20 replies to this topic

[walkerironworks84]

Has anyone used "Cowboy" brand hardwood charcoal? If so, let me know how it burns and if anyone likes it. I'll get some of it if the majority thinks it's a good fuel. Thanks guys

[Alec.S]

Persanally i wouldnt use charcoal because of the sparks, expense and size. I use coke.

go to your profile and enter your location. Because there might be a blacksmith from here right around the corner who can tell you where he gets his coal.

sorry for not answering your question.....I just thought this at least would be helpful

alec

[easilyconfused]

As long as it is real charcoal not briquettes, it should work fine. Cost may come into play though as you go through lots of charcoal compared to coal but it may work out cheaper if you don't have an easy supply of coal.

[ThomasPowers]

Yes it's a common brand of lump charcoal used by smiths. I prefer to have a wood fire near the forge and transfer hot coals from it as fewer forge fleas and *cheaper*; but the cowboy brand will work.

[Michael]

I use the Cowboy Brand all the time. Its cheap and its available at the hardware store. Solved a lot of the flea problem by opening up the grate at the bottom of the forge. Couple of big 1/2 inch holes rather than the little 1/4 inch ones it was built with.

[Mick Cain]

Like everyone else say's the "Cowboy Charcoal" will work fine. At some places you can find bigger bags of hardwood lump as it is starting to become more popular for outdoor grilling. I have gone to GFS food service and gotten bags almost twice the size. As a note I was using a bag of "Cowboy" and was putting it into my forge and saw a couple of pieces that didn't look right. I picked them out and they were what I call that plastic wood they use for decking . I reckon it got mixed up with the rest of the scrap lumber they use but it was charred just the same only the ends were melted. You might want to also investigate making your own. I have plans on doing that because of the access I have to hardwood pallets.

[Mick Cain]

Forgot to mention.. There is nothing I do with coke/coal that I can't do with charcoal. but you will burn thru it quicker.

[son_of_bluegrass]

I've used it. It works fine. It does throw more "forge fleas" than some other brands, and less than some. If you're used to coal or coke there are some differences, if you're use to real charcoal you won't have any problems. If you're just starting you can learn fine on it then if you change to coal or coke sometime later you'll have to learn fire management all over again.

ron

[walkerironworks84]

Thanks for all the comments guys. I figured it would burn pretty quick but I've read that it burns more than hot enough

[Black Maple Forge]

son_of_bluegrass, on 13 January 2010 - 11:16 PM, said:

I've used it. It works fine. It does throw more "forge fleas" than some other brands, and less than some. If you're used to coal or coke there are some differences, if you're use to real charcoal you won't have any problems. If you're just starting you can learn fine on it then if you change to coal or coke sometime later you'll have to learn fire management all over again.

ron

I've noticed Cowboy doesn't throw as many forge fleas as Royal Oak, but nothing beats home-made charcoal.

Also, I've heard Charcoal has the exact same BTU's as coal per POUND. So, yeah, it will take more charcoal.

[ThomasPowers]

Since charcoal was the only fuel used until coal started being used for forging in the high middle ages (and coal/coke only started being used for smelting iron in the 1700's!) You can do pretty much everything with charcoal. Traditionally made japanese swords are still forged and forge welded (and smelted) using charcoal.

[Michael]

The Mesquite Charcoal is probably the worst in my opinion for throwing fleas.

[Mark Wargo New2bs]

I've forged a bit with Coal, Corn, and Charcoal (both Cowboy brand and homemade). Cowboy, as mentioned, does throw more sparks than homemade. I used one bag and forged for 4.5 hours, so it cost about $1.50 per hour. Depending on the cost of obtaining other fuels and the frequency of forging that is pretty reasonable when compared to what you would spend per hour on other hobbies.

Mark

[ThomasPowers]

Mesquite is particularly bad as it is a resinous wood and tends not to be fully charred as folks cooking *want* the mesquite smoke flavor---which they wouldn't get if it was fully charred.

I picked up two 55 gallon drums last night to store charcoal in----I'm going to do a smelt this year for sure! (previous use edible oil storage---*always* be wary of what *might* have been in a Barrel!)

