Snydertech

Are you saying rotate my pot so the notches are from front to back instead of left to right? The holes in the bottom as you see it is actually holes in a cast floor drain that I plan on using. There are 5 'lug' holes already there that I plan to use bolts to hold the drain disc on. that will go on top of the flange that I still need to buy and drop in the top. basically the flange will just give me the threaded 2" bottom hole that I can attach a pipe to. What do I need to think about now to integrate a 'clinker breaker' in the design?

Having the right tool for the job definitely does make life easier. Maybe one of these days I will learn to weld. Before having an interest in building a forge, I scrapped dozens of brake drums/rotors. I guess I need to be more of a hoarder! Perfect! Will go to HF today to see what they have.

Good idea... I go to the auto parts stuff almost weekly anyway, not sure why I didn't think of exhaust parts. I have the exhaust pipe from an old diesel truck I used to own, I will see if I can use that.

That is awesome, and looks pretty danged easy to build. You are absolutely right that it would have saved me some heartache and cash, however, I already am going down the road, might as well finish now. Hey, at least I asked about the 1" pipe before using it ;-), do I get half credit there? So... I am taking back the 1", searching for 2". Swapping my huge blower for a smaller one and I need to make sure I put an air gate of some sort. As for the air gate, do I 'need' this or can I get a rheostat type of device and just control current to the fan? ~Dave

That is exactly what I set out looking for but could not find. I went to metal scrap yards and they wouldn't sell me anything at all, they just wanted to buy. I went to several brake repair places and they didn't have anything. I ended up going to autozone and had them find me something new. Crazy! In retrospect, I should have bought something with less of a lip. It is about 3" deep, but has that huge lip on it so it extends above the table. I figured I would place it in the table so I could pile some coal around it and make it work. Regarding the pipe, I don't have a welder. The only pipe I can find threaded that I can put a 'flange' on it and feed it into the pipe is 1" from the local box store. I suppose I should take that back and check with a plumbing shop to see what they have. I love the idea of the tractor exhaust flap. I did just read your earlier post regarding that and will incorporate. What about lining the bowl? Any need? My blower is very powerful, and I think too powerful. It is actually made to pump up those big backyard inflatables. Perhaps a hair dryer would work better for this application? Thanks for the input! Thank you for the input!

Also, I just bought 1" piping to do the air... I am now thinking it is too small?

Good morning all! I am new to smithing and new to this site. I am attempting to build a coal forge from some parts I have and want to get some feedback before I finish it. I had a metal cart and put in a truck hub into it. I notched out the sides to be able to put a longer piece in it in the future. At the Bottom, I plan to put a pipe feeding air with a tee in it and attach a blower to the end. The blower I want to put on a dimmer (not sure if this will work yet) so I can control the air flow. I already have the blower, just needing to buy the piping. Does this look like a good approach so far? What would you have done different? I left some room on the side of the pot to be able to put up some fire bricks to build a side/top if needed. Do I need to line the pot with anything? Thanks for the advice. Dave