Smoggy

That coal shelf would also provide a base for a refractory brick fence that you could shape as required for the job in hand. I have a brake rotor forge and the braking surface of the rotor provides this facility.

This may not be a viable proposition but......could electoplating provide a durable, economic alternative?

We used to use a ball of scrunched up news paper as the air pig when lining ducts for cable instalation, blowing it along with the IR comp and we also used the same technique for running cabling up lamp columns, so I suppose it will work in most situations. Any one make light fittings?

Then can I suggest you contemplate using zinc, it can be just as durable as aluminium, little difference in weight and easier still to both cast and machine. Zinc having a lower melting temp than Al can be handled in a simple (but strong steel crucibe) Much of what you think may be cast from aluminium wiil either be aluminium alloy or zinc/zinc alloy. I suggest you also consider investment casting, lost wax system. A cheap rubberized mold can be use to cast many wax copies, which can then be attached together on a main wax sprue and coated in a refractory slip, this is then baked and the wax melted out leaving the refractory mold ready to accept the pour. thus casting many parts in one pour. The majority of jewelry is made via this method. There are many youtube vids demonstrating this technique. The above can be achieved with very basic and reasonably priced equipment, but do take time to study the subject and do not skimp on safety. No dampness near any stage of the process, molten metal and water spells potential major dissaster, wear sutable PPE and be aware of metal fumes, especially Zinc, although if working at the correct temperature it should not be a problem melting zinc,burning it is the main hazard, but always a well ventilated area. If I've not managed to put you off casting, study it further and if you still think it's a good idea ..... just take care! The rubber treads, have a look around for premolded rubber sections there are many shapes and sizes available off the shelf usually intended for seals, such as the bottom of roll down garage doors, fridge door seals, glazing seals etc, it's not inconceavable that there could be just the right section to cut to length and fit nicely into a track section with a sutably adjusted design! Alternatly could a section of appropriately sized rubber tubing possibly be slipped over the track section?

As you haven't actually started yet, you have a world full of options, forges can be anything from a hole in the ground, a brake drum/disc, a wooden box with a clay liner, brick built, or one of Iron Dwarfs excellent "all comes apart and packs down inside itself" forges, side or bottom draft depending on intended fuel which could be coal, charcoal or coke (smokless coal) and the air can be supplied by traditional hand bellows, box bellows, sack bellows, water bellows, hand crank blowers, most electric motors, including hair driers etc.......the options are endless. If you can meet up with ID, you'll find him a helpfull sort of chap and often has many strange and wonderfull goodies up for sale, if you could get over his place, or any of his demo's he'll likely have you making something before you leave. (I should be at the Stratford upon Avon Demo) While you are still in the getting it all together stage, soak up as much info as you can (and be aware there is a fair bit of dross on the web) but plenty of good info to be found here in the old threads.....Oh, and welcome to the site.

Why are you making them out of aluminium?

Looks like things are coming along nicely Andy. Good score on the timber, you may want to add some diagonal bracing to the table, a bit too much activity or weight on it and it may start to evolve into a folding table!

Welcome to the site David, You are going to have to supply a bit more information if you expect anyone to offer an informed opinion....I suggest a few photo's.

You want advice on upgrading 3 major pieces of equipment......but offer absolutely no information on what you intend doing. You have stated than you are new to blacksmithing and seem to have only the basic kit at the moment......hmmm! I suggest you forget the new kit and invest in some practice for a few years, maybe learn to make most of the tools you will be using for what ever section of blacksmithing interests you and by which time you'll likely not need to ask for advice on tool choices.....but I could be way off the mark! Almost forgot .........welcome to the site Jarret,

Coal gas, also knwon as town gas, carburizing coal in a retort produced coke and coal gas which was collected in gasometers and piped to homes before natural gas took over. Burns a treat apparently!

I've just done a little bit of googling before Andy returns to the thread. For the benefit of others, the Forge is located on a commercial site which backs onto the waters, there is a ships chandlers I believe on the same site, public slipway access and a Marina. The area is interspaced with commercial and light industrial areas and residentual buildings as far as I can tell from satelite and street view images. (this is fairly common here in the UK more so in older towns and villages) So some concerns may be mute or at least not so much of a biggy (fingers crossed) It looks like it could well be a good site Andy if things go well, how much room have you got on your plot? and could you have possitioned the forge closer to the water? I would make myself known to the chandlers across the way (If I'm correct in thinking that is what they are) You could find a bit of bread and butter work there, It may not be what you want to do but it could help put bread on your plate! Not all watercraft are made out of plastic these days, there are still many made in steel and wood, requiring often oneoff or obsolete chandlery and that will likely be one of the places owners call into when hunting for them! I'd not be surprised if there is also a steel stockist and coal/coke yard not too far away!!!!

