LithiumLogica

Thank you. I really appreciate someone taking the time to remind everyone, once again, no matter how many times we've all been reminded, how dangerous this hobby, work, career can be. I remember Paw Paw Wilson, I know(not personally, but I know -of- him) from anvilfire.com. His was a terrible tragedy and he was someone who KNEW better. It's a sad thing to see someone go, especially when they're such a treasured part of the community. I don't know any of you, most likely, and likely none of you need any reminding about how dangerous the things we toy with can be, but I know how stubborn a person can be and I'm glad there's someone like Woody to remind everyone one more time. Who knows what life may be saved or prolonged because of these warnings. Thanks Woody and I hope everyone takes his post to heart.

Thanks for the welcome. In response to Frosty, I can't really drop more than $100 on a burner and, as my time isn't worth more than minimum wage an hour, I can afford to spend less money and more time. I was hoping I could get away with that much on the whole forge, a hope which has already been smashed. Now, as for patience, yes I have it. Do I enjoy tinkering? Yes, I do like playing with numbers and I don't mind tweaking the burner. That'll help farther down the line, should I have any trouble with the burner, I may have a better idea of what's wrong and how to fix it. So, I think my decision is going to be in favor of the home-built burner. And to Solvarr, I was shooting for around under a hundred dollars. It'd be nice to achieve that, but I'm already up to $140, at least, since I bought some cheapy taps and dies and drill bits from Harbor Freight and only -some- of my material with which to build the burner. I have all the firebricks, the angle iron, the flat bar, and some of the parts for the burner. That leaves me with needing a regulator, pressure gauge, propane tank, hose, some all-thread, some nuts for the all-thread, and the remainder of the burner parts. I was hoping to do this cheaper, but I realize I've over-purchased on several things to be cheaper in the long run. I bought one length of 3/8" roundbar extra when I bought steel, I had to buy my angle iron and flat bar, as well as the round bar, in 20' lengths. I bought some teflon paste when I bought some of my burner parts and spent about $30 on bits, taps, and dies because I don't have but a few. I was asking around for prices on steel and there was this one guy who, when I asked, laughed and said they don't sell anything that small. He did, however, offer to allow me to check out their scrap and drops to see if I'd like to take anything with me. I was looking for the top plate for the weldless firebrick forge from Zoeller's site. I'm really excited about that little break-through. I have/can get basic power tools, but I don't own a lathe, welding machine, or a shop, at the moment. I can make room in -a- shop, for now, though. I already have the angle iron, flat bar, some nuts and bolts(that are the right size), an anvil(a few, if only one good one), I think I own a grinder, but I'm not sure where it is. I'm still in the process of gathering materials and finding my things that have been moved around a bit since last I used them. Anyway, enough from me. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond to me and even though it wasn't so much a question, so much helpful input comes of it. Just for clarification, I will be building the burner myself, but it'll be a while in getting done, since I don't yet have everything I need. I will try to get started preparing everything I do already have. I'll probably be building two gas forges of different design, in the end, because once I've built one, I'll want to improve/tweak/have an extra around. Thanks again!

I'm trying to gather the parts to build a gas forge and I've gotten my firebricks, my angle iron, flat bar(for the frame), etc. I still haven't gotten my propane tank, regulator, pressure gauge, hose, or burner. Now, my question is: is a T-Rex burner worth the money, if I build a forge with roughly 350 cubic inches? I ask because it's either a T-rex burner or something I fab up myself. The one I build myself, I'm certain will not be as efficient and, being that this is a hobby for now, I want to be as efficient as possible so it isn't as much of a money sink(I know it will be, but every little bit helps). I'm also worried, as I haven't checked out prices on all the parts needed, that I won't be able to build a home-made burner for less than half the price of the T-Rex. That would put a huge damper on my decision to save money, because the T-Rex, from what I understand, is more specialized in design and is pretty well guaranteed to work when I get it, saving lots of time and money I would otherwise spend running around town and hardware stores and getting specific tools. I know I can build one for pretty cheap and I know I can get it to work after a certain amount of time tweaking it, but I'm just worried it'd be more worth while to just buy the expensive T-Rex burner and save myself the trouble. I guess I'm not really asking for a definitive answer, but more an open discussion about pros and cons to help me make up my mind. And I have read up on the T-Rex info and Reil burners and such. And if anyone knows any better design than the ones on Zoeller Forge Home Page Gas Forge parts, Atmospheric Burners, and Blacksmithing, cheaper, easier, etc, let me know. So, to top it all off, am I right in being concerned about making the home-made burner?