john_zxz Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 Here are 2 pic I took from a forge in an old abandonned forge in Thetford Mine (Quebec, Canada). It was used to repair the tools of the asbestos miners. The blacksmith there was living in the shop. There was his quarter in the next room. He has the highest salary after the big boss and the overseer. This forge is huge. I think there is 2 firepot but not sure because there was coal dust everywhere flush to the top. I'm sure there wasn't any smoke in the shop with this design. There is also a lot of space to move the pieces, the hood doesn't obstruct the view. The chimney is big enough and there is also a door on the left side and the right side of the forge for long pieces. Ahh too bad this mine is abandonned. If only there were people reenacting this forge, it would have been great. In the next room, it was the main shop where welders repaired things and where the miners recharged their batteries. Just wanted to shared these photos of the shop with you. What do yo think of the forge design guys, do you think like me that there was no smoke or am I wrong? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Emig Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 Pretty sweet industrial set up. The enclosed design might have kept some of the heat in the shop down a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Blythin Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 Anyone want to bet that the shop, forge, etc. are liberally insulated with asbestos? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Einhorn Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 Thank you for posting. The forge looks impressive. If the flue is of sufficient diameter then my guess is that smoke would have been handled very nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Judson Yaggy Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 That forge reminds me of the toxic fumes hood in my wife's lab. Could you tell if it had a power assist or was it just a simple chimney? Were the pipes on the front of the building for steam? Any old steam hammers in that place? We have a few abandoned asbestos mines around here, I'm probably 75 miles south south west of Thetford Quebec. Probably similar geology. They are pretty strict about who gets to go into the closed mines thou... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_zxz Posted September 17, 2012 Author Share Posted September 17, 2012 I think it is just a simple chimney. It was very dark under the hood and I couldn't tell for sure. I don't know if there were any steam hammer because the only tool that stayed there was the forge itself and some rusted bolts in a buckets... Not even a pair of tongs. I didn't ask as the guide knew the basic story of the shop but nothing precise on the work they did. The pipes on the front must be for the steam, there was a lot of them everywhere in every building. Yea the geology must be very similir. I went at the mine during a visit organized by the mineral museum of Thetford. There was a lot of gates to open... This is not for people alone who wants to walk in the mines. Very strict here too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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