Frosty

That's actually an attractive twist you just need to get a little better at it. Twist first then forge the bade. 2 reasons: 1, Work thick to thin so you are less likely to burn up the thin sections. A section of 5/8" sq can take a lot more trips to the fire than a piece less than 1/4" thick with a wide surface. 2, it's much easier to transition from a twist than it is to try getting a good transition after forging. You can forge the twist till it's a blade and smooth transition but it's darned near a head splitting PITA getting a twist to a thin transition without warping the B'jeebers out of the blade. A last note on twists, I discovered the ladies don't much like pineapple twists they have all these sharp little points and are too rough on their hands. Guys like the feel but we are calloused louts. The ladies seem to like cable twists, they're easy to grip and are smooth. Frosty The Lucky.

Vortex burners are guns, got it. Oil burners rely on a strong vortex to keep from burning the liners out of furnaces and boilers on household scale units. I was thinking of using a rotating choke to induce a vortex in the intake air Never got to playing with the idea though. We'll see if my email gets through, I'm not finding a URL though. Frosty The Lucky.

Not bad at all. You can't mount the burner that deep in the forge it'll just burn up. Pull it back till just the tip of the flare (whatever you end up with) is just poking into the liner. That burner should handle that volume just fine. Remember the number that counts is the inside volume and shape. Those tanks have been making fine forges with that size burner for a hundred years. I much MUCH prefer using 1" 8lb. ceramic blanket refractory it rolls with fewer wrinkles so there is less disruption of the flame path inside. The flame contact layer is a wear item, it WILL burn out eventually though the right kiln wash might make it brick tough. I'm still thinking about that one. I'd put the gauge between the regulator and the burner, that's where you'll adjust pressure. Putting it there means you'll have to adjust the regulator and then go look and repeat till you have what you want. My progression is tank, regulator 1/4 turn ball valve, gauge line to the forge. This puts the gauge right next to your hand when you adjust. The 1/4 turn ball valve is the emergency shut off, you can shut the gas off with a thrown rag where turning off the tank valve can take several seconds. That doesn't sound so bad and most of the time it doesn't matter however there are times when instantly isn't fast enough. Here's hoping you never find out. Buy your propane hardware, reg, gauges, hoses, ball valve, etc. at the local propane supplier. They have a showroom at the office and keep parts on the shelf. One thing for sure you do NOT have to worry about them selling you something that's not propane rated. Oh yeah NO teflon tape or thread sealers!!! Teflon and propane do not play well together, dangerously so. Sure you can buy past thread sealer for propane but you're using tapered threads and bras fittings. Assemble it, crack the propane and take soapy water to it. If it doesn't start bubbling don't worry about it unless you take it apart and reassemble it. Frosty The Lucky.

Torch or burner? A good place for a jargon term don't you think? something specific to our applications. Other wise being the junior etymologist I am Id point out a burner does nothing but burn something. Too general a term unless we've established the context. Torch, isn't that a kind of burner? Well, not the British (European?) flashlight kind of torch of course but anything from a hand held rush light to a Tiki torch to an oxy fuel torch to an oxygen lance? A fun bit of something to argue about over after a couple single malts. However using the term torch for your burners seeing as they're designed to operate properly in open air I think that qualifies them as a member of the torch family of burners. Then again were I using one it'd be a torch outside an appliance and a burner when in one. That's me though. I almost never just call a forge burner "Burner" till I've established the context: forge, melter, etc. I guess in short so long as I know what a person's talking about they can call it what they like. . . within reason of course or I might call them. When I mentioned the tertiary flame from Rex's burner the orange bits were only features of a tertiary flame. I can accept it's erosion of that grade stainless. The feathery transparent dark blue flame was however a tertiary flame. I can go along with the hypothesis back pressure improves performance with these burners. I can't refute it without just flapping my gums and this is too enjoyable a series of conversations to mess up. Being contained in a chamber could well quieten them down as well but maybe not why you think. More in a bit. I disagree about your hypotheses about burner noise, turbulence is rough not necessarily loud. A well tuned gas burner roars because it's a controlled explosion and where the sudden expansion of the gasses determines how loud and how the wave fronts are directed. The T burner burns outside the burner all the expansion of combustion is uncontained except by the forge. You can hear one burner on my forge at the house apporx 100' away through the shop walls. Guys driving up the driveway have heard it when they make the turn call it 250' through the trees. Loud is NOT a recommendation, it's wasted energy I'd really rather keep in the forge as heat. Combustion with your burners is finished within an inch or two of the nozzle so all the explosively fast wave front is condensed in a small area has much less surface area to transfer energy to the air. It is also traveling straight ahead so most of the sonics are impacting the forge liner directly in front of the tube. Okay, just reread your paragraph about laminar flames being quieter. I can't say ya or nay though I don't that's the case a Fisher or other tapered tube burner. The entire path down the tube from the throat to the nozzle is one long trailing edge turbulence and diminishing pressure zone. I always believed they were quiet because the air fuel mix was traveling so slowly. I can certainly see why being contained would smooth your burner's flame seeing as it depends so heavily on a contained wave front. It's a logical assumption. Heck, mine burn wildly and they really benefit being enclosed. Hmmmm. Most guys building gas burners tune them lean then choke to tune so that is indeed true for them. I fiddle with mine till it's burning how I want it without choking. The air fuel ratio curve is nearly flat it's close enough at any reasonable primary flow pressure. What are you tuning by moving the nozzle sleeve (flare)? Mine burns fine cold not quite right but not off enough to adjust anything waiting for warm up. Frosty The Lucky.

