What do you do to save money in your shop?

Redesigned your projects to use the full length of bar stock with no waste.
Build a scrap pile and use it as the resource center for the next project.

Move your anvil to only one or two steps from the forge. That way the metal does not cool off on the way to the anvil.
Pre-heat the next piece of metal on top of the fire while the working stock is reaching forging heat.
When drawing a taper, work from the parent stock TOWARD the end. That way there is a lump of hot metal still on the end providing heat to use while forging.

Do you save the charcoal filter from your cigarettes to use as charcoal fuel in the forge?
What do you do to save money in your shop?

By not buying steel until I get better hammer control. The old family scrap pile is my best friend!! Also I gather multiple projects and forge them back to back as to save coal and time. And finally my most money saving idea.....making all of my own tools. Ive decided that if I don't have the talent to make some item....I practice till I do. I have more time than money like most smiths.

Kevin

I recently built a new, small atmospheric burner propane forge out of a mini-beer keg (1.3 gallon). It ran 3 hrs yesterday on a mostly empty BBQ tank, it did fine heating 3/4 square all that time, and will make a 8 inch long heat. I'm trying to get efficient by sizing the furnace to the work I'm doing.

You're absolutely correct. Every shop should have several forges to suit their purposes...small to big.

JE

We have found that we can save $$$$$ by only having salmon steaks and caviar sandwichs once for lunch each week and only change the french champange that is used in our quench tub when it really needs it, rather than every week.

Phil

Phil,
You will find a greater saving(on your water bill that is?) if you recycle the champange from the wife's bath into the slack tub.

Regards Ian

On a more serious line we now twist 0.8mm s/s wire from mig spools(using an air drill) as its cheaper than buying tig rods.

I laid off my shadow.

My wife saves BIG all the time at sales.........I'm gonna die MEGA rich!!!

I save money by cooking my kielbasa over my coal fire...................sorry about that, Kingsford! I also trade my scrap to scrap dealers for anvils.....................which I sell to anvil collectors for mega-money on ebay, which allows me to buy more new steel which results in more scrap to be traded to scrap dealers for anvils, which allows me to sell them on ebay for mega-money to collectors on ebay, which allows me to buy new steel, which ends up in scrap which I trade to scrap dealers for anvils.........................you get my drift!

I have been saving the little bits of scrap that I used to just toss in the trash, I take a load of scrap metal in occasionally, stuff that is not of much use anymore. I figure all those little pieces will add up to help pay for the gas to get over there. The price for scrap varies and I always find something there that I can salvage they do not care if you grab items that other people have thrown out, I have scored hydraulic cylinders, plow disks, shafts from equipment to name a few

I heat my home and shop with firewood. I make charcoal from the branches of the trees I cut for firewood. I get free propane from the local trash transfer station. I shop at a local junkyard for precious metals (stainless, aluminum, brass and bronze).

I buy consumables in large volume (case instead of box when possible) own all my welding gas tanks, and buy 50 pound boxes of rods.

What do you do to save money in your shop?


Do you save the charcoal filter from your cigarettes to use as charcoal fuel in the forge?
What do you do to save money in your shop?

I prefer to recycle them by rebuilding my clogged respirator cartridges with the things, really helps to mask that nasty stench from the plasma cutter.........