Anyone who has cast iron

[Shaye olszewski]

I have been melting metals like aluminum, brass and XXXX even melted some glass before for a couple of years now... I've started doing this myself since about the age of 15... (I'm 17 now) I have had plenty of experience, but I prefer to do things the old way... (Charcoal or wood fed furnace, fabricating own materials and such) That is why I wished smelt my own iron bars for use, instead of buying pre-fabricated materials... So I was curious if anyone here has had any luck with melting down and casting iron? (In their own foundry)

As I said I go by the old ways, so if you're just going to suggest that it's impossible or you need to use gas, please reframe.

1. It’s not impossible, my old wood fed foundry melted an iron rack which was holding my steel crucible...
2. I accidently melted my steel crucible... (I'm thinking of getting ceramic replacement)
3. Coal fed pit smelters have been used in ancient times to separate iron out ores...

So I think that with the knowledge we have now a day’s hopefully I can manage to reproduce such results. I have been considering a small pit smelter design. They seem to be pretty efficient for holding in heat so long as made small and lined with good quality rocks. I also was interested in using this to melt copper to cast rings and pendants.

For anyone who has any knowledge on this, I would appreciate to hear it. Pictures are also very welcome for their great to help inspire. Plus any side knowledge such as different fluxes and such to use is also welcome. I had actually done much research into it and have knowledge of how fluxes work on a molecular level and why slag forms (And not just due to impurities in the metal) and how iron is turned to steel once super heated and due to the induction of carbons in a low-oxygen environment. But as for fluxes for the use of different metals "I have hardly scratched the surface"

I thank you for any replies, and am glad to of found this most knowledgeable of site.

-Shaye Olszewski

[ThomasPowers]

There is a difference between smelting and melting. Smelting you start with ore and get metal. Melting you start with metal and get metal you can pour.

Smelting is not a cost effective way to do things. Some smiths have used the bloomery method to smelt iron from ore but it's more a bragging rights sort of thing than commercially viable.

Melting for cast iron can be done at home using a small cupola furnace---see Cupola furnace in wikipedia for an nice example. Note that personal protective gear is MANDATORY. Molten metal is far more dangerous than hot steel!

Note that cast iron can't be forged in a blacksmith's forge.

melting and casting of steel is quite a bit more expensive and complicated than cast iron and is not usually done on an at home basis as it's just so cheap to buy the stuff than spend more than a car costs to make a pound of inferior stuff.

Note the smelting of iron in pit furnaces used charcoal not coal! Smelting of iron using coked coal didn't start until the 1700's with Abraham Darby.

Now if you really want to smelt iron ore and get wrought iron there are plans for a nice small bloomery in "Mastery and Uses of Fire in Antiquity" Rehder. Also search on Bloomery and Tatara (a japanese bloomery furnace)

As for background I have been smithing for over 30 years and have been part of a bloomery smelting team for about 15 years and then on my own for 5 years...(I'm also off line on weekends)

[Shaye olszewski]

Well thank you it seems as if i have some links to look up.

[Northern hot steel]

Hello Shaye. I am wondering if you have had much luck with you home smelting. I have uploaded s few pictures of some of the slag I have. I am trying to find a way to separate the copper and other metals  that are in the slag. maybe you have some knowledge that can help me.