Rikadyn

prolly just the pop up for the newsletter, which is free, but I have pop up blockers so... Yea it is a pyrotechnics article, but, charcoal is charcoal in the end :P

So, I have a pair of glasses that been curious what their application is. No picture at the moment but the best hint i can give to help their identification is, that when you have them on and stare at anything green, it turns red.

Drops? You know...the metal supplier advertises usable drops for sale from their site, i just didn't know what they meant... also, where does everyone find railroad spikes? ya'll aren't just going down to the tracks and ripping them out are ya? cause if so, I'm not taking a train ever...

Skylighter Newsletter #90 - How to Make Charcoal Good article and how I originally learned to make charcoal.

So, my forge is near completion, weather is messing with my ability to make charcoal, so only thing left is to find steel to use. Which is where we run into a slight snag. As far as I know, all the junk yards around here don't let people in, sans the auto recycler who I've heard is really expensive, and charges to get in in the first place, but will check them out still. I can get new steel from the welding supplier, but figure that would be expensive on my limited budget at the moment. So question would be, where do you find steel to use? and or search terms to use to help :P

Sounds fun. But given the IQ of some of the people in that class...prolly only 5 of us would of survived.

High School offered Welding. Learned OAW, Arc, Mig and Tig. I really haven't welded since, which is sad. I sucked at MIG cause the school only had so many machines for people to use, and everyone used them, so I ended up being the only person in my class to get cleared on his cert. for TIG, cause I spent good 3 months in doing it while everyone was doing MIG work.

When I took welding in high school, I always welded with my headphones on. Also, on the shocking thing. Only time I ever managed to get shocked was going to remove a TIG electrode and forgetting that my foot was resting on the control. That only happened once.

Probally, cause generally when the two words combine, there is someone dead afterwards...

Hmmm... The Japanese Box bellows that was linked earlier really has me thinking, which isn't necessarily good for anyone, but it has given me a good idea if i can't find/make a normal blower. Actually, it's given me too many ideas...I may have to make a post on it later...

the hole in the drum are pretty big, prolly just gonna cut a peice of like 18g sheet metal and drop it in the bottom then pack in some dirt to isolate the heat away from the bottom. Actually, one of the holes would be great if I was making a bottom blast, but I'm not lol.

I've seriously been pursing making my first forge for about a year now, but never been able to find a 55g drum to use for it. Well luckily for me, my family is friends with a guy who goes around collecting scrap metal so, asked him in the spring if he found a 55g drum, let me know. Well, he finally found one and brought it by Friday, so, broke out the cutting wheel and began to cut it down to size today. First off the drum isn't perfect, it has some holes the person cut in it so it wouldn't collect water, but figure I'll just use the extra drum metal and cover the holes. Anyway getting back to business at hand, I want to make a side blast forge, Only thing I'm being stumped on is what to line the forge with and build the fire pit with.

Hello, been lurking for some time now, been wanting to get started in blacksmithing for a few years, to go along with the chainmaille making I do, and finally been able to get ahold of a 55g drum to plan my first forge.