Dustin L

Can't blame a guy for trying.

Well it's done. At least for the most part. Other than some fine tuning that I want to do. I still haven't tried yet either. I built 55 gal. bottom blast. I already had the 55 gal drum, the brake rotor from my 97 gmc sierra and all the tools that I needed for the build. The only thing it cost me was about $40 for the 2" pluming parts. Oh yeah and I did pay another $20 for a blower. I wish I had some pictures to show but I don't own a camera (YET) and my old flip phone takes crumby pics and can't transfer them to the computer anyway. Plan on getting a camera soon that I will be able to post pics with. I even managed to make a clinker breaker. I already had a steel dowel rod left over from an older project. I drilled all the way through both sides of the 2" pipe just below the firepot. Then I ran the dowel rod through so it stuck out just an inch or so on the other side. Next I welded a piece of plate to the dowel, inside the pipe, that I had cut and grinded to fit the I.D. Then drilled a few holes in the plate for air flow. Finally I cut the handle end of the dowel off to length and put a bend in it for a crank. There's only two things left that I want to do before I put the coal in it. 1. Unfortunately, when I was welding the clinker breaker I got it ever so slightly out of alignment. I can't quite turn it a full 360 degrees. It gets to almost 180 degrees and then one side catches on the pipe. I want to use my dremmel tool to take just a bit off of that one side of the clinker breaker. 2. When I was building the forge I decided to not cut the bottom of the drum out. Instead, I want to cut a small opening in the side of the barrel near the bottom so I can shovel my ash out for easier clean up. So I still need to cut me out a clean out hole as well. Other than those two minor tweaks I'm about ready to fire this thing up and see how it goes. Also, I found out that my local Tractor Supply does carry coal ( I know it has mixed reviews). However I also found out that I can get coal through the Illinois Valley Blacksmith Association which I have already tried and it burns very nicely. They have an open forge day near me once a month. I attended my first one there last week and look forward to going back for more.

Josh, I'll give you $50 for it.

Abdel, from one beginner to another, I would take ThomasPowers' advice and check your local junkyards for a nice chunk of solid steel you can get for scrap prices. If that doesn't work then do what I did. I went to a local fabricator/ machine shop in my hometown and they sold me a remanent piece of steel they had cut off. The piece I got is 4"x5"x8". I got it cheaper than what you will pay for that thing and it's probably way better quality material.

Mickey, you've come to the right place. I'm new here myself and don't know much. But there are a lot of folks here with a wealth of info and all kinds of experience in many areas associated with blacksmithing. Just from eyeballing it looks like a pretty nice anvil. Good find.

"Old" might be better if the person buying is some kind of antique collector. I know there are still some good old anvils out there just from what I've read here and from other sources. However if I had the kind of money that they are asking for some of these old worn out anvils I think I would just go and get myself and brand new Refflinghaus instead. It's just like the other day I was shopping around in some flea markets to see what kind of deals I might find. I came across an old cross peen hammer. Handle was really loose, which could have been fixed easy enough for a few more $. But, there was also some really nasty little chunks missing just underneath of the edge of the peen. I still would have bought it if they would have sold it cheaper. I wouldn't mind being out a few bucks if/when it busted the rest of the way on me. They wanted $20 for it. I can get a brand new cross peen here in town for $20. It might not be top of the line name brand but it would be in better shape than that one was.

Gentlemen, all bickering aside, it is an awesome photo. I really appreciate modern tools and technology too but I also love history. To be able to even catch a glimpse of how our predecessors lived and worked and built things is awe inspiring to me. Thank you for sharing.

Sometimes I wish I lived in town or at least on the outskirts. Then there are times that I thank God that I live in a rural area especially when I hear stories like this.

Hans thank you for the the information especially the detailed photos and diagram. I like your setup especially that nifty tube valve that hooks up to your blower. Much appreciated sir.

I appreciate the feedback. Thank you sir.

