Jeff Coe

Am considering doing that because of space and portability. Also I dont have a post vise yet so it would be cheaper way to go right now. I think its a good idea.

Hey Bryan , I would be in for 500#s if that helps to get things going on ordering the coal. If would be up to helping getting it down to Anchorage or Wasilla if there is interest from down that way also. I am going to be out of town a couple days and will call you when I get back. Jeff

Hey Bryan , I would be in for 500#s if that helps to get things going on ordering the coal. If would be up to helping getting it down to Anchorage or Wasilla if there is interest from down that way also. I am going to be out of town a couple days and will call you when I get back. Jeff

Ive heard that the Chickaloon Native Tribe is the current owners of the land. Their website indicates coal mining as a future activity. I will call the corp office in the morning and see what they think about getting some coal from them. Maybe they already mine some for there own home use. I dont know.. More later.. Jeff

I am still looking for some coal and here is what I have learned.. There is no readily available sourse of coking coal in alaska. There was some coal that came from Chickaloon area but the seam played out several years ago. There may be some left but is it is on private land. I dont know if it was true coking coal but was supposed to be pretty good coal. The coal I have used from Healy works OK but does not coke up so you cant get up to welding heats. I found a couple suppliers for Coking coal on the internet and was going to call in the morning and get an idea of cost plus shipping. One website said there bulk order size is 22 tons!!! Thats alot of coat hooks!!! Thats what I have for now. Jeff

You bet. That is a cool project he has in the boat. He gave me a tour of it a couple years ago. My main worry was that if his anvil floated away in the flood!! Probably not, just wondering.. Jeff

I will make a point to look in on Jake when in Galena next week. Jeff

I suspected there were better grades of coal in the same mine. I have gotten several batches of coal from Healy and everyone of them burns a little different.It would be nice to get good coal from a local source. I am on board for getting some good coal. Whatever I can do to help. On another note I am passing thru Galena next week and wanted to swing in and check on Jake P. (If thats Jake the Blacksmith,youguys are referring to.) Last fall, word was he was doing OK after the flood. His place is right on the bank and got hit pretty hard during the flood I think. Ive met him a couple times out there and never have enough time to really visit with him. More later Jeff

The coal from Healy is Sub Bitumious, as per there web site, but it reads to me as being on the upper end in BTU's for sub bitum... At this point in my training I dont know good coal from bad coal!! I have hammered out all small stuff with it. And several knife blanks. I have had no luck forge welding with it. I hear there are a few guys in town(Fairbanks) that chip in and ship up large amount every so often. Job for tomorrow is see if I can track down a name and there source, and see what the costs would be. More Later Jeff

Hey Rob, I have a 140 and like it. Look at the data plate on the front. Its designed to run on a 20 amp curcuit at 120Volt. When you get out to 100' feet you start to get voltage drop due to distance and then your amps will go up and you may start tripping the breaker. A 12/3 100' cord will probably cause you a lot of walks back to the house to reset the breaker. It does at my house. A 10/3 cord would be more reliable for you. On the fun side, Its been -30 here for the last 10 day. If this welder power is an emergency I could be there pretty quick! Jeff

Thanks Guys.

Found a video by Kevin Potter that was helpful to me concerning rebound vs contruction. My question is on the 4140. It had the poorest rebound but would increasing the mass help the rebound?It was the smallest anvil of the lot. And does hardening the face help with rebound or is hardening mostly done to protect the face of the anvil. I am planning on getting a 100# piece of 5" dia 4140 from the salvage yard for a post anvil, and wondering if I should expect it to be a good anvil. Thanks Jeff

Can you convert it to solar?

Finding an anvil probably holds more of us newcomers back than any other thing in black smithing. When its really is as simple as a 4" bolt. That being said, While at the local salvage yard picking up some angle I asked about any anvils and they said no on anvils but they had a 20' stick of 5" dia 4140 round stock. They would sell it by the foot at $175/ ft and it weighs about 100#/ ft. So a 100# post anvil of good steel for under $200 bucks. Somebody on site here said it does not have to have a horn and a heel to be any anvil.

Thanks

A treadle hammer like that is my next project. What is the weight of your hammer and arm length from the mast to hammer. And would you change it? In searching around I have not seen any recommended or ballpark numbers on hammer weights or general demensions for a project like this. In my world it normally takes me 3 or 4 tries to get things right, I was going to try to get this one done in 2!! Thanks Jeff

I see its an older post but I will jump in. Go to Grianger and look at Draft Inducers. We use them alot on fuel oil furnaces to help the draft on boilers and furnaces. The guys are right if you have a ten inch stack you need at least a ten dia fresh/combustion air coming into the building. The natural draft is just life a siphon once the stack is warm and the warm air is moving the air will sort of siphon up. You just got to get it over the hump,sort to speak. You could have other small problems, prevailing winds, locations of near by building etc. Could be more stack on top to get higher above roof line or peak. That usaully helps most of the wood stove problems I see. Any way just my two cents Jeff

Have bricks ready for the next fire. When I built this fire pot I drilled out the grate, (as many 5/16" holes as I could get in a 3" dia ) rather that cut out the grate and weld in some bars. Seemed easier at the time. I am not sure I like the airflow. Maybe I am over thinking it also. I am running this forge with a hand crank champion blower. Is there a best design for air flow into the fire pot? Every conclusion I come to, leads to another question to ponder!!! Jeff

Hey Thanks, I get chicken food from Ak Feed, never thought to ask there... Healy coal does get hot enough. I had a horse shoe burn in half while I was side tracked. Just lots of clinkers. New forge fired today. Built one with about 10x14 by 3 1/2 deep fire pot. I can already see I will be using alot more fuel. But what fun is a hobby if its cheap! Thanks again. Jeff

I am pretty sure all the coal we can buy from in state soarses comes from Healy. The coal from Healy heats ok to good, but has lots of clinkers also. I get about 30 minutes then have to dig out a dome of glass to get the air back. The coal from Sutton reads to be a better grade of coal for blacksmithing. I was wondering if anybody down there had a soarse of it to try. I am burning coal and lump charcoal for for the adventure of it right now.

That will be a great anvil. My first anvil was a 5" dia 24" long piece of drill stem. I welded a piece of 1" ID square tube to the side for a hardy. My current anvil is a 135# farriers anvil. I did not realize how good the drill stem anvil was tell I got the new one. Heat up some some metal and have fun...Jeff

Intro.. Name is Jeff, living in Fairbanks. I have been playing with a homebuilt coal forge for several months and using the local coal. What do you guys think of the coal we get from Healy? Is there a supply of coal that is better for smithing, here in Alaska? Thanks, Jeff