Fondy_Iron Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 Hi all, Finally got the time to hit the junkyard and get a few parts for a forge. Here is the brake drum I am using it is 13" across and about 4-1/2" deep () The back of the brake drum has a large hole about 5" across () The backing is the wheel bearing that I cut down () And here are the pieces as I would be assembling them () My question is this, the hole in the bearing that I can use for the tuyere, is only about 1-1/4" across and I plan on using 2" pipe for the rest of the construction, is this hole too small? Will reducing the pipe from 2" to 1-1/4" create too much force in the forge and blow the coal out of the forge? I do not have a very strong blower, the only thing I could get my hands on (for the moment) was a 2 speed hair dryer that I've stripped the heating element out of. Is there another approach to reducing that 5" hole? I figured since I found the wheel bearing that fit I could cut it down and then weld it in place. But the size of the tuyere has me worried. Any and all information is welcome Thanks in advance, -Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pug}{maN Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 i used a floor flange, you can put the 2 in. pipe right on it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 I've done the hole, it tends to focus the airflow to the center of the coal bed. I made a grate from a piece of plate and cut 3 slits to spread the airflow. It worked much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fondy_Iron Posted November 26, 2012 Author Share Posted November 26, 2012 Ahh nice idea JM thanks. I was thinking about how best to disperse the airflow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 My forge has a 2-1/4 inch opening and I use a 1/2 inch bolt welded across the opening as a grate / twyere. I burn fines or coal dust and do not have an issue with the opening being too large. No welder, then bend some round bar to fit into two of the lug bolt holes and cross the opening. Make a table and cut a hole so you can drop in the drum into the hole and it will catch on the rim. Makes like so much simpler. Look for a piece of 10-12 inch pipe, tube, whatever and cut a mouse hole at the bottom. Stand it up for a chimney with the mouse hole a couple of inches from the edge of the drum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danielpiotte Posted November 26, 2012 Share Posted November 26, 2012 When I built mine I used a disc brake rotor in the center. This gave me a 2 in opening into which I placed a piece of exhaust pipe that I flared over the horn of my anvil. This arrangement also covers the lug bolt holes in the brake drum. A piece of 1/4" plate with a bunch of holes drilled in it completed the package. Daniel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Private Entrance