Sun

14 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

Also the similar "If the floor wants to examine your piece; it is EXTREMELY rude to interfere!"  (If a piece is heading toward the floor, LET IT, and then pick it up correctly with tongs or at the COLD end.)

(Training yourself to NOT grab something dropping saves a lot of pain in the long run.)

ahaha I have made this mistake when I was using my old forge.

Thank you all for the wonderful tips and tricks. I have a lot of experimenting to do in the near future!

 Thanks for your reply Frosty,

I did update the post as I no longer have the side blowing forge. I do realize that this will be a somewhat more demanding forge in terms of coal consumption but it is a relatively small brake drum. 

The furnace currently is a hair dryer.

Strangely enough I dont have much problem with smoke, just the embers scare me a little. But I will try to implement your feedback! Thanks:)

Hi all,

I am a newbie to this site. I had previously tried my hand at some backyard/ hobby blacksmithing before, but it was not very successful. The forge I was using previously had air blowing in from the side and I could not figure out how to get concentrated heat (I know realize air coming in from the bottom is much more efficient). I have now obtained a brake drum (which for some reason is pretty difficult in my area) and will be making a simple brake drum forge. 

*edit: I no longer have the side hole forge

My problem is I live in a residential area with a small back yard and am worried about possible embers flying up into the neighborhood. I was thinking of possibly making the forge stand out of red clay bricks and maybe making some sort of simple overhead structure (maybe a piece of sheet metal sandwiched between some bricks) to rest a few feet above the forge. Does anyone else have a simple solution to the ember problem? (other than using a propane forge). I also DO NOT have access to a welder currently.

oh also, the forge will not be located in a shop if that wasn't already clear