poopdiddly Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 Not 10 minutes after I fix the blower issue, I hear a loud pop as I put a piece of steel back into the fire. The forge cracked. It cracked right through one of the bolts that holds the blower on. It also popped the little grate in the middle clean off. I'll attach a picture of the grate before it broke. It originally had three pieces of iron holding it on. One was missing when I bought it, one was intact, and the other was spot welded. I know I should have lined the pan, but would the lack of lining cause this? My steel was getting up to a bright orange, but no yellows. The blowers seems okay, and I can get a new grate in there. But what about the crack? Is it salvageable? I'm so upset because I've been wanting to forge for months. I finally finished school and bought this forge. And now, I'm back to square one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBower Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 The point -- or at least part of it -- of the lining is to help prevent uneven heating. Uneven heating causes uneven expansion, and that can cause cracking. So would lining it have prevented this? Quite possibly. Sorry, but it does say "CLAY BEFORE USING." Some people get away without doing it -- but apparently you're not one of them. As to whether it's fixable, maybe. I've never tried one. Cast iron can be a real pain. If it were me, I'd probably try brazing it. Even if you can't fix it, solid fuel forges are easy to make, and you have a nice blower. B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBower Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 By the way, drilling a hole through the inside end of the crack might prevent it from running any further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 Drill a hole at the end of the crack if there is one and then bolt on a mending plate or two and get to forging! I used a cast iron forge with a big crack in it for years until I built my own out of steel---which doesn't crack but has warped! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dablacksmith Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 its a fairly common problem with a cast iron forge they crack ... ive bought them that way the last one i had the guy before me out as strap across the crack out a bolt thru on bolth sides to hold the crack form expanding and used it for years ... as long as running the blower dosnt twist the crack open it shouldnt matter ... just remember what a forge is...its a place to hold fire where you can force air to it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopdiddly Posted May 6, 2011 Author Share Posted May 6, 2011 I didn't line it for three reasons. One I've heard you didn't have to. Two, I did a lining with clay once, and it kept falling apart, and lastly, I have no idea where I can find refractory cement around here. Are there any lining recipes that use lime? I attached some more pictures since I got the blower off. ETA: The big crack runs all the way to the top rim of the pan. There are two other small cracks around the air hole. I can try attaching a strap around it. Should I worry about it running through the bolt hole that holds the blower on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 Put a big fender washer on that bolt to spread the force if it worries you. And now the good news: To the smith the forge is a consumable! If you use it on a regular basis it will need repair and replacement over the years. The firepot I currently use is on it's *4th* (?) forge body and I'm a thinking about going to the 5th one soon---the home built ones allow you to modify the design to suit your work. I wanted one that was portable yet still a lot more of a fire than a rivet/horseshoe forge. So I found a piece of steel that had two sides folded 90 deg and cut out the hole to drop in the forge pot. Welded on short lengths of pipe capped with large washers that the legs stick into and welded vertical bars on the sides to drop metal in cross ways to control the active area of the forge but still be able to lift them up and slide long stock through at the very top of the forge pot with lots of coal/coke still on top I found out that 3/8" stock would fit down the washer caps into the legs and so I forged an arc'd hammer and tong holder (and recently made a larger one to hold more hammers!) It's quite light and being able to take the legs off makes it easier to load. However as mentioned before it's warped and I think I want to make the next one so the firepot slides in and out of guides on the bottom so it will pack even flatter. So get to forging and stop worrying! If you wanted it to stay pristine you would have cut the legs off and used it as a coffee table with a plate of glass on top of it. (and so would have doomed yourself in the afterlife!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopdiddly Posted May 6, 2011 Author Share Posted May 6, 2011 Thomas, thank you very much. I always over worry about everything. I will need a new tuyere grate though, correct? Centaur Forge has one, and there used to be one on eBay, but I can't seem to find the guy who sells them. I'd also like to line it just as an added layer of protection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old N Rusty Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 I put a sand cement mix Frank Turley recommended in my cast iron forge in 1994 and it is still as good as new,Use portland cement (not concrete mix)and sand, 3 parts sand to 1 part cement, mix moist and it will mold to shape easily if you can braze do it.If not, and the forge is still useable with the crack, and not likely to fall to pieces don't worry about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisG Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 drill a small hole at the end of the cracks to stop propagation. cast can be welded f you have patience and time with nickle rod, about 1" at a time, after a weld tap it with a ball peen ball let cool to touch and do another and so on and so on. you could also braze the cracks too. washer to spread out the pressure at the bolts s good. The other is to just build your own forge to accommodate the blower. just my thoughts. as to refractory stuff, look up refractory places near your place. some will give you left over bags of clay that you may not even have to pay for. Bing or google refractory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinton Posted May 7, 2011 Share Posted May 7, 2011 Looks like on of those purdy ebay forges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopdiddly Posted May 7, 2011 Author Share Posted May 7, 2011 Looks like on of those purdy ebay forges It is. I made two forges before this, but I was tired of scrounging up stuff to make one. I wanted something nice and ready to go. I know some scrounging is part of the fun, but I wanted something nice for once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinton Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 I think I got my first forge on ebay too, was able to arrange pick up so I avoided shipping. It is a small rivet forge but it was left in the rough unfinished condition, which is what I like. That is weird how that thing just cracked like that, but you should be able to get it fixed using any of the methods described above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Browne Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 Put on a repair strap out near the rim to stop the crack opening, line the forge with mortar/sand, make a new tuyere with a few lengths of reo bar and start banging away. A forge is not something to be looked at, its something to use. Mine is downright ugly but it works really well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopdiddly Posted May 9, 2011 Author Share Posted May 9, 2011 Put on a repair strap out near the rim to stop the crack opening, line the forge with mortar/sand, make a new tuyere with a few lengths of reo bar and start banging away. A forge is not something to be looked at, its something to use. Mine is downright ugly but it works really well. Would it be overkill to do two straps, one on the rim and one on the bottom of the pan? I already mounted a 1/4" thick x 2 1/2" wide strap over the crack on the bottom of the pan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Browne Posted May 9, 2011 Share Posted May 9, 2011 You can add as many straps as you want. The main thing is it stabalises the crack to stop it extending and strengthens the bolt hole with the crack. Other than that it will all be covered in mud anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fciron Posted May 9, 2011 Share Posted May 9, 2011 My little riveter's forge was cracked when I got it. Found a fellow to weld it up for me at the Quad State Round Up (1992 or 1993). Ken Sharabok said if I came for both days he'd find someone to weld it up. Sure enough, we were standing at the back of my little truck and some guy walking by sees us looking at the forge and the welder and he declares that he'd rather weld than eat. (It was about noon.) He ran back to his truck for a hood and proceeded to do the works on my little forge, preheating, skip welding, all of the official cast iron stuff, telling me the whole time what he was doing and why. Next weekend we dug up a bunch of red clay from the creek at my friend's farm to line it and a week after that I lit my first fire. ...and the forge cracked. About 20 degrees off from the first crack from one of the bolt holes at the tuyere right out to the edge. I drilled a couple of holes and bolted a strap across it. It's still that way and works about as well a riveter's forge can. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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