[DB IZM]

I just put a bag of Mesquite in today and it was terrible. I had been using home made as I have a fire pit and just quench the coals directly but ran out and a friend had brought over a large 20 lb bag of Mesquite so i used it and it threw fleas every time I raked some new coal in.
To the OP I also used a bag of cowboy just to see how it compared to my home made and there was no difference to me.

[ThomasPowers]

Mesquite is usually very poorly charred as it's used for "flavor" and if it was fully charred there would be no difference between it and any other fully charred charcoal. Being a resineous wood makes it even worse.

*Not* a forging charcoal; but great for grilling.

[Gerald Boggs]

Good Day

Cowboy brand is fine to use. It's not the best, because it's made from scrap lumber and so the sizing can be irregular and sometimes you'll get unburned pieces.

As someone else already posted, look around your area, if you've a restaurant supply store, that's going to be the best place to buy.

One thing a lot of folks forget about charcoal, is it was the fuel of choice for thousands of years. It wasn't until the forests were disappearing that coal was commonly used.
It's still the fuel of choice for Japanese sword smiths and some American smiths prefer it when doing fine work. Tom Latane is one that comes to mind.

Now, if you're going to use charcoal, you might want to consider getting rid of your bottom blast fire box. Since charcoal doesn't need to be "coked" the box isn't needed, using it will result in you using far more charcoal then you need. A simple grate in the middle of a steel plate will work very well. You just let the ash build up a bit and you'll have a fine forge. Clinker is also less of a problem, so no need for a clinker breaker.
This is what Dale Morse of Clayhill Forge has at his school in Waynesboro, Virginia. Alas, I have no photos.

This is my brand of whiskey, drink what you find taste best to you.

[evfreek]

Gerald Boggs, on 05 February 2010 - 11:05 AM, said:

...
Now, if you're going to use charcoal, you might want to consider getting rid of your bottom blast fire box. Since charcoal doesn't need to be "coked" the box isn't needed, using it will result in you using far more charcoal then you need. A simple grate in the middle of a steel plate will work very well. You just let the ash build up a bit and you'll have a fine forge. Clinker is also less of a problem, so no need for a clinker breaker.
This is what Dale Morse of Clayhill Forge has at his school in Waynesboro, Virginia. Alas, I have no photos.

This is my brand of whiskey, drink what you find taste best to you.

Doesn't the fire need to be deeper than a coal fire? I have found that forge welding is much more difficult in a shallow charcoal fire. It seems to require another couple of inches of depth to weld the same way with charcoal. Maybe it's just my technique, but the coal seems to work fine in the standard depth firepots. Making a forge without a firepot seems like going backwards. Sometimes I prop a couple of firebricks up when I am using charcoal. This seems to make sense given the density differences of the two fuels.

[Gerald Boggs]

Not wanting to highjack the thread, but to answer your questions. Remember, this is based only on my experience/opinion and should only be considered one opinion among many.

When using any fire, the depth can be very shallow. I have regularly forge welded in a fire with less then two inches of depth. In fact, years ago, when I was struggling to learn to weld. I went to Dale Morse for help. As I wrote before, he uses a forge without a box. Of the bottom blast forges I've used, I like his the best.

If you're having problems, I think it might be because of change. I find anytime I change from the side-blast I use in my shop to a bottom blast, it takes a little while for me to get a feel for it. I find the same if I switch from coal to coke to charcoal. Each fuel is a little different and has it's own flavor of use. I find with charcoal or coke, I can have a far smaller fire then with coal.

Quote

Making a forge without a firepot seems like going backwards.

Hum, maybe, on the other hand, some of us think, that even using a bottom blast is going backwards :-)

I think they came into common usage, not because "blacksmiths" were using them, but because "Farriers" were. The side-blast and bottom blast without a box, both need to develop the bed. If you're a farrier, you often need to transport your forge. The dirt and ash, makes that hard, both in terms of weight and heat. With the bottom blast box, you just dump out the coals and you're ready to transport. That and the fact, Montgomery Wards and Sears made it so cheap to buy theirs, that everyone did. After a while, folks just forgot there was anything else but a bottom blast fire box forge.

[JohnW]

Some of the older responses mention fleas. I believe you can eliminate fleas by sifting out the fines.