Glen, correct me if I'm wrong. Looking at the picture and reading the description on the side blast 55 above it looks like.. First you cut the end of the drum off to about 6 inches or so. Then you notched out for your tuyere so it would be level with the edge of a masonry brick. It looks like you just packed coal all the way around the drum, level with the top of the tuyere brick, with a larger mound in the center of the drum. Then run your pipe across and in to the bottom of the mound in the center. Hook your air supply up and get some flames going. Is that pretty much the size of it? And I guess from there if you wanted to tweak it a little you could fabricate a hood and flue for the top and maybe a decent stand to set it all on.

You're right skeeter. There are a lot of Amish around Southern Illinois. I didn't even think about checking with them. 10 bucks for 25 lbs. seems a little bit high though. Thanks for the tip though still might be worth asking around with some of the local Amish community. What few of them I've met and actually talked to seem to be friendly enough

When you was using the electric blower did you keep it running constantly or was you turning it on/off as needed? I'm curious now as to what the pros and cons of an electric vs. hand cranked blower would be. Surely there is a good thread on the subject around here somewhere. I think I'll check on that as well Thank you sir.

Charles, thanks for your advice on the side blast over the bottom blast I will definitely keep that in mind when I actually set down to plan my build. genesaika, I agree with you. Ultimately I would like to have multiple forges, coal and gas. The more options the better in my opinion. I've always heard from men wiser than me that you can't have to many tools. But we all have to start somewhere and I think a coal forge my be my quickest, cheapest, best option to get started sooner. Jerry, big thanks for the tip on Brazil, IN. You are correct. It is definitely a lot closer than the place over in Missouri that I was looking at and unless their prices have changed, a lot cheaper too. Possibly even better quality stuff. That's a win x 3. I'll definitely check into especially if I can't find a better deal even closer. Gentlemen, Thank you.

Yeah I like that. It's a nice gesture. I think I will stop in sometime and leave the guys a box of donuts sometime.

Yeah the guy was very helpful. Told me to come by anytime I needed something. I'll definitely check in with him from time to time to see what kinds of bits and pieces he has laying around.

David, Illinois has Bituminous coal. You are correct. It usually has a relatively high sulphur content. Not quite as high quality as what ya'll are mining in West Virginia. But the way I understand it is by comparison we just have mass amounts of it. Of course I would like to try some of the stuff you guys are digging up there if I ever come across any. For now though, just getting started in blacksmithing I would definitely settle for some of the local stuff. I appreciate your advice. I will definitely be looking at some ways to get some proper ventilation. I don't want to be choking myself out. Coal is a useful resource but I don't want to be breathing the exhaust directly any more than I have to. Also, I do plan on trying to meet up with the I.V.B.A. here in Illinois as soon as my schedule allows for it. I understand that they have some kind of meet in Mount Vernon from time to time. That's not to far from me. I even lived there for a while. I just didn't know at the time that I was so close to something that awesome. Thank you again sir.

Thank you Kevin. That is the kind of answer I was looking for. That gives me at least a general idea of how much coal a person might go through in a day. So I might actually be able to figure up roughly how much coal I might want to pick up incase I end up having to do a lot of traveling to get it. I appreciate your feedback sir.

