Shogun71

Due to the unseasonably warm weather I broke out the forge and gave it another shot... It's just not for me. Between a wonky back and wrist and reconstructed shoulder, physically it's pretty demanding. For sure solid fuel is not my thing. Forging also just does not give me that oohhhh feeling some of my other hobbies do. It was certainly fun and I learned a lot. Thank you everyone who answered my questions. knife making is still a potential but for that it would likely be stock removal and the forge would only be for mild artistic things and heat treating. I'm putting this all on hold till the spring but the forge is up for sale...

Ok, it's all chopped up into 1.5" x 1.5" cubes! ill fire everything up tomorrow morning!

By the grace of the weather gods it is supposed to be beautiful tomorrow. 15 deg C or more. Unseasonably warm with no pressing chores or other things to do... The forge is coming out for my second go at metal work.... I do have a large stock of Tamarack/Larch cutoffs from a project that have just been sitting for a few years. Everything is primed to burn. In the past when we used it for firewood I noticed it burned hot! So I figure I might as well use it all up and save my limited supply of coal. I found using scrap last time did not work as the pieces were too big. I now plan on cutting things down. My research leads to cubes 1" x 1" but that is a lot of time at the saw and unnecessary wear on blades as this wood is hard! I'm leaning to strips 1.5" wide and breaking them up with a hatchet to semi cube shaped. Any suggestions? These are the 2x4 bits that are 2.25"x4.25"...

I have been in contact with the sounding stone and they only have the soft insulative blanket, kiln shelf, and fire bricks. They are working at getting ITC-100 but it is apparently difficult to nail down a supplier in Canada. They also do not have rigidizer. They did warn that the ITC-100 and rigidizer is not very tolerant of freezing regardless of what the manufacturer says. I will likely need to wait till spring now!

I'm working on some ideas and sources!!! Now I have to figure out the proper size of container. I don't drink coffee and my welder does not have a power source yet and is in a storage trailer... If this is promising and works reasonably the maybe I will buy a larger burner and work from there... Talking this out has definitely helped!!! Thank you for not killing me!!!

I'm going to do some research but looking at the coffee can forge with a propane torch nozzle looks promising! i have one of those torches already. This would at least give me a feel for a gas forge! I could try some small stuff out and see how it goes. Ill look around for some kaowool, rigidizer, and refractory cement..... Theoretically I could get all this done up for less than $200? That I can live with if it is not my thing.

Yes, 3-4 times! That is why I want to try a gas forge! The issue is due to my location shipping, duties, and taxes make anything twice as expensive as what you see in the U.S. I am also not comfortable making gas appliances with open burners and such. Just my level of comfort and knowledge. If you need a garage built or custom carbon fiber prototype made I'm there. My real job is in healthcare and I have seen too many bad injuries related to fuel burns and explosions. To start from scratch and work through it all for how much I will use it is a limited effort to benefit ratio.

Nothing that is even close to me. I'm in the very middle of Canada...

So this weekend is supposed to be really nice but I can't fire up the coal forge due to taking my daughter to events all over the city for winter sports. I would love to get a nice little gas forge I could put on a wheeled stand and whip in and out of the shop and not worrying about letting things cool off so I can put the cover back on... The issue is that a decent one would be close to 1K delivered and ready to use. I am not comfortable playing with gas plumbing, although the design idea would be cool but I have nowhere to weld right now... There is also a very small blacksmithing community locally so no communal shops to use (there is one one province over... but that is 6-8 hour drive one way!). Sorry, just venting. It's very frustrating where I live. Also RC plane and heli season is over so I can't even go out and do that right now!

I'm one of those idiots that needs to be despised since my interest in blacksmithing was started after watching highlander and restarted due to watching forged in fire. And yes, I would like to make a sword, pole arms, and knives.... Please feel free to flog me at your will and remove my account from this site. Or, embrace us idiots and help us grow and understand other parts of the craft.

Awesome! Im a total beginner to blacksmithing but experienced in building.... are you not a wee bit close to that one wooden pole? After firing up my forge I was amazed at the radiant heat. Over time that pole will carbonize from the repetitive heating and either burst into flames or fail structurally...

Ok, I think I'm back on the bandwagon with solid fuel and may have found a source for 50lb bags of coke... My understanding is that if you get 50 pound of coal that has to be heated and the volatiles "burned off" to form coke which is what you really want to burn for the best heat... So if the price is the same therefore 50 pounds of coke would be better than 50 pounds of coal right??

