fisher_norris

depends what is it? a knife i like to do it in as few heats as possible as the fire cooks out carbon. but as i fellow newbie i say as few heats as possible but some things can be set aside and worked later. but don't just take my word for it. do your own reasearch and listen to the more experienced smiths or experiment. good luck and have fun. :D

i often just crank slower, with my blower (a hand cranked champion). but i have found from my 3 or 4 months experiance that experimentation is the best teacher. so try new things and see what works. well as an edit to an earlier post of mine: when i said quench the piece and snap it off i meant to cut 1/2 or 3/4s of the way though and pour water only on where the cut is and lay the part to be removed over the edge of your anvil and snap it off that way. go to liveleyknives.com for a better explanation. :)

well spontaneously igniting coal is good to know, lucky for me my coal bin is outside away from my house! i think i would lose the ability to use power tools or have a house if i burned down the house. alhtough it got a welding fire with a coal and wood mix. my advice: do what works for you and be as safe as posible.

well glenn and Mr. sells i had some hard/soft coal mix and i checked the twere and for clinkers before coming to my conclusion. noted the attempts with coal were before i had refurbished my blower. still i am pro-coal, if i have a good electric blower and decent coal. although charcoal (for me) seems to scale my metal less, although maybe beacause i have a bigger fire sucking up the free o2

i get my wood from the same place as new guy (his user name) we hang out sometimes plus i bought his anvil as he thought that bladesmithing was easier on a rr track (yay me!). the coal was mined about 25yrs ago but i like it to keep my fire going longer and it will get hotter than heck if i use alot of air. But it has never been used and was still sealed in the origanal shipping containers, but it was somewhat damp. and if you are insinuating(spelling?) that me and new guy are one in the same i don't know where you got that idea from. well actually i do , but wood works for me and we do share ideas and tools ocasionally so we do have a lot of parrelels and hey friends who like the same things are similar.. we work toghether on alot of newer projects and he kinda sent me over here for advice. but i can get it to burn but i like charcoal as it smells less awful (even brand new really good top of the line smithing coal smells bad to me). although do you mean wood/charcoal or coal going boom? i understand coal as i read that the white gas coming off is flamable. although arent flames burning gasses?

i like charcoal, not an option but solid fuel does not go 'boom' and i made a deal with a guy to haul away his old blacksmiting coal for $8 us for 200lb but charcoal burns hotter than coal with less smoke. but i hear propane is really convienent. plus i get charcoal 100% free as i make my own in my forge as i work.

white hot is a bit too hot for hi carbon steel. i think the crubling is called hot shortness. and you can quench the cut and snap it off ( i saw this on tim liveley's website). i use a galvinized garbage can for holding my coal and i have a wood pile that is about 10yards away from the forge that i go too for new fuel. (my coal does not burn hot enough with a hand crank blower).

ok just my 1cent worth (new guy ) but i actually may know someone who posts here. i think i may have gone to school with hime. good luck.

i am in the greater norwalk area. i go up to the danbury railway mueseam sometimes at the forge. i think another guy there is a member here. ill ask. and i want a shop about that big as it will be easier to build my self. thanks for the posts. edit: i found a tarp and can stretch it about 6 or 7 feet over my forge so i can work in the rain. although it may melt but the rain might keep it cool. now to russel up the $1000 i need to make a workshop and to find the space.

and i do attempt to work safe. i just cut the tip of my thumb off with a tomahawk i tried to make (the weld failed) although i blame my dog for that one as she loves to be around my feet. although i get more time at my wood bench making handles for tools that i made etc. and i am thinking of making a shed so i can work in the rain. anyone think that 5 by 10 is a big enough workshop? there will be only a bench grinder and a hand cranked forge 190 fisher norris and a workbench plus a slack tub and tool racks. thanks for the posts.

thats odd i have the exact same model champion forge! the 1-1-24 is probably hundred weight good luck using it.

umm mr. sells just a thought eod is explosive ordinance disposal. i think you may have ied shrapnel (impovised explosvie device). just my 2 cents worth and i hope it turns out well.

well i have been playing at being a black smith for a couple of months, since february i think. i am a teenager and got into being a blacksmith as i wanted to buy a broad axe and carpenters axe for wood working. but they were expensive and i decided i would learn how to make one for me. it turns out lighting a fire and heating metal and hitting it with a hammer is more fun then wood working. (note: that is a simplified version of forging for entertainment puposes only:D). well glad to be here and have fun with your projects.