The Rub: First I considered building a propane forge. However, the materials I need seem to be eluding me at the moment and the insulators and refractories would have to wait until I have a few more $ in my pocket anyway. But I could go get a tank of propane just up the road right now. So I started thinking about a coal forge instead. Just so happens I already have all the tools and materials I need to make a 55 forge or a supercharged 55 forge. I just did a complete brake job on my car last year and still have the old disks and drums just sitting around the shop. I already have 2 55 gal. steel drums and can get more of them free from my employer. I have enough scrap laying around to make a very decent stand to put them on too. Won't cost me a thing other than a bit of sweat, blood and maybe a couple of tears. But I don't have any coal and not sure how I'm going to go about getting any. Now for... The Irony: I was born and raised and have lived my whole life smack dab on top of the Illinois coal basin. You can't hardly drive from one town to the next in Southern Illinois without going past at least one coal mine. When I was younger my great-grandpa (who retired from the mines) used to take his 1-ton flatbed ford to the coal mines to pick up a load of coal for his coal furnace in the basement. The house was always Toasty warm in the winter. I'm not sure because I'll admit I haven't explored that avenue yet, but I think those days are over. I don't think the coal mines will wholesale coal to the average "Joe Shmo" anymore. I think a lot of that stuff pretty much died out about the same time that my grandpa's generation did. I could be wrong and I do plan on checking on it anyway. If I can't buy directly from the mines then I will be forced to buy from a retailer which will no doubt be out of state and more than likely selling Illinois basin coal at retail prices. The Alternative: I did manage to find a website that is solely dedicated to selling coal specifically for blacksmiths and those few people who do still use coal furnaces for heat. He sells it in 25 lb. boxes. He will ship it and he includes shipping in the price but it does seem PRICEY to me. If you order it online it's $28.99 / 25 lb case. However, you do have the option of picking it up yourself for a lot less. If you pick it up yourself he only charges $6.00 / case and $5.00 per case if you buy 40 cases or more. And if you do the math 40 cases is 1,000 lbs. (or half of a ton) and it would cost $200. Unfortunately, it is a long drive for me. Fortunately, it is doable though, IF and only IF what I'm getting is a good deal and is going to be worth the extra time and expense. It would take me approximately 7 hours to get there. I figure with turn around time and stopping for eats, drinks, gas and restroom breaks I could get there and back in under 18 hours easily. If I could make this a once or maybe twice a year thing maybe it wouldn't be to awful of a compromise to make. Although just driving 10 minutes to the mine just a few miles from my house would be much better. And finally to... The point of all my rambling: I guess what I would really like is some general understanding of how much coal I might use. I realize that is a very broad and relative subject and will probably be very difficult (or impossible) to give any definitive answers to. Between family and work I'm not going to be at the forge every day But there will be weekends, vacations and holidays where I might spend 8, 10 or 12 at a time hammering away on some metal. It sure would be helpful to have some general frame of reference as to how much coal a person might go through on an hourly or daily basis or how long might a 25 lb case or even a 1/2 ton of coal last. If I could drive 14-18 hours and spend $200 - $300 dollars once a year then maybe I could make it work. But if I drive that far and pay that much and I'm out of coal again in a month or two then there is just no way. Any answers or advise given is much appreciated, thank you.

I'm very exited. It's not an actual anvil in the traditional sense. It's just a block of steel, a remanent, that I got from a local fabricator. I think it's pretty sweet though. I wish I had a way to post pictures for you guys but alas my old flip-phone doesn't have any way to transfer them to my computer and it doesn't take very good photos anyway. It's a solid block of steel. Dimensions are 4" x 5" x 8" It is very smooth and flat on all sides. Edges and corners are very straight and sharp. It only has a very slight layer of surface rust, not even a layer really, just kind of spotty here and there. It will clean up very nicely. Weight? Not real sure, haven't been able to put it on a scale yet. Feels like it's at least in the neighbourhood of 50 lbs. I think I might ever so slightly take the sharp edges off of the face that I'm going to be working on. I don't know. Is that advisable? So now it's on with trying to come up with a suitable forge. I'm trying to go with the 2 gallon Freon tank suggested here on IFI in the Gas Forges 101 thread. But so far all the HVAC dealers I've talked to in my area just look at me like I'm wanting to make meth or a terrorist trying to make a bomb, LOL. I'll just have to keep on looking. Going to try to check out some local scrap yards hopefully next week.

I wanted to pop in to say hello and introduce myself. I've wanted to get into blacksmithing since I was a teenager. Back then though I didn't have much money and no matter how much I might have tried I had no idea how to even get started if I did have the money. Here it is twenty-something years later and I still haven't even got started. With a little luck I hope that is about to change. Thankfully now it seems that blacksmithing has become quite a popular pastime/hobby. Also thanks to the internet there is now a whole wealth of info to help a guy get started, especially on a tight budget. I make a little more money these days but now I'm supporting a family. Funny how life likes to balance those things out. So I'll probably be popping in here quite a bit digging through posts looking for info. And I promise to try not to ask to many newbie questions, especially ones that have already been answered half a dozen times. And I just want to say thank you to all of you that have been here donating your time making these forums what they are. It's a great site.