I have a crabby coffee mug Das but its a thought. Another cool one Aus. Looks like one of those mutant rattle scorpions out near White Sands nuke test site. Frosty The Lucky.

Those are killer deals. You might want to make the lady something nice as a thank you gift. Frosty The Lucky.

Sounds like just the reverse of my experience. I find the standard hammer handles slip out of my hand if I relax as much as I do with the slabs. Could be the taper but I have a couple straight slab handles. It might just be a matter of getting used to a new grip. Of course if it keeps up it isn't worth using. Hurting yourself isn't worth it. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard Jacques , glad to have you. If you'll put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many of the Iforge gang live within visiting distance. I won't surprise anybody who has enough spare time to waste and reads my long winded posts when I say this. I'd grab the Soderfors, it's hard to find a better anvil. If anvils are expensive enough and the antique store is a bargain get the other one too you should be able to turn it over, maybe pay for both or at least bring your costs down. Frosty The Lucky.

An axle mounted flange up makes an outstanding anvil, the thicker the better. Ideally you want one with the flat bolt flange, the lug holes make fine bolsters and it's not too hard to make bottom tools that fit without turning. It's going to need trimming and fitting to a stand so it's the right height but that can be done with a hack saw, drill, nuts, bolts and clamps if you don't have a welder. Most any shafting larger than the face of your hammer will work a treat as an anvil and it doesn't really need to be hardened HC steel though that's a plus for sure. Frosty The Lucky.

The IPS sotware fairy strikes again. Have you tried attaching as a PDF or other format? Sometimes I have to save the post exit the thread, come back in a while open the text window and hit submit if my post hasn't disappeared while I was gone. If it has disappeared I paste it and submit it. If it still won't post I start a new thread with a similar name including a snitty bit about disappearing. I get snitty because I'm getting really REALLY tired of IPS soTware. Frosty The Lucky.

No, not the metalbestos pipe, just plain SS stove pipe and line it with washed ceramic blanket, and give it a split brick or kiln shelf floor. You can use bushing reducers on the ends for the openings to encapsulate the ceramic blanket and provide a surface to attach hinges, slide rails, etc. The stand is as simple as riveting or screwing two wall brackets to the bottom. It's far from perfect as a forge shell but has it's charm. And yes there are a lot of specialty shapes available and it's not too difficult to smoosh and or stretch round into a vaulted (mailbox shape) forge. I just like the stuff. Wayne: my new forge will be a good travel forge. My shop forge was never meant to be anything but a shop forge and is a LOT more fragile than I'd build now even for a shop forge. I like the brick pile for demos because spectators tend to be encouraged to give smithing a try seeing as you don't need special equipment to get started. I take a piece of RR rail and an old axle to show them what's needed for a perfectly functional anvil. Frosty The Lucky.

Good point about the zodiac sign aspect, Aus, I hadn't thought of that. On a similar note I suppose a crab would suit me before my day's first cup of coffee. Frosty The Lucky.

Nice, I like it but Baxter our dachshund needs a little more challenge getting into things. I really like the Santa and sleigh. Frosty The Lucky.

Mike: Are we looking at an all primary zone torch? (More discussion and I'll have the terminology straight. I remember what you were saying just not the terms. It's a TBI, aphasia thing) After reading your posts about your burners, wave fronts, etc. and what's going on I'm thinking I may have stuck my foot in my mouth. . . again. Frosty The Lucky.

Yes it is, VERY. It'd just be uncomfortable in my hand to use. I'd make it it's own lit display case and put it on prominent display were I to acquire it. The only thing missing as an art piece is a brass horse shoe. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard Bryan, glad to have you. Good score! Every shop needs a good heavy duty bench vise just don't do any heavy hammering on it. Tough as it is it's not intended to take sledge hammer abuse. The swivel bases tend to get crudded up over the years, taking it apart and cleaning it usually puts it to rights for another 50 or so years. If you don't mind me asking what did you give for that fine stud work horse? Frosty The Lucky.

