Finally found a relatively close source for coal that sells $10/50 lbs (they actually guesstimate the amount and I always end up with 5-10 lbs more!). Of course, this is not Pocahontas #2/#3 quality but it is decent bituminous that cokes well enough and doesn't produce excesive clinkers. Problem is, most of it is between 3-6" long/wide and 1-2" deep, requiring me to break it down to 1" or so. I am doing this on my smithy floor with a 4lb hand sledge but getting a lot shapnel! Any ideas on a low-tech solution to busting-up your own coal?

Build a fire, put the lump on the fire, and when it gets warm (hot) hit it with a fire shovel, poker, etc. It should break apart easily. Any small pieces will be in the fire anyway so no clean up needed.

The most obvious simple hand-operated method would be a section of large diameter pipe with one end capped/welded shut. Then make a "pounder" of a smaller pipe also capped off. Add extra weigh in it with something like cement. Then put you lumps of coal down in that large pipe, and start pounding down inside it with that smaller "pounder" pipe. That large pipe will control most shrapnel.

Now, it will get kind of heavy pounding with that smaller pipe. But you could rig up a way to hang it with springs or bungee cords to help lift it back up after you forcefully push it down to break up your lumps of coal. Or even rig up a spring-pole to help lift it back up.

A lot of corn/grain was ground into flour like this over the centuries.

After you crush a bunch of coal in that large pipe, just pour it out into a bucket for future use. You should have all sizes of coal, including dust.

Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands

The other simple method would be to find one of those old farm hand-cranked grain mills - for cracking/grinding corn. Set loosely, it could crumble up your coal to around corn size.

If you got really lucky at an antique engine/machinery show, you might even find an old small limestone gravel crusher. Basically two heavy iron plates with one set at an angle from the other. The one plate moves in/out slightly at the bottom - by use of an eccentric cam. As the two plates come almost together, any "rock" in between gets crushed a little. The more the rocks get crushed, the farther down they slide until they fall out the bottom when they get small enough to pass through that bottom gap.

But that's a bigger investment in time/money/space than you will probably need. That double pipe stamp/stump mill will do the job well for only a little time invested.

Mikey

Irnsrgn did a BP on a coal / Charcoal breaker that he built. Maybe Glenn can dig that out for you.
Finnr

chunk of 4x4 and a bucket?

Variation on Mike's pipe idea---weld a heavy grid of vertical strap across the bottom and have it supported above the floor and drive the chunks through the grid---use a bucket to catch.

There are some nice catwalk sections already made up that would be suitable for this use...

Wow! What a turn-out! Thanks to everyone for responding with lots of great ideas. I get the essence what what needs to be done and since we live on an old farm I know I can easily find the material I need to fabricate something to pound it down smaller. My dogs will miss it though - they have a ball chasing the smaller pieces that would go flying off into the corner.

Just hit it with a length of heavy iron till its about 1" or so in size. Then Glenn's idea will work, as it cokes it breaks up easily in the fire. Don't make any more work of it than needed afterall the aim is to be forging iron not breaking coal.

Somewhere I posted my solution for breaking coke.

I have an old fashioned cast iron radiator. This stands flat on 2 kerb stones. The coke goes on top in big pieces and I hit them with a small sledgehammer. The coke breaks against the cast iron and when small enough it fits through the radiator which acts as a screen. The resultant pieces are no bigger than a walnut, some are appreciably smaller.

I set up the crushing station on a slightly sloping piece of concrete so the crushed coke runs downhill and I simply shovel it out at the lower end. A few pieces stick inside the radiator. I tap those through with a shovel. The shovel is a piece oabout 5" channel iron, flattened out and with a handle welded to the back. The handle is just round bar.

I am building something similar out of an old beer keg, with a grid part way down and an opening at the bottom. I pour the chunks in the top, mash with a steel pestle, made of pipe, the bits fall through, and the large stuff stays in the top half. It is neat and contained.
I like the spring loaded idea, i will look at rigging that up too.

Coal Breaker - photos by Shaun O'Boyle

Very nice pictures ...Amazing building. I'm gonna build something similar :D

Edited June 24, 200916 yr by T

i get coal in weaved plastic sacks, massage generously with a 8# hammer and then dump in a cut down 55 gal. drum