Adez0

We started seeking a block of steel some two months ago to use as an anvil, but then we heard that they were selling these cheap anvils in a hardware store nearby. We went to buy one and they told us that they were out of anvils at the moment and that they would get more in a week. So we waited the week and they said it would take another week. This happened a couple of times until they said it would take at least another two months! At that point we realised we would have start looking for something else again At the moment we are so excited about blacksmithing that we are inclined towards buying one of those more expensive anvils because even those substitutive steel blocks are hard to find. Our patience is running out.

There is no sand added. It is only that heat resistant stuff (plaster/mortar/something?) used in the inside of a fireplace for example. We wanted to be sure that it would expand in the same pace as the metal of the lawnmower when heated to avoid cracks and such.

Thanks for the encouraging replies everyone And thanks for the brick advice frosty. We propably need to do just that in the future.

Yep, it's made from the body of a lawnmover, the leg part of a school desk, two empty cans of paint, the grating of a stove, defa car preheater (as the blower), a switch for the blower, some nuts and bolts and some mortar. Except the mortar and the switch, everything else was various junk that me and my brother found lying around our dad's yard. And guess what, it summed out to a working forge. All that was needed to make it was some serious improvisation:) It may not be pretty but I am very proud of it. Me and my brother tested it today and it exceeded our expectations. We were really surprised how well the blower system turned out. Ok, enough said. Below are some pictures. Pic 1: When the mortar was cast and the blower system wasn't installed yet. Pic 2: Blower installed and ready to go. Pic 3: The blower system. Made from paintbuckets and a car preheater. We "neutered" the preheater so that it doesn't warm the air and that it doesn't use so much electricity. Pic 4: Up and running. As said: no complaints. Works like a charm. pic 5: Our temporary anvil lol! It is so hard to find a reasonably priced anvil around here. (Any finns out there with an anvil for sale? ) The forge is easy to repair and to enchance if needed so I think it will serve us good as our first one. Questions or suggestions? Happy to receive and answer them.

Nice gong mate. As a musician of some kind I cannot help to wonder whether you were able to make it ring some certain tone? And if, how? I have sometimes thought that a gong would make a great addition to my bands drumkit and what would be cooler than to make one myself! Oh yes and this is my first post so hello everyone! I got excited about blacksmithin' when I saw an old time blacksmith in an outdoor market some six months ago (I bought one of these from him. It's the logo of my favorite band).