Bob JS

Thanks for the good info, No prizes for guessing what Im up to this weekend...

Thanks! Thats exactly what I wanted to hear. Did you mix anything in with your clay to pad it out? I forgot to mention I have also got builders sand, and sawdust.

Hi, I have been doing a bit of forging recently with a thrown together arrangement (offcut of 5 inch dia pipe sitting on a grille with the blower pipe underneath) it does the job but I would like to build something more suitable and more 'forge like'. Im inspired by the washtub forge idea. I have got access to my natural local clay (which is brown like milky coffee, and fires to a nice reddish terracotta colour) charcoal ash and portland cement. My question is: Would I need to make sure the forge was free of moisture every time I fire it up? I do my forging outside, I could store the forge in my workshop, but that is still a damp environment. I am concerned that Im going to end up with exploding clay and flying coals. What do you think? (sorry to drag up the forge lining discussion again, but I dont think this has been covered) Thanks