Clodbuster

At long last I got around to taking some pictures of the final product. I figured I should show everyone what their help and advice helped create! First I had the forge sandblasted and I coated the table surface with POR-15. Then I visited the junkyard and found a cast iron brake drum to line my firebox, as it was kind of worn. I used fireclay and the recipes for use on here to fill the gap between the drum and forge table. The new fire grate is a cast ebay special, but the replacement tuyere I made from a hubless cast iron sanitary tee fitting with a welded flange made from a piece of flattened angle iron. I also attached an ash cleanout door per the plans I saw on here. I tore down the gearbox, cleaned it, rebuilt it, painted it and made a new maple handle for it. Also used body filler to smooth the inside surfaces of the fan housing before repainting. Then I had a piece of exhaust tubing bent to make a draft tube, with tin bands cut from leftover flashing, exhaust sealant, and hose clamps tying the blower and tuyere together. Finally, I cut and fit some firebrick to protect the table surface and to allow me to manipulate the work surface a little better. I think she turned out pretty well all in all. Right now it's in an old shed, so I have to drag it in and out to use, but when I build my shop I'm going to make a nice spot with a dedicated hood and chimney. Thanks for the help all, just wanted to share some pics of my freshly restored toy... As if I needed another hobby :)

Well here's the latest update - I got the Champion 40 blower all torn apart and I'm cleaning it up and rebuilding it before reassembly. It was in pretty good shape inside, no major rust, just lots of congealed petroleum products of unknown origin on things... which is just the way I like it! In my ongoing 36' IHC truck restoration I've found that the best thing for a restorer is leaky seals - it coats everything with a protective coat of oil and dirt and keeps the rust at bay. The parts that start out as a shapeless blob of crusted oil clean up twice as fast as the "clean" and rusty ones! All the gears and bushings seem decent and shouldn't need anything more than a light polishing with emery cloth. I'm going to try and get my POS Harbor Freight sandblasting cabinet bandaged together to bead blast the rust and then get it painted this weekend. My best guess is that it was orangish originally, as all I have to go on is a little red oxide primer left on it... well, it will be allis chalmers orange-red when it's done! I'll have to post some pictures for critique My big missing piece of the puzzle is what the clinker breaker or fire grating or whatever goes on top of the tuyere is supposed to look like, so if anyone can help on that please let me know. I'm looking forward to that first fire - with a nice, sweet-turning, pretty-looking blower fanning the flames!

I'm planning on keeping it in a big quonset hut shed.

Thanks element, Here's what I meant by a smoke shroud: Judging by the scraps of rusted sheet metal left in the last pic there used to be something similar on my forge, I just have no idea if it was original, what it looked like, etc. We do get more than our share of wind here, so it would be a handy addition. I was thinking along the same lines as you for the automotive exhaust tubing, it should be fairly sturdy and not have as much pressure drop as flexible tubing. As far as lining the firepot/table with clay, I like the idea - is there a commercial-type product that you use or just regular potter's clay? It seems to me like it would tend to crack under temperature swings unless it was pretty thick though, like an inch thick maybe. Other forges I've seen look like they have a cast iron or steel insert that lines the firepot, maybe that could be an option as well?

Well, I heeded everyone's advice and bought the forge on Saturday, though unfortunately the seller wasn't willing to throw in any extras... which was a shame since he had two decent looking post vices stashed nearby! But my new forge has left me with a few questions... Here she is: The blower turns over nicely, though it needs a good cleaning and tuneup, which I'm going to get going on tomorrow. The whole thing looks like it has spent most of it's life outside, but luckily in Eastern Washington that doesn't involve all that much exposure to water. I'm thinking of sandblasting it and throwing some extra POR-15 exhaust manifold paint on the hot surfaces, then painting the rest to match the original color... if anyone knows what it is? However, I'm missing several pieces and could use a little help IDing what else I need to round up or build. The tuyere is missing any form of grating to keep the coal up in the combustion area, does anyone know what this is supposed to look like here? It also looks like there may have been a damper of some type at this location? And on the inlet side, I can't tell if there was another damper of some type or if I'm looking at the remnants of some type of flexible metal air tubing (like clothes dryer vent tube) What type of tube do you usually carry the air from the blower to the tuyere with? And finally, there ain't much of a smoke shroud left on this baby, so if anyone can clue me in on what the rest of this is supposed to look like it would help a ton. All of you guys have been a ton of help so far, so thank you for taking the time to help a newbie out. I'm glad I found this site!

I'm in Eastern Washington state, and from what I've seen there's not a lot of interest in blacksmithing items here, even though there are some good modern fabrication/ welding shops. As far as I know the vise and other miscellaneous items aren't included in the deal - I asked the seller to send me a clearer picture of the forge and I will post if/when I receive it. What general type of forge is this - a side draft? As I mentioned it's all new to me... I thought it was a table from the picture at first!

Hi everyone, I'm brand new to the site, have been interested in blacksmithing for a while - you can't grow up on a farm without getting at least a smattering of the basics! I've been casually looking for a forge setup for a while and I think I might have found something locally, but honestly I don't really even know what I'm looking at. So here's where the expert help comes in hopefully:) Can anyone tell me what I'm looking at here: Any info you can give would be appreciated. I have not purchased this yet, the seller wants $100 and it is about 50 miles from me. What type of forge is this? Is the price reasonable if it is in decent shape? Any other advice or things to look for? Thanks for the help and expert advice! Garrett