You're more than welcome Wayne, you're a real contributor to the craft, I just calls em like I sees em. What I try to do when asked what kind of forge to build is find out what they want to do, what their skill levels and resources are. Then I try to give them a list of what I think's in their range, the hows and whys of the differences. A brick pile forge is beyond a lot of people's resources, money and room. A lot of guys don't need or want to do anything that needs more than a bean can or two brick forge. My shop forge is basically a brick pile forge with a permanent lid and deck, it just doesn't look like one. I was a professional fabricator though and it's not only WAY more forge than I need it's intimidating. I don't take it to demos anymore for two reasons, first it's too intimidating, nobody is interested i taking a lash at forging if they think they need something like that or heck even a farrier's forge. Taking it for a ride in the pickup tends to make me have to replace bricks every time too. The brick pile and T burner forge on the other hand is intuitively logical and folk can accept $50.00+ in fire brick and anther $10.00 for the burner and $35+ for the reg, hose and valve. $100-150 is within reason to give the craft a try. Another gas forge I really like is a SS stove pipe shell. The stuff is a little expensive but not unreasonable, you don't need special tools to work it: ruler, red pencil, tin snips, drill, bits and a pop rivet gun is your tool kit. Everything else is off the shelf. One last handy little bit about stainless steel you'll like Mike, you're as selfish about heat you've spent good money to generate as I am. Stainless steel has a high IR albedo. It reflects heat. There are so many different shapes and dimensions that work well for a gas forge I try to keep to the basics. I have a couple general ones I tend to recommend but I also tell new guys a forge only contains the fire and heat. Once they understand enough of that little fact and some construction details they're pretty well equipped to invent things I never thought of. Frosty The Lucky.

Thanks for the link Ethan he uses a slab handle and grips the hammer like I do. I don't absorb any of the recoil shock. Frosty The Lucky.

Welcome aboard, glad to have you. Most of your questions have probably been answered already in one of the sections, at least partially anyway. We love to talk though so don't be bashful. Pics, we LOVE pics, most anything you'd let your 7 year old daughter look at is good. Frosty The Lucky.

Well, O-K-A-Y. A slab handle has a couple advantages though the most important to me is it indexes in your hand automatically. Just a little practice and the hammer will always be level in the left right axis. It's much easier to hold in a light grip and save you're appendages fatigue and damage. I hold mine in what I call a modified fencer's grip, I allow the hammer to pivot between the second knuckle of my index finger and my thumb. Just at the moment of impact I close my grip snapping the hammer sharply then relax my grip. This adds another hinge point to my swing each hinge point is a force multiplier making a blow significantly more powerful for the same amount of effort on my part. Relaxing my grip at the moment of impact allows the hammer to recoil without resistance. Sure it doesn't bounce and help lift my arm but my joints do NOT absorb the impact at all. Those are the reasons I prefer a slab handle and the why. The one on the straight pein in the picture is tapered from the head to the end largely to make it less fatiguing and more secure. The taper is pretty unnoticeable when in use. . . UNTIL you get tired, distracted or. . . and loosen my grip during a swing. Faster than you can react if the handle slips your grip tightens. Pure reflex and I've never thrown a tapered slab handled hammer. Can't say that about my regular hammers though and as soon as an old handle breaks or just annoys me it's getting replaced The knob on the end was a bit of overkill on the first one I was thinking if it slipped the knob would be a good stop but one of these has never slipped enough to tell. The knob has become a trademark sort of thing and it's part of the pattern I'm too lazy to remove. One last bit that doesn't show is how the shaft is shaped. Sure breaking the corners in intuitive, don't have to tel you that. However doing demos is theater and one little thing I've done for years is spin the hammer on the back swing to change face to pein or back. It's always been a little razzle dazzle showmanship to impress the audience and a good laugh when I got it wrong. I had a brainstorm when I handled my first one and rounded the edge facing the pein so I don't have to look to know which way it's facing. Now when a spin ends with the wrong side facing the work I say, "Oops got it backwards!" and reverse it without looking. Just a bit of a showmanship gimmick, you betcha. Frosty The Lucky.

Sure, no problem if it isn't closed up too much. The only problem you might run into is melting the liner out faster than normal. Mike's right, you can turn it down at the regulator quite a bit. If you get it tuned well it'll bring 300-350 cu/in to welding temp. How did you line your forge? Frosty The Lucky.

S'okay Ethan learning the Jargon is part of the craft, we all had to learn it, still learning it. Break your coal to acorn size and wet the fines to pack around the mound. You'll use much less coal, have much hotter fires and have better control. No bait? You don't want to play? Frosty The Lucky.

10 YEARS?! You mean you aren't going to learn to blacksmith by making a sword! You sir are a unique individual or NOT 14. Nice tongs, well done. The twist on the fire tool(?) is VERY nice, we'll be wanting a how too on that one. You've got the knack alright, a little polish on the skills sets and you'll be giving lessons in no time. Frosty The Lucky.

Don't be sorry Chris, I just want to see the pics do your work justice and it's not so hard to do if you know the tricks. Frosty The Lucky.

Look through the yellow pages and call a local HVAC company. Modern boilers and furnaces commonly use ceramic blanket, various types of fire brick and kiln washes. If the one you call (on the phone) doesn't carry or sell what you're looking for they will know who does. The outfit we get most of our refractories from is in Anchorage and gives the Association a great discount and it's actually hard to get away without them loading you up with rems from furnace jobs. Legally they can't use rems on a client's job so it's trash. Most furnace guys LIKE fire and are willing to talk fire just be polite and don't waste too much of their time. Frosty The Lucky.