!!

[@stevea1217]

Hi Dave, thanks for so many interesting videos! Yours was one of the first I subscribed to, around 2014, when paid KZbin accounts became available, with no ads. Have you done a video showing the rolling and swedging process you mentioned on those irons? That would be fun to see, it sounds challenging. Best of luck with all your projects!

[@robhawthorne6892]

Interesting, looks like gold leaf on the clips..

[@benjohnson1082]

Pioneer Village in Nebraska has an original Yellowstone coach on display. I am not sure which company. They have a Borax wagon as well.

[@MatthewTinker-au-pont-blanc]

Note, propane, a hydro-carbon fuel has carbon in it. You adjust the air intake to create a a rich or lean flame, ie, rich, high carbon atmosphere or lean, low carbon. Cheers, Matthew

[@Gena_1309]

Спасибо.

[@davidgibson5756]

Interesting that way back when they enjoyed some “bling”. And some of the undercarriage painting was done by the apprentice, thus the variation.

[@CargoPile]

Propane definitely has carbon in it. The chemical formula is C3H3. You don't get soot because the torch is made to introduce just the right amount of air for complete combustion.

[@gordbaker896]

You may be able to determine some of the faint numbers by an acid application.

[@jimthesoundman8641]

Do you ever come across a old coach or wagon and you are blown away by some technique or method that they used which is better than what you are using today? Or were most craftsman back then just trying to get things out the door, the same way most craftsmen are nowadays?

[@goldcountryruss7035]

Painting by Apprentice, repaint by Artist. The older handmade Ferrari's were different on each side, probably the same for all handmade vehicles.

[@B.Duncan]

I always learn something from each of your videos. You mentioned that your propane forge and torch don't have carbon but your coal forge does and that's why you used it. What's the purpose of having carbon with the flame? Is it to preserve the carbon content of the steel?

[@tomswindler64]

Nice 👍👍👍😎😎😎

[@The_Smith]

Interesting the variations in the striping, I can see the apprentice getting the job of doing the striping in place where it's not so easily seen on the rolled clips, is the bolt part forgewelded solid? And on the clips with the long legs, I'd think they were made under a drophammer. There is an article in M.T. Richardson's book on Practical blacksmithing (I think that's the one not going to my lirary to double check) on how to make a swage die for making clips that upsets the middle to get the mass to spread out. Of course you are the one with them in your hand not seeing them through a screen so are a better judge of any nuances. Anyway thanks for bringing us along

[@thomasbraeking6225]

I wonder if a UV light would help some of the striping show better?

[@chuckshaffer1940]

Maybe a Friday job? Do it to get it done and out the door? Stay warm! I'm not sure about there but central MT is going below zero!

[@dianeengel4155]

Yes, we were -19 this morning.

[@chuckshaffer1940]

@dianeengel4155 it was -7 here. I'm 40 miles east of GFalls in Geyser MT. The last storm dumped on us and if you saw reporting from Lewistown we are just like there! LOL Stay warm!

[@dianeengel4155]

@@chuckshaffer1940 I grew up in Stanford.

[@chuckshaffer1940]

@dianeengel4155 , do you remember Jack and Florance Harris? They lived on the north side of the park in the middle.

[@dianeengel4155]

@@chuckshaffer1940 I remember the name. Are you related?

[@jcevans6934]

Fascinating as ever Dave, thanks. What is the importance of carbon in the heating process? Propane is C3H8, so both forms you use have carbon (and release CO2 when burnt).

[@SWolter]

👍👍👍

[@TgWags69]

I'm always tempted to solder the serial numbers then file them flat to help preserve them. Thinking that the zinc in it would be sort of sacrifcial anode type situation as well as keeping it clean etc. But wondered if the acud flux woukd negate that effort?

[@billh230]

It might. Acid flux is very corrosive. It's the reason that, for electrical work acid core solder is a big no-no.

[@CraigLYoung]

Thanks for sharing 👍 About how much coal do you use per year?