Hi Andy, It may pay to clad the inside of the building with a sound insulation material, some description of fibre matting maybe? The smoke from the forge could be an issue particularly for the buildings on the side, fuel choice may eleviate that somewhat. I'm slightly concerned as regards the hammer producing vibrations and suggest you may wish to contemplate some form of vibration reducing footing. Also you likely have some form of grinders and or saws and some of these can be the very worst of noise creators. Are there any other industrial units on the same site and what buisnesses, they could be making more polution than you! Have you spoken to the neighbours, do they already have problems with other local industries. What would be their preferences for your working hours? If you can at least be seen to attempt to negate any problems before they start, and folks feel they can come to you directly for a chat about a problem, life could be so much easier in the future!

What material are those helmets made from, is it still Hadfield steel?

I am right handed, I use my left hand on the bellows, leaving my right hand free to manipulate both irons and coals. Both my anvils are cuboid which makes them anvildextrous! I can use a hammer in my left hand but not as effectively. When eating I hold my knife and fork in what for me is the correct hands but conventionally wrong.

Good point Sir, I was thinking flux would have been easier to clean out than scale before commencing forging, or at least the majority of it. Maybe i realy should have post posted that part of my train of thought.....DUH!

Would fluxing it with borax prevent or at least inhibit the scale production in the first place. hopefully preventing or reducing the problem before it begins?

Welcome soleil. first thing to do is add your general location to your profile. It may well make a difference depending on where you are on this planet as to what information is relative at least product wise. I'm not familiar with the wire you use, others may be. I was used to using "black burned" rebar tie wire when I was steel fixing and I've never attempted to solder it. Interesting use though! I'm sure one of the more learned members will be along shortly to offer some advice.....I'll stick arround and learn something.

I think I may just have found a use for the rack off the worn out farm jack I was given that is beyond repair. 4ft long with holes every3/4".

Looks similar to some of the Fabco designs.....but then again, it's likely many others did too!

Is there any chance you can combine a couple of molds in one flask? that would cut it down to 4 or even less....may even have time to mold a few spares flasks up "in case" something goes all to pot! ps penny just dropped, it's yourself that's casting the jewelry box isn't it, I've been watching that thread with interest.....

I would have thought, you would have have plenty of time to ram up a green sand mold while the crucible gets up to heat, before you add the bronze and wait for it to reach pouring temp. What may be of benefit, is to practice ramming up molds beforehand, so you can make all those little errors befor casting day.

What was the plating? if it has a nickel underplating, and it's exposed I believe it may give a metalic taste and possibly not good for you. So you may not wish to use that. I'e not tested for taste abd don't intent to, I'll be executing a complete clean before use. The lemony liquid in question contains the following: Limonene, Benzoic acid, Citral, Citronellol, Geraniol. (I think that answers Alan question) I placed a small spot of the lemony liquid on a spoon and in isolation, there was no reaction, same spot incontact with the alluminium pot original result at original speed. Substituting plain lemon juice (acetic acid) also replicated the original reaction althuogh not a intensely. So it would seem, as I suspected, that both Alan and Frosty (and likely many others) have hit the nail on the head, an electrolytic reaction via the acetic acid. Still have no idea what either of the two alloys involved are other than bronze and aliminium. So looked for a few quantifiable samples to play with, as you do when your on a roll...... 99% alluminium, 1.5%, and 3% manganese and an old sample of bb2 (2% manganese/0.25% magnesium) which I understand is equivelent to 5251 ......all very much the same results. So if anyone wants to quickly add a patina to a piece of bronze work, there you go! (I'd avoid anything for culinary use to be safe) So now I have all this cutlery to clean, and worry about erroding away one of my favourate pans, I inherited from my Fathers and is likely older than I. The "product" in question, manufactured by the same company that produces luxury soap named after tanned hide goods of the empire also boasts.....sparklex TM, as an ingredient, (not the window cleaner available to Antipodeans) quoting " for sparkling clean dishes" Well if you have any Bronze platers and aluminium flatwear....DO NOT BELIEVE IT !

I can ellimeate any PFC fumes, as that little incident happened after I noticed the staining Alan, systematic scientific investigations will be conducted today, Seldom, yes there was a small amount of tomato trimmings in the pot, and onion and ........... As an aside, I just had to do a little googling last night, and found the cutlery set on the web, and almost certainly the manufacturer.......Thailand, Bankok, so can now confirm it is bronze, what bronze, your guess is as good as mine! Lemony soap ingredients to follow.

Got to be the bargain of the year!

How hard is the water? I could not answer that Charlotte, it's simply the same water I've been supplied wth my whole life. Other supplies are either harder, softer or the same! However, as there was no water per say inolved in the reaction other than residual veg stock I'd been making the question maybe should be how acid or otherwise was the stock! Silicone bronze alloy, you may well be correct, I have no way to know.