connecting the blower

[CurlyGeorge]

My "traveling forge" has a blower like that, and I just used a radiator hose to connect it to the bottom of the piping. Made a bracket that uses the bolt holes on the blower. Just use longer bolts and no welding is needed.

[mesquiteforge]

I was mating a Champion Blower to a Buffalo Forge when I encountered this issue. I had a stand with my blower, but had the grief of dealing with a stand that wobbled. I took two pieces of flat bar and bent them around the blower pipe and attached them to the bolt that the blower would normally mount to the stand with. I torched and ground the end to look a bit more like it was made as part of the original equipment. On the back side the bar goes from the blower mount bolt back to the forge tub and is attached with a machine screw or nut&bolt. It appears your blower has bolts where the handle attaches-you can remove the existing bolts, replace with longer ones that will reach throught the blower, handle and flat stock used to make a bracket.
For a blower pipe I used a aluminum clothes dryer duct. It is flexible and heat resistant. It does not look bad either-in my opinion. See pic.

[CurlyGeorge]

Hey Mesquite, that does look like part of the original equipment. Good job.

[mesquiteforge]

Originally Posted by CurlyGeorge

Hey Mesquite, that does look like part of the original equipment. Good job.

Thanks Curly George. I take a lot of pride in my forge-being it belonged to my grandfather. He was not a blacksmith-but a rancher who used it to hot fit horseshoes and bend metal for various projects. When I acquired the forge there was no blower around-so I had to buy one and get creative to avoid the frustration of battling with a blower that would get knocked over or wobble every time I turned the handle. I need a new handle on the blower(wood is cracked), but thanks to zip ties I have survived the ordeal.
PS-the red paint makes it all fit together a lot better-haha.

[CurlyGeorge]

Here's the photos of the forge blower on my "traveling forge". I was mistaken. It is a Champion, not a Buffalo blower. anyway, here's how I attached it and a photo of the discharge tube.
Bracket For Blower - Blacksmith Photo Gallery
Bracket For Blower - Blacksmith Photo Gallery
Forge Blower Tube - Blacksmith Photo Gallery

[SK-Buckwheat]

Originally Posted by mesquiteforge

Thanks Curly George. I take a lot of pride in my forge-being it belonged to my grandfather. He was not a blacksmith-but a rancher who used it to hot fit horseshoes and bend metal for various projects. When I acquired the forge there was no blower around-so I had to buy one and get creative to avoid the frustration of battling with a blower that would get knocked over or wobble every time I turned the handle. I need a new handle on the blower(wood is cracked), but thanks to zip ties I have survived the ordeal.
PS-the red paint makes it all fit together a lot better-haha.

Looks like a nice setup alright. In regards to your cracked handle, if you know anyone with a wood lathe, they could easily turn you a new handle. It would just take a few minutes is all. If I still had access to one I would make you one and send it to you.

[Frosty]

You can turn the handle with a drill press too. Just be careful not to put much side pressure on it, drill presses don't have thrust bearings and don't hold up to side loading very well.

If you drill a hole down the center of the wood and insert a piece of all thread with nuts on either end of the wood to hold it in place you can then insert one end of the all thread in the drill chuck and the other in a hole drilled in a board clamped to the table to act as a tail stock. You'll have to make up a vertical tool rest that attaches to the table but that shouldn't be difficult.

Once mounted, turn as in a wood lathe holding your tongue at the appropriate angle.

I've also used hand drills clamped to a board as an expedient lathe, same caveat about the bearings. Be gentle and don't do it often or you'll be farther ahead just buying a wood lathe.

Frosty

[mesquiteforge]

Originally Posted by SK-Buckwheat

Looks like a nice setup alright. In regards to your cracked handle, if you know anyone with a wood lathe, they could easily turn you a new handle. It would just take a few minutes is all. If I still had access to one I would make you one and send it to you.

Thanks for the generosity. I have several wooden handles that should fit the blower-from various corn shellers and hand cranked grinders that are out of service. I have just been too lazy to replace them. If I have the time to work-I want it to be at the forge and not on the forge. When it becomes too much of a pain, I'll take the time. I do not have a lathe, but have been looking at some Shopsmith lathes on Craigslist. I will have to try the drill press thing-I never thought of that-I could make a mesquite handle for Mesquite Forge. That would be nifty!