SoCal Dave

I saw a used Mankel three burner forge yesterday that was for sale. $750.00
I know nothing about Mankel forges. It was open on three sides with a small blower. Having only started in blacksmithing one year ago, I am looking for a good propane forge, but wonder if it is more forge than I need and a three burner will surely suck up the propane. I'm sure it will get metal hot fast.

Any info on mankel forges would help.

You wouldn't recognize Simi Valley today. It's got a mall on the north side, and lots of homes, etc, etc.

Yes, the thread is about flamfast forges. Does anyone have experience with them?

I recently saw a ceramic tile propane gas forge. It is interesting, but I know little about them. It did seem like it took a long time to heat some 3/8" rod in comparison to a coal forge, and maybe a good gas forge. But, it acted like a coal forge and the people who used it liked it very much. They said its good for heating small areas, but not large or long pieces. They said they replace the tiles about every four years and use it every day. It doesn't smoke, which is good for the neighbors and complaint list. It was reported to be big in Europe, but not here. The Flamfast, in the UK, want alot of money for one. It's not easy on the pocket book, and reading different forums, it seems people have tried to make their own but have had problems with type of tiles, and amount of gas and air mixture. Any body with experience with them, I would appreciate your comments. Also, is there any company in the USA who handles these forges. the people who I talked to said they got their tiles from Germany. Not good for easy replacement.

The picture is exactly what my friend's forge looked like. It did have angle iron legs, but I wasn't sure if he had made them. My friend thought he got it from the army. What a neat looking, compact forge. He had a hood with his. I'm not sure how long he has had his, but I know it has been many, many, many years. To bad, we can't get them at the war surplus store, Oh, they don't have stores like that anymore.

I went to my friend's cattle ranch recently in Cuyama Valley, Ca. I took measurements of his very old coal forge. It's about 18" X 22", has a brick layer, and about a 4" round center with holes in it. I noticed metal handles on the side to lift it up. My friend said he believed it to be an army coal forge when he purchased it a thousand years ago. Is this possible? Did the Army make forges? It has a hand crank blower and a nice hood to.

The problem I see is that if you have a brick floor and an ember/spark/slage falls in between the bricks, it can smolder for a very long time before it flames up. You may never see it smolder. You don't want to look out you window at three in the morning and see you shop ablaze. Leave the flooring and you can see the burns and extinguish them if they smolder and if it got real bad, you could cut a piece out with a chain saw. Good luck. :)

Brian: I was reading some replies and came across some comments about your DVD and a tool Kit. What does the DVD cover, and how would I get one? Also, what is the tool kit for and what does it consist of. If I wanted one of your hot cut hardies, how would I get one? I have an 25 year old horseshoeing anvil and the hardy whole is one inch but tapers down to 7/8", so it seem that the one inch hardy should do? Dave

Years ago i made a cattle branding iron out of leaf springs. Because the edges are rounded it worked great. You just have to be careful about getting to much metal, to hot, at the intersections where the metal crosses. But you could make some for friends that aren't going to actually be used as branding irons.

Brian: I've got some sucker rod from a cattle ranch. Don't know how old it is and what type it is, and pretty rusted. Can you get sucker rod, like the 4140, you wrote? Where in southern california?

What type of tool steel is best for making blacksmith punches and chisels? Where can I get this material without to much difficulty and to much cost. I've been using sucker rod and want to transition to tool steel.