SomeGuy

I have a HF welder but that's because I'm too broke for anything better. I agree with what others say, buy a quality welder if you can afford it, ot have time to save up for a good one.. You might think about longevity brand welders. They have a 200 amp Mig and Stick duel process welder for about $700 and that seems like a great deal to me. It also has a 60% duty cycle.

Wayne, you have a ribbon burner. Excellent. I wanted to ask about those. I know theese type burners are said to heat the forge more evenly, but what about fuel consumption? How much fuel does your forge use? Also, how big are your forge openings? How small can I make them if I use a ribbon burner? Andy, The theory concerning BTU output seems logical. However, it also seems that if we are using more BTU's than is necessary then we are wasting fuel. This is exactly the question I'm searching answers for. If we have a lot of energy (dragons breath) escaping from the forge openings then that's wasted energy and wasted fuel. I know a forge must breath properly, but I'm looking to make it as efficient as possible. If that means finding a burner that I can use at lower BTU outputs then that's what I want. But I'm not sure what is needed to accomplish this goal though. I want to limit the amount of energy that is wasted as it escapes out if the forge openings. This is my whole search in a nutshell.

Thanks again.

Sorry Frosty, I guess that was a poor choice of words on my part, and I misunderstood what you were saying too. Anyway, that forge is over $800 and i cant afford it. Thanks for your time

Frosty, I suspected that there might be some competing innuendo in this thread. That's ok. I just thought I might pick your brains for a bit. Look at this image, do you see the tapered pipe in the plumbing between the burner and forge? Does this serve a useful purpose or it is cosmetic only? Does it serve to create a vortex in the gas air mixture? Can you explain why this forge is plumbed this way? Or can you show me something similar so I can understand this concept better? I just love this forge. I love the design. I want to build my own, only use ceramic wool or ceramic insolation board, instead of whatever they are using for insulation. I'm trying to understand the burners design better though.

Thank you iron dwarf, will do.

Did I misunderstand the "swirling" thing? Were you referring to the flame inside the forge swirling, or were you referring to a vortex inside the gas and air mixing chamber? Or both? I'm confused. I don't have your book, but if you wouldn't mind sharing some schematics or pictures it would be appreciated. Thank you.

Ok, I'm going to stop using the quote feature. I hate that messy quote merge thing. Anyway, Mikey, after reading your first few posts in this thread topic, this sounds all Greek to me. I am very interested in what you say about the swirling action of the gas and air mixture. That's why I posted that link with the expensive farriers forge, because it seemed to have some special plumbing after the burner. You words reminded me of that and so i posted it hoping to get an opinion on the burner design. I'm just looking for a good design. Do you have an schematic or picture of a properly built burner that I can see? I would like to see these ideas you are referring to.

Well at least that 2" exhaust port gives a little better idea of what I might expect. Thanks. I'll check out Mickeys posts, as you suggested.

Thanks for clearing that up. I kind'a began to understand that dragons breath referred to "flames and heat" instead of an actual forge. I began to understand this as a read another topic on this website not long after I posted my last comment. I'm now understanding that small and well insulated is better, and that small forge openings are better, but I'm not sure how small I can make those openings and still maintain safety. If I use a ribbon burner will this mean I can make smaller openings in my forge without worrying about some kind of safety hazard? I guess I just need to know what kind of burner will be efficient, (if there is a burner that's a cut above the rest), and I need to know how small I can make my forge openings.

Yup, you're correct frosty. I'm in Ohio USA

Thanks Frosty. I am considering a ribbon burner. I'll check out that little dragons breath forge too. I'm not into jewelry, so a torch wont work for my forging needs, although I have an oxy/propane torch for cutting thick steel and heating as well. I did see the hydrogen torch though, on youtube, and I wondered if a hydrogen burner would heat a forge. If it would it might be a good fuel source. However I could blow myself up too because I have no idea about hydrogen gas. Any idea if its possible to use hydrogen to heat a forge? You could generate your own hydrogen with a generator and electricity, I know that much

Thank you for the reply. I use to think I needed a huge forge, you are correct. However after I built a small forge I saw how much propane they used, and that's when I decided I needed something efficient. I could build 2 forges, a small one and medium sized one, I guess. I was wondering if the design in the link I posted might be good. I want to forge odd shaped things such as rings for example. I'll need something more than just a small blade forge, I need to build it myself too. I would love to talk with someone who has a really good burner design that he would share with me. I also would love to know how small I can safely make the forge openings. I believe much fuel is wasted as the heat rushes out the from of the forge. I know there is a safety concern here but I saw a good thread written by a gentlemen on this forum which seemed to suggest that small openings are better because you don't need to use as much heat that way. I would have asked him questions but I don't think he posts here anymore. Amen brother, that's what I'm saying. Where's the beef? I want to build a really efficient forge. Not to have the greatest forge around, but because the cost of propane is a big concern of mine. I need super efficiency. A small blade forge will be ok for some things, but I need a more versatile forge as well. I'm looking for a good design to mimic. Did I accidentally merge our replies? Or is that a default thing that happens? If it was my fault, I'm sorry.

I'm not sure what you mean. I didn't see any replies to the topic and I thought I would add one. There really isn't much more to it than that. I was interested in his offer until I saw he was England. I just thought I would leave a reply and thank him anyway. AS far as leaving my location goes, I don't really trust the internet anyway, so maybe i'll just leave that out. I hope you understand.

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I need a good forge for general blacksmithing. I see so many forges and burners, and I need a good design. I need something that is super efficient. Please, if you don't mind, show me your forge and burner, and tell me how much gas it uses on average, Thank you

Hi. I m new to the forum. I would like to ask a question if I may. What is the most efficient burner I can use in a medium sized forge? I'm looking to use the least amount of fuel as possible. Fuel conservation is a top priority for me. This forge (see link below) boasts of being the among the most efficient but it has a hefty price tag, and I'm a DIY guy anyway, I prefer to build my own. I do like the design of this forge though, and if its as good as they say it is, then maybe I can build my own version of it. What kind of burner is this? It has a tapered gas line running between the burner and forge. Is this for mixing the gas and air? http://www.hypona.com/forgeeng.html

sorry, I'm in a different country. Thanks anyway