bmazingo

Hey guys, I am still waiting for my materials to complete the big forge. I did however throw together s small tank forge. I got some refractory mix from work (free). It is called ONE SHOT non asbestos ...... That is all I could make out on the bag since it is in such bad shape. They used to use it for the boiler at work. I binged/googled it and I think it is a gunnable refractory mix.
Anyway, I mixed it with water like my co-workers said they did, and it turns into a semi putty like stuff. So I smeared it on the inside of my helium tank. Looked pretty good but the roof sagged a little when I warmed it.
I had to warm it in my oven since the outside temps are sub freezing right now. Started with a blow dryer then into the ovenat 170 for 5hrs and then up to 220 for a short time. Seemed to set up firm but the roof pulled away from the tank. I think I can just slide the burner down further through the collar.
I am going to let it set the rest of today and try firing it at low heat this evening. I think it will work for now. This is going to be fun.
I really am excited about the big forge though, I will be glad to see that box when it gets here.

I also got my first book about blacksmithing, a Christmas gift from my brother. The Art of Blacksmithing, by Alex W. Bealer.

Mr. Hoffman, I think I paid about $100 for the blanket, the shipping is what killed me.

So what did you pay for the blanket and where did you get it?
1/4" mortar will be a waste of mortar, even if you have a lot of it. The problem with mortar is when it does break apart, it pulls blanket with it. If you are going to use mortar, just use a thin coat.
Go back and look at the photos I posted as well as sent to you. Point the burner tips down, slightly. The angle should cause the flames to glance off the bottom, which should be a hard refractory over 2 inches of blanket. If you point the flame directly at the blanket, it will actually wear it out. But don't make the inside too small, regardless of burner numbers.
Don't get too excited and in too big of a rush, follow the info I sent. If you are in a big hurry, build one following the info I sent you. Don't try to re-engineer things until you get one up and running, and use it for a while. There is lots of info out there, follow one to get your first system together. Then you can try variations with the extra materials.

I am pretty new to blacksmithing but I have been working on engines for a while. I thought it interesting how different methods were used for case hardening. The automotive parts industry case-hardens camshafts in a similar fashion to painting on clay. Some actually coat the areas that are not hardened with a coating containing copper, Mopar used a purple paint-like chemical. Just thought it was a neat comparision.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from me and my bunch here in Alabama. I hope Santa brings me a 3lb hammer, cause I've been sooooo good this year!

Ordered my blanket today, got the 1" 8lb density. Man that stuff is high, and the shipping is not to great either. I did not get any rigidizer but I got some air dry mortar that is for 3200F I think it will work for the coating. I also got my u-bolts today so tomorow I will make my mounts for the burners. I will be sure to take my time. So far it looks really good.

I told my brother I was going to call the gas company and see about getting a residential tank later. I have a feeling I am gonna be using a lot of gas, this stuff is really got me excited.

I was wondering if I pointed the burners up instead of down, would it be as efficient? I can do either way.

I really dont want to cut my shell in two. The type if pipe I used tends to spring outwards really bad when it it split. I know it will be harder to work on and I will be limited to what size work I can do but I can always split it later if need be. I am planning on 2-3" of blanket and 1/4" of mortar over a thin skim coat.

I am sure I will have more questions soon.

That venturi burner should work fine. You can tune the mixture some by moving the tip in and out of the venturi to change how much air is induced. There are some neat bottom fired vertical forge designs that are flexible. You can take the top off and do flat sheets if you need that way.

Get one forge up and running, then start the next or you won't get either done.

Phil

Hey guys, I didn't get to fire it up today. Will try again tomorrow. I did manage to find enough spare/scrap parts and time at work to make my first venturi burner. I have a small helium tank in m shop and I thought I might make a mini-forge if I have enough material left over from the big one.

I know it is probably not exactly right but it seems to be very efficient. I used a #1 victor heating tip for my jet. I probably should have went smaller, but it is the same size as a .045 mig tip (or very close). The rest is pipe and old iron fitting that I smoothed on the inside. The tip is adjustable with set screws. I made the tip out of a larger piece ofr pipe that I belled with a torch. Pictures were at 5 psi. It works okay for free.

Thank for the info. I am trying to find some u-bolts around my shop to mount my burners. I made the opening in the body large enough to allow me to pack wool around them, but also allow me to adjust the angle of the tips either up or down. I am hoping to fire it up tonight with just the shell. Want to see it on fire plus I am going to get some BBQ grille paint and heating the shell will help set the paint.







Just a few pictures, nothing is fastened yet. I made the mso I could take it off the cart and set it on a table or bench while I work on the lining. The mount also slides front to back on the cart. I still have to put my work surfaces on the cart.

I also told you all the wrong measurement for the length. Main body is only 14" long, the two caps are about 2" (not counting what overlaps the body). So my total chamber length will be more like 18" instead of 20".

Jymm is the expert on these burners of course, but I wouldn't add a third nozzle. You have plenty of burner for that size forge. It's much harder to get a stable flame in open air. The forge chamber even when cold will help keep the flame going. Once it gets hot, its not an issue at all since the mix will ignite from contact with the hot walls. You just need one setting that is stable so you can get a spot in chamber to orange. I don't understand your fixed bypass scheme. You will need to run the forge at different settings for different temps. This means some kind of adjustment to the air as well as the gas.

Looks good. Slightly rich perhaps. Blue is neutral which is about where you want to be. The flame isn't stable. It's separating from the tip. But none of this matters. This burner is designed to run inside a forge chamber where you will judge the mix by the exhaust.

