now, i currently dont own an electric blower, and by the time im done blowing and beating, after about an hour my arms are burnin(too bad its not from heat :D ) so a concept hit me the other day. as we all know wheels are inversely related as by size (and teeth per inch). now bear with me. if ive thought this up right, if i have 2 ft diamiter pully(my bike wheel) and then a 3in diamiter pully on the blower, depending on how fast i pedal(or lack there of) i could get ALOT of rpms. provided somthing doesnt go catastophically wrong and destroy my blower apparatus.and this is somthing that gives the arms a break, and i could get onto and pedal for about 15-30seconds and get a couple minutes of hand crank. but i also have a few concerns.

1. im not too sure if the blower will be able to handly that many rpms! :blink:
2. i might end up burning more wood(or charcoal or coal if i can ever get my hands on some of those beautiful rocks) and saving arm tired ness but then having to make up twice to three times as much. so would i even start to come close to a good idea or should i just scrap it and wait to buy a little electric blower?

Potentially easier would be to scrap an old bike and use the gears. That way, you still get the control of the hand-crank while making it easier on you. What do you use now? Bellows? Your lungs?
A blower would be a step up, and I see no reason why a bike wheel wouldn't work, though I'd go for the chain and gears. I've been toying with the same concept for a bit.

Well, if we do the math, you have a ratio of wheel ratio of 8:1 (24" to 3"). So, if you turn the bike wheel at, say, 30 rev/min, the smaller wheel is clipping at 240 rev/min. So, yes you do get quite a few rpm.

The idea of using mechanical advantage for blowers is not new, and depending on how you implement it, could turn out quite well. However, I would be hesitant to rig up something that you have to climb on, pedal, get off, and then handle your stock. It just sounds like a lot of moving and jumbling. Plus, unless you have a very long belt, or an overly complicated relay, you'll be facing away from your forge as you pedal. This means you'll have to either have a mirror, or look over your shoulder to keep an eye on your material. Why not just use the bike wheel to improve the hand crank?

Both Wal-mart and Menards sell hardwood charcoal for around $6 USD per 8 lbs.

This guy did it: http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/23179-my-forge-with-a-homemade-blower-mechanism/

I have seen several pictures of blowers built in third world countries built around bicycle components. Sheet metal and wood blower housings you could even use a bike wheel with some blades mounted on the spokes as your impeller.

I personally think it could be done, and the gears would provide enough to keep the fan going well enough. It might take a tad bit extra work than say, a champion 400, but it'd work, in my opinion. I might try it.

It wouldn't be hard to put a bit of rope around the blower's crank handle. Tie that rope to a foot tredle and you can work the blower like an old sewing machine.

now, i currently dont own an electric blower, and by the time im done blowing and beating, after about an hour my arms are burnin

My first concern is that you may be cranking too hard. Charcoal just requires a gentle breeze. If your getting tired arm from cranking on charcoal, you're probably cranking too fast and in the end, burning excess fuel as well as wearing yourself out. Just my two cents

maybe oil will help too?

Maybe something like this image I found on the web?

Arrg! Now I am suddenly getting the dreaded denial of image, even after resizing. Had to go really small to attach.

Stick a big hamster wheel on that and you've got a cat-powered blower. Your arm will never get tired with that setup.

john, thats alot like what i had in mind.
dan, my cats are too fat and lazy to do much.

I second what Dodge said. Charcoal doesn't need much air blast. If you're wearing yourself out cranking the blower for charcoal, something's off. EIther you're cranking way too hard, or something's wrong with the blower. Try slowing waaay down. You may find that it solves several problems. It's possible to force so much air into a fire that you blow all the heat away, just like blowing out a candle.

BAM has tons of coal (around 20 I think right now) There will be some at the conference in Sedalia the first weekend of May. Go onto the BAM website and check it out www.bamsite.org.

ive gone to a number of bam meetings and i wasnt greeted with open arms, in fact i was looked down upon because of my age. for that i refuse to go to anymore of their meetings or even deal with them.

Around here we have guys bring their 6 yr old son to forge, we all help them learn! Why are you sure its your age they are unhappy with?

New acquaintances usually take well to humility....

Hi I have used a bicycle wheel powered blower while in india, and brought one home with me, it's made out of the top of an oil drum, (just the blower, not the bicycle wheel!!) really simple to make, sure there's loads of pics on the net, loads of smiths in the east use them, will try to upload some pics if you're interested but won't have time to do that until Sunday, then if not the Weds... flat out schedule.
They are very controllable, it's usually the wife that turns the wheel, unless she's striking, then its the kids turn to turn it... i had my turn, gets quite tiring, especially when there's welding needing doing!!

1. im not too sure if the blower will be able to handly that many rpms! :blink:
2. i might end up burning more wood(or charcoal or coal if i can ever get my hands on some of those beautiful rocks) and saving arm tired ness but then having to make up twice to three times as much. so would i even start to come close to a good idea or should i just scrap it and wait to buy a little electric blower?

1. I think you'll find that your legs will end up burning before you develop too many rpms and again it wont be from heat. :D I would suggest you convince your significant other it would be a great way for them to get exercise. When you recover from the inuries from suggesting your sig. other needs to lose weight call that friend that will do anything for a beer or two and use him instead.
2. Buy more beer and get that friend to cutting wood and teach him how to make it into charcoal. Total cost of a forging session - a twelve pack. Getting to forge iron - priceless. :D

rambler: i love it. its perfect. and i have the perfect biker. my friend's friend wants to try blacksmithing and his doc says to excersize more. everybody wins!!

When Rob Evans and I went to Congo we made up a forge we could take on the plane with us. We wanted to be able to also replicate it there with scrap wood and metal. We made the wheel out of wood but replaced it with a bike wheel when we got there.The forge we found in use there used a bike rim but without the spokes. The spokes cost extra because they were used for other things also like fish hooks.

that is really really neat!!! id love to hear your stories sometime.

It wouldn't be hard to put a bit of rope around the blower's crank handle. Tie that rope to a foot tredle and you can work the blower like an old sewing machine.