Glenn

The analysis tells the story. Ash: impurities consisting of silica, iron, alumina, and other incombustible matter, left over when coal is burned. Volatiles: Smoke etc As blacksmiths, we want to buy heat. BTU's = HEAT. IF we wanted rocks, cllinker, or ash, or we should go to the gravel yard and buy rocks. Let's say you have a pound of 15,000 BTU/lb coal, and a pound of 13,000 BTU/lb coal. Divide 15,000 by 13,000 and you need 1.1538 pounds of 13,000 BTU/lb coal to give the same heat as a pound of 15,000 BTU/lb coal. This is 2307 pounds of 13,000 BTU/lb coal per 2000 pounds of 15,000 BTU/lb coal. That is a 300 pound difference in just BTU's. With the 100 pounds bags selling for the same price, so you have to buy 23 bags of 13,000 BTU coal or 20 bags of 15,000 BTU coal to get the same amount of heat. If there is a 1% ash difference between coal samples, that is 20 pounds of rocks, clinker, ash and junk per ton that you pay for but can not burn and provides no heat. Sort of like the fellow putting a cinder block in the bed of your truck before he adds the coal. When you calculate the money you pay for heat (BTU's) it makes things easy to understand. Or do you want to pay top dollar for this wonderful material that is left in the forge after the fire !! BTU: the heating value, determined in terms of BTU both on an as received basis (including moisture) and on a dry basis. Calorific value: expressed in Btu/lb on a dry basis.

Good coal for blacksmithing is low ash, low sulfur, high BTU coal of a usable size for the forge. The numbers suggested for good coal are less than 7% ash, less than 1% sulfur and above 14,000 Calorific Value in BTU's. These are not hard numbers but guidelines. Available analysis shows ash content of coals listed from 3.7% to 22.4% ash, sulfur from 0.4% to 3.3% , and BTU's from 8,467 BTU's to 15,500 BTU's Calorific Value. Many blacksmiths like the Pocahontas No. 3 coal. Analysis from one sample of this coal from the Penn State coal sample database shows the following numbers. Type : Low Volatile Bituminous (lvb) State: WV Ash : 7.44% Sulfur: 0.64% BTU :14542 Volatile : 15.70% Carbon: 92.42% Reflectance: 1.8 Seam : Pocahontas No. 3, There is a Pocahontas No. 3 in Virginia that has 15,006 BTU, and a Pocahontas No. 3 in West Virginia that has 13,953. Pocahontas No. 3 coal is not all the same due to the way it was formed. You have to look at the analysis to be sure what you are getting, is what you want. The analysis is usually available from the coal company when buying coal. Additional reference: BP0051 Good Coal BP0131 Coal, Coke, and Rocks

As it is the fall season in the USA, when was the last time you checked the fluid levels in your vehicles? That is the oil, the radaitor for fluid and antifreeze, the tranny fluid, the diferential fluid, brake fluid, turn signal fluid, greased the greasable joints, and checked the battery fluid. Did you check the air pressure in the tires and the depth of the tire's tread? Just a reminder to check things now when you can easily go to the auto parts store for supplies or get tools from the garage. You do not want to get caught out on the road in bad weather. For those in the "other" side of the world, the same is ture only you have the heat to deal with as your entering your summer season.

What is a good way to get rid of mice in the smithy? The weather has turned wet, and cold will follow. Then the mice will start looking for a home for winter. I just want to be prepared for them this year.

What about when the trailer starts "road walking", that is swaying from side to side on a straight section of road. Slow down and it gets worse, speed up and it gets worse. Now what do you do. I found this house trailer frame that was converted to a duel axle trailer. Would it be considered overloaded?

Andy, is it not a cat fight, far from it. I see it as a discussion on "container damascus" that not only covers the subject, but also discusses how to survive the process. Thomas, Woody, Garey and others are knowledgable people, having been there and done it. Woody, Rich, and others know the safety aspect, and the results of poor judgment. Everyone is encouraged to add their opinion based on facts and or experience. The bottom line is open discussion, and everyone being able to go home with all their body parts in the proper places at the end of the day.

Welcome to the site Larry. If you have questions, just ask.

Thomas, you are correct, as it is NOT a pipe bomb as the term is used in 2006, and I most likely did over react in my estimate of devistation. Thank you for bringing that to our attention. To clear up any confusion I suggest that we call this process "conatiner damascus" in the future. A "welded" pipe (assuming a good weld) is a sealed container. As you pointed out water being included in the sealed container will "create steam and have a lot of gas for expansion *then* you are setting it to have enough energy to do some damage." I have not seen any specifics on this process, such as how much moisture can be present in the raw materials, how large a hole to leave in what size pipe for the gasses to escape, the wall thickness of the pipe, tubing, or container, and other important details that I would WANT to know before I started this type project. My point is that sealed containers are unforgiving, whether it is a 55 gallon drum, or pipe with the ends "capped and welded." I would much rather err on the side of caution and warn anyone about dangers than have the first person hurt. Container Damascus Thin wall tubing is much different from schedule 40 or schedule 80 pipe. One question that we need to address is what is the wall thickness of the container that is being used?