I talked to him tonight, he said the last they cast were for local people and they were $2 per pound.
As far the machining I don't know but the alloy and the heat treating would be right, ESCO specializes in hard alloys from start to finish.

Oh yeah while I was at the scrap yard to day, I found this old burner.




Can any one of you tell me for sure what this for? I am thinking it came out of an old heater. Looks like it will still work. Needs a valve and regulator. Man they just don't make thing like this any more.

I was thinking about using it in a heater for my shop, cost me a whole $1.

I have a BURNER!!!! And it is hard to keep it lit in open air especially with 15mph gusts. But when the wind is down it is great. 1/2-1 psi works good. Blower is a little over kill. I think a third tip would work good.




I will try to get a few pics after dark. What type of flame am I looking for. The flame when I get it adjusted just right alomost completely blue, no orange or yellow. I am excited!!!!!

Now to get some insulation for ths thing.

I think I got about $1.25 for the brass and $2.80 per # for the copper, something like that. Some of the copper went as #2 because of the guage.


As far as the new anvil, I am hoping he can pull a few strings and slip it in on a production run. Probably take about 200-225# to cast once you allow for your risers and waste. A drop in the bucket compared to what they pour a day, close to 100 tons. But this is all wishfull thinking. He has some pull, depends on wether he really wants to use it. He is a good fellow so it may actually happen

I may ask him about a larger quantity an see if the mill "higher-ups" might be interested. Could be a good venture.

Oh yeah, I did find a nice set of forklift forks 3" thick x 8" wide but he wouldn't let them go either, maybe because they actually went to his lift, LOL.

I was at the scrap yard this morning selling my copper and brass collection. I was walking around the yard and I look in the bed of and old truck and BEHOLD an anvil just setting there. I got really excited, granted this thing was a total piece of crap but it was an anvil all the same. felt like about 50 or so pounds.



Got to the scale house to pay for it and the owner said "oh no, we don't sell those!". I ask him why not, it was on the yard. He said he keeps them, he has 7 or 8. I thought to my self "yep you probably take them to the flea market and jack the price up.

Dang!!!!!!!!![sorry for the original word] I tried to talk him out of it to no avail. But he put me on the "I want one list". It was really ragged, looked like it had been beat on every square it of it even the sides and bottom. No marks or numbers probably old cast iron but who knows. Had a hardy hole and the round hole on the rear about 1" from each other.


But all is not lost. I talked to my father in law, who just happens to work at ESCO in Newton,MS. He said he thought they cast some 175# once, heat treated and all....and.....he would look and see if the still had the stuff to make the molds. If so he may could pull some strings. But no promises.

Correct, 1/2 copper will be fine, if you get the rubber propane approved stuff, you can more easily move the forge around the shop. I used copper and black iron for several years, before putting my forges on carts with wheels. I love my forge carts on wheels!

Hope your boys are feeling better soon.

If you have another 2" T and plug, or nipple and cap, I would suggest changing out the elbow that is closest to the burners. Take another look at my 3 burner, same method used for 2. If you review my email, this is recommended as the abrupt change helps to mix the fuel and air as well as equalizing the pressure along the manifold. When I used elbows, I would normally have to open one burner tip in the initial firing. The smooth flow normally shoots the gas and air past the first burner. If you don't have another T, try it, You may have enough distance and the plugged T at the end may be enough.

Don't be disappointed if you have troubles keeping the burners lit in an open air test. It may take a few tries to find the balance in how much air to how much gas to put into the mix. This is different than when inside the forge.

Finished up my burner tonight. I loose fitted all the pipe and joints. Use 2" for the new tips and for all the metal piping. Have a 2" ball valve to control the air and a 1/2" ball valve to control fuel.

I also aquired a blower. It is the type used on the smaller inflatable slides, designed for contined use. Draws 5.5 amps of 120v. This thing puts out some air and has pretty decent pressure. Only down side is it has a plastic housing. I will just pipe it further away and maybe protect it with some sheet metal. I am going to try to do an open air test of the burner tomorrow. Man I hope this thing cooks.

Here is my burner, it turned out pretty good, still have to test fire it. I may extend it to a 3 tip design by adding another tee on the end where the plug is.


I really lucked up on my fitting arrangement, I can change the tip sizes from 1"-1 1/2"-2" depending on what I need or how they work.


Here is the 1" tip with 0.100" opening.

Hey!!!!! That's a pretty nice anvil. I like it!!!!!

My brother lives in VA and said, if I understood him correctly, he saw this one in person and the man wanted $1200 for it. It was not in quite as good of shape as he was led to believe so he passed it by.

Thanks guys, I have looked at many designs on this site. I wish I could find a forklift tine, but they don't just break that often. I hit our's at work with a ball peen hammer and it barely left a mark. If I could find one that would be ideal.

The 1-1/2 plate is about 20x20 but their are some holes close to the edges. The center is nice and hole-free, I could use that for the face by welding it to the existing face. Maybe put a a couple of peices under the edges for supporting the face. Thing would probably weight about 200lbs since the 1-1/2 plate is about 150lb by itself.

Anyway thanks for the help. I am still looking.

What do you think about having a fire brick that can be slide up or down the change the size of the forge openings?

This is a common misconception many have. While the bricks may make it smaller inside, they will take fuel to heat up.

I completely believe you that it was your brother dinged the anvil ....
The one thing I dont like about your anvil is that there is no backup for the top plate which is just sitting on that webbing (I guess its a piece of plate welded in). If you can find something compact and blocky whether MS or tool steel, it will work much better than what you have now.