Ok, I decided to give the forge a little more time. Winter is almost here so I might have maybe one more chance at it before the snow flies. It will cost me nothing other than the ire of my wife to hold onto it. I just need to find a place for it now.

After my first session yesterday I think the coal forge is not for me. Tending the fire, time to heat between sessions at the anvil, and local fuel prices just don't push my buttons. The smell of the coal did bring back nostalgia of the local mini steam train. I can now see that if I am going to move forward it would be with a propane unit. I would be able to make a wheeled stand and move the unit in/out of the shop easily. Not so much with solid fuel. A semi local farm runs blacksmithing courses starting in the spring. I will take the 2 day course and see how things go. When I have made sharp pointy things in the past I used stock removal so if I was to stick with knife making all I would need a forge for is heat cycling and heat treating. So many interests, so little time, space, and money!!!! I have lots to think about!

Well, I was unable to get the forge finished fast enough and my uncles cancer was very aggressive. He passed last weekend. Today I fired up the forge. I spent most of the time working the fire. It took forever to heat the steel. It seems I did not crank the blower fast enough. I used charcoal and then added some coal near the end. The coal burned much hotter and lasted better. My first project was a coal rake out of some 1/2 inch round stock I had sitting around. I only got 30 seconds of pounding before it got too cold to move the steel. I'm not thrilled with the round part on the handle.

$Well, my uncle passed last weekend. I was unable to get going fast enough and his health declined extremely fast. i was able to fire it up today. I spent most of my time getting the fire going and managed. It took forever to heat up the metal. Then I only got about 30 sec to 1 minute before it cooled off too much. It seems I was not cranking the blower fast enough. I also spent almost as much time cleaning up after. I need to think this out more... My first project was a coal rake. I really should have watched the video again. The curl on the end did not turn out very well.

Thanks for the advice. I'm looking for some fire bricks just for that purpose to keep the charcoal in place. Dang little buggers are expensive in these parts... $6 each!

Good info.... The accident? Cold intolerance?

I have just rebuilt a coal forge 24"x24". I have a few bags of charcoal to use to try out. I'm not going to use up my limited supply of real coal yet just to try a few tings out. My shop is a woodworking shop with just 2 large man doors and no overhead door. It is full with no ability to have a forge inside. The forge would need to be outside but again, there is a wood deck just infront of the doors.... I like the idea of using an iron to warm the anvil and hammers. If I get a calm day with some decent temp and no major wind I might move the anvil outside and go to it... If not then I guess I need to wait for spring...

So I was able to get the forge and all the stuff finished but it looks like my timing is out of whack... At the end of October temperatures are barely reaching the low teens (in Celcius) as a high and nights are getting close to freezing... At what temperature is it reasonable to still try and do some work. I would like to try the forge at least once or twice before the snow flies. Anything I need to keep in mind? I could keep the anvil in the heated shop but the forge would be almost 10' from the door as I have a wooden deck in front of the door to the shop and I don't think having a forge on a wooden deck is a great idea...

Yes, it is galvanized but since it is the air input from the blower to the forge I'm not too concerned about it. It also will be outside so lots of ventilation. The pan was painted with a heat resistant paint for stoves and bbq's. The fire pot is in pretty tough shape but should be ok. I think I will line the bottom with fire bricks just to contain things a little as I will be using charcoal and will likely need a smaller area for the charcoal and more height. Hopefully next weekend will be nice enough to give it a try. We are getting thin on good weather above freezing here. If the first little bit peaks my interest I think there is a high probability I will look at a propane forge in the spring. That way I could keep it in the shop and wheel it out as I need it. Smaller and easier to store. Now with some welding skills I could look at building a nice little stand for it with wheels. It turns out my uncle is really struggling and in the 4 weeks since we welded the pan he is unable to climb up stairs... I don't think he will be able to come over and see it work. I will try to make a leaf as my first project and when he passes I would let it rest with him if the family is ok, with it.

Well for better or for worse, it's done. The blower is way heavier than I thought and the bar I inserted for a hand truck to go under does not work well. It's not as portable as I hoped...

Those 2 threads are what made me think about making my own. I'll do some thinking and local research. See what I can come up with!

So I now recognize that a good vise is essential but the availability of a leg vise is limited locally. With my newfound equipment for welding is it reasonable to make a vise? I can get the screw hardware from lee valley for $50. Then weld up some metal to make the vise and jaws... Is this workable or am I setting myself up for a lot of work for something non-functional??

That is some beautiful work!!!!