Arbs of the North

WOw. i just learned a lot reading all this.. Thanks From the North!

I am novice also. i'm currently pounding out a large roller bearing between small projects. Big hammer, my big kid swinging 8lbs, and long deep heats have it just starting to upset. I think the first portion of upset leaves very little impression in high carbon steel. . But as we continued it has begun to 'grow'in length and seems to become more maleable. Even the sound of the hammer strike sounds softer now, it still is moving slow. I think the long deep heats are important to creating that plasticity in that hard metal. We add the bearing to our fire edge as we play with our small peices and as the day progresses move it in to just on top of the oxidising layer, till you can see the inside dance yellow with color..then we hit it equal times on all sides. My round roller is square now and just starting to lengthen...Somewere in my future I will build a power hammer to end this madness.

I bougth a bathroom fan blower and it works good enough for now. i think I'd like some more cfm. The one i got pushes 70cfm. The harbor freight fan looks interesting with the three speeds. I also have the brake drum style forge.

Ok cool, I think I'll look for the bathroom fan then! xxxx i threw a power vent away recently, dumb.

Does anyone have a recommendation on a good coal forge blower to put on my 2" air pipe? What is a good CFM for that size?

Thanks guys.. I will take all into consideration. The side draft is interesting. I'm limited in chimney size for the time, I feel power drafting is a must with my small flues. I was planning on a cone vent over the whole deal, but failed to find material or a big enough cone. A shop will roll one for me if I can find some good Ga. material. I may have to break down a buy that light metal I quess, I'd like to go straight up thru the roof with 12" at some point. It is what i would prefer, and will devolop as I can.

I'd like to hear what make electric blowers are the quietest. I might scrounge one off a junk pile for now, but eventually I'd like to buy a good one. Quiet is good. My retirement years are just beginning and I found a hobby that has deep roots in my past work. My access to many a Buddy's scrap piles and my own have led to this forge project. I'm going to send air from my blower into the exhaust pipe on the hood to make a good draw to the chimney. I'll use a gate valve for my firepot air, and always power exhaust when fire is lit. I'll have adquent fresh air ventilation beside the hood, and installed a co2 monitor. With the blower running 80 to a 100% of the time, I'm hoping to buy a quiet one, but one with a good 'breath'. So whats the quiet line of Blowers? Here is were I ended today. Hood parts all on and tacked in, and the brake drum firepot got refractory cement. I have to scrouge up some pipe parts for the blower, get a gate valve, get a blower, and also run a blower line up into the stack on the hood for a power vent.

Wow, great posts!! Never pass up a piece of rebar. I've been practising on rebar, it is a bugger sometimes, putty the next. Mostly smashing out some tongs and fire pokers. I pound out 5/8 rebar ,square it out and go from there for tongs. Leave it round for pokers. After using that stuff it is such a pleasure to go buy and use mild steel for ornamental work.

Every name I liked has been taken. Finally I got personal, used my work nickname and location, Arb's Iron Range Forge. I'm not totally settled on it, but cannot find it taken. I'm a new hobby forge and have very little small hammer time. But my work background has set me up for this type of hobby. I think a fella needs to set his Forge Name up in his craw there a bit and let it stew hey? I like Thunders Forge. Did you search that name?