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I Forge Iron

TimDorn

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Everything posted by TimDorn

  1. Hey guys thanks for the great discussion. It has been a while since I last checked this forum. Now that I've had time to play around with my forge, I can say 100% that the problem lies in the buildup of clinker. When I notice the fire reaches about peak performance and a bit of time has passed, I leave the air on, pull my work out of the fire, and then dig around, normally pulling out a few pieces of clinker the size of my palm. The fire dies a little bit after they are pulled out, but in a few minutes it's back to peak performance and won't die out. I can now keep a fire going until I go out, not the coal. So yeah, the anthracite is a lot more maintenance in my opinion, but it does burn very hot and clean once going. If anybody else has problems with the fire dying out, I would definitely check for clinker and go from there. Thanks everybody.
  2. Thanks for the quick reply. I imagined that the steel was not going to work out anyways. I will probably end up using the HDPE plastic as I have more of it and dont have to worry about layering it like the PVC sheets.
  3. Hello all, this is the second topic I have started on this website. Despite searching for hours, I can't find any good information on ram guide material for a homemade tire hammer. I know that most people end up using the high density molecular whatever, but I'm trying to do most of this with what I have, and I have two ideas that I want your opinions on: 1) Melted/ remolded HDPE (milk jugs, soda caps, etc) 2) Flattened PVC pipe Alright, for the HDPE I was doing some experimenting with melting it and molding it and I can get very flat material for basically free ( milk cartons, soda lids, etc) all I have to do is melt it down in my oven. It feels very dense and hard and is slippery on other materials such as plastic and steel. The PVC is a bit more on the skeptical side, but just imagine it: get a large pipe diameter, heat it up in the oven, and then flatten it. Maybe even make a few layers of plastic per side and then you have a decently thick ram guide material. I can't vouch on the properties of it to actually be a ram guide, however. I originally made the ram guide out of pure steel ( rectangular tubing) but this was an immediate failure as the steel of the ram and the steel of the guide like to stick sometimes and create friction. This ended up with a ram that would sometimes go up but not down as fast as the ram arms so the two would collide. Any advice or recommendations would be great. If you would like to see pictures of the power hammer just ask. I'd say its about 93% done.Thanks and have a good one.
  4. First off, thank you both for your quick response. I never would have guessed you guys would answer that fast. Im sorry I didn't respond sooner, but I have been busy all day. Anyway, I took some pictures of my firepot, sorry for the bad lighting. Its about 5 inches square and 2.75 inches deep. Im not sure exactly what angle the firepot is, but the second photo explains itself. I would guess around 110-120 degrees. I imagine you two are right about the clinker as the heat decreases so much. Is there anything you guys think could be done as a preventive measure? It is quite frustrating to have to stop my fire after an hour every time. Thanks again for your hospitality and accepting me into the forum life.
  5. Hello guys this is my first time ever writing a forum so go easy on me. However, after searching the internet for hours I cannot find a forum on my particular problem. I am running a homemade forge with a homemade fire pot and clinker breaker. Although I have burned bituminous before, it is hard to come by and I don't particularly care for how smoky and stinky it is! So after searching, I have found a local feed store that carries anthracite for a more than reasonable price of 5$ for 50lbs. I really like how hot and clean the anthracite burns and never seems to burn down as quickly as bituminous. However, I have a problem that occurs every time I run my Forge. It works beautifully for around an hour and I can easily reach welding heat, but after this first hour it is like a light switch is flipped. I can see a bunch of unburned, black coal at the bottom of my firepot and the fire cools down considerably. After about five minutes, my coal bed looks like checkered black and white. If I scoop the cold coal out of the center, there just seems to be more coal around cooling and falling down. I don't understand what the problem is seeing how well it works in the beginning of my fire. Apparently this isn't a common problem as i cant find a forum on it anywhere. It is very frustrating and is ruingin the forging experience for me. Anything would help, and thank you all.
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