[@Garth2011]

Interesting. Your desire for the coal heating source because of the "carbon" vs. the oven or torch, what advantage/benefit does the carbon provide? Thank you Dave.

[@davidharvey114]

Is it possible that what you found is a sloppy repaint done at the working site, rather than an original or factory repaint?

[@douglaskuhn3781]

I see '...'952' on the axle!

[@rcclark8818]

Hello Dave, Russ from Billings.

[@dianeengel4155]

Hi Russ

[@frenchcreekvalley]

Re: 22:40 "we'll let it cool naturally", etc. wouldn't that actually anneal the shaft it it had been hardened? And, therefore, lose the "temper"?

[@jimhopkins9675]

Dave! I'm rescuing an old blast cabinet. What media do you use for that old iron? Thanks, Jim Hopkins (I used to drive for Watkins Shepard out of Helena. Been past your place on occasion.)

[@barrydarnell9748]

And when I was a teenager building hotrods I thought my buddies and I invented pin striping.

[@davidmessersmith786]

The chemical formula for propane is C3H8. So there is definitely carbon in it. Coal and propane certainly burn different.

[@chrisarmstrong8198]

...and acetylene is C2H2. So there is carbon in that too.

[@MandG80439]

I know you have the videos to refer back to, but do you make notes as to re-assembly and striping?

[@dianeengel4155]

He will mark left and right, etc.

[@RobertFay]

*- Oddly, I think I like better the stripes that do not go around the bottom...**4:54* *- Parallel lines add flow to heavy/wide iron.* *- Connecting parallel lines at the bottom stops flow and make heavy/wide iron look heavier.* *- My guess is the idea/purpose of the stripping was to make the flow of heavier pieces feel/look 'lighter'.* *- It is also possible that the less heavy looking iron pieces were pinstriped to make them feel/look ' heavier'.*

[@filepz629]

❤️‍🔥

[@MNHealey]

Fantastic audio. New mic?

[@jill-ti7oe]

😄👍🤙

[@davec3689]

Sorry for such a basic question, but what is the purpose of the striping?

[@dianeengel4155]

Just for looks.

[@MsRazvan29]

❤❤❤💪👏❤️❤️❤️

[@jimlong527]

Dave the painter could have done this job on a Friday afternoon getting primed for a 5:00 bar run.

[@Spikejwh1]

I have little knowledge of forging. Why is carbon to important during the heating of the parts? Apparently important enough to go to effort of lighting a coal fire.

[@workhardlivefree3818]

@ 23:42...That 7 looks like a 2... it looks like there may be a bit of corrosion where the bottom of the 2 is.

[@vincentwesolowski459]

Please define why carbon is so important when heating frozen joints?

[@orbsphere-]

Guess I must have missed something. Watched entire vid. and rewatched beginning again but still don't have a clue to what striping is. Is it painted or worked into the iron?

[@billh230]

Painted. Working those stripes into the steel would require enormous amounts of time and material, with the concomitant cost.

[@JeffreyBode-w7o]

Doncha need some new hubs first?

[@montedaestrada3563]

Not a criticism but I thought that a very blunt introduction to a project that newcomers would have no idea about if that was the first video they saw.

[@LTVoyager]

Any video series is going to be perplexing if you jump into the middle. It is not practical to provide an introduction to every video and that would drive people crazy by the third video. I actually know of one organization that does that: the EAA, Experimental Aircraft Association. They do webinars quite often and the emcee goes through a 5 minute webinar software tutorial at the start of every … single …. webinar. It is supremely annoying, but he ignores any feedback to do anything differently. I bet that 99% of the viewers of a given video have seen his intro a dozen times by now. I have started joining the videos 5 minutes late to try to avoid the tedium. I am very happy that Dave’s videos don’t waste time on introductions, but assume you have watched the prior videos in the series.

[@traildust55]

My guess it is stamped steel to show it wasn't wrought iron...