The kill zone of a pipe bomb is greater than you realize. The injury zone from the concussion and the shrapnel is well beyond your personal space. If you survive, there is the police and BATF to deal with, as well as being labeled a "person of interest" or a terriorist. This is the point where EVERYONE needs to caution each other against the known dangers of certain actions. Individuals need to recognize the wisdom of those who are trying to protect us.

Knob and tube The oldest wiring system that may still be acceptable, and one still found fairly often in houses built before 1930, is "knob and tube." This system utilizes porcelain insulators (knobs) for running wires through unobstructed spaces, and porcelain tubes for running wires through building components such as studs and joists.

BP0164 Small pry bar BP0165 Pry bar from car parts I would prefer ANY bar to bend rather than break. When a bar breaks, you are usually off balance and end up on the ground, and the bar throws both big and little pieces of shrapnel. If the bar is "soft", only the bar suffers a case of the bends. We need some help from the engineering types on calculating the pressure on the opject when using a pry bar. Show us the formula and give us an example to work with, say a 32" bar and a 100# pull at a 2" fulcrum. What happend when we use a 62" bar instead?

Thanks for the report Tyler, several of us have been concerned.

But let's say you want a little better and have a couple extra dollars to spend. The 175# anvil is $200 The large forge is $350 Forge $350, vise $100, Anvil $200 = $650. Use the pan forge (above) and it brings the price down to $400. Throw in a bag of coal and a match and you are in business. Hammers and other tools are available. These are real numbers from the fall of 2006. All the items were for sale and being sold. Blueprint BP0300 shows you how to build your own forge, and other Blueprints show you how to build your own hammers, tongs, and other tools.

I just came back from a hammer in. While there I looked at just what it would cost to get a forge, vise and anvil to get started in blacksmithing. For $150 you can get a nice pan forge with a blower For $15 you can get a rail road anvil The small vise is $20 the larger vise is $100. $150 for forge and blower, $15 for an anvil, $20 for a vise = $185

Rich, Go to the post in the gallery and right click on the photo. Click on "properties" then Copy the "location" (bottom) URL. Now go to the forum where you post your text and type in . It should look like this: This will place the image into the post. Below the text box (where you type your comments) click on "manage attachments" and insert the URL you copied from above into the "Upload File from a URL" box and click on upload. This will put the thumbnail at the bottom of your post. To add additional photos, repeat as needed. Hope this helps.

Let's brainstorm a bit, who uses 6" and larger pipe that would have drops? Pipeline companies, chemical industry, water company, sewer company etc etc. Drilling rigs maybe. Look for a grease drum from the local garage. What about an old hot water tank? They come in different diameters, just strip off the tin skin, strip off the rigid insulation and you have a thin wall pipe. CAUTION: Be careful when you cut into any closed container. Explosions can occure.

Welcome Fabien. Ask the questions and we will try to get you an answer. Many times it helps to post a photo with the question so we can better see the problem. Post photos of your work in the gallery so we all can enjoy then. Welcome to the site.

Look at blueprint BP0252 Spoon Gouge and BP0054 Forging a small drawknife

BP0002 Junk Yard and Rail Road Steels

Choper sorry to hear of the leg problems, but now that the "fix" is installed, take things slow till it mends properly. Another couple days of not lifting, running etc on this end will mean you CAN do that type stuff later.

Usually in the next bin down the line they will have black iron pipe fittings - no galvanized.

Welcome to the site. See the Blueprint BP0300 to get some ideas. My suggestion is to start, build a simple forge and put a fire in it. While you are playing in the new fire, you can get a feel for things, and decide what you want in a 2nd forge. A simple forge should serve you well and allow you to tell some great stories later. When I started blacksmithing ...... Over the weekend, I saw a nice pan forge with blower for $100, a heavy duty forge at $350, a 5" post vise weighing maybe 75# for $100, and a 175# anvil for $200. The anvil was not in perfect condition but was certainly usable. With a bag of coal you could have a nice set up for about $400 or with a larger and heavier forge the set up would be $700. All these items can be purchased brand new.

There has been major earthquakes with numerous aftershocks in Hawaii. We hope that Tyler Gold is safe and sound. If anyone has heard from him or other smiths in the area, please post here.

I am not sure how this was used, only that it was not the correct way to use an anvil.

Welcome to I Forge Iron. Please post your events, hammer-ins, announcments etc here so others can keep up with what you are doing. You are encouraged to use this forum to stay in touch with your membership and talk with them about blacksmithing related material. You can place photos into your posts on the forum. Please use the "attach photos" button under the text block where you enter your post. You have a "members" folder under your name for the general photos from your organization. Please contact me when you have photos from your events, and I can set up a folder for that event in the gallery so all photos from that event are in one place for easy viewing. Enjoy your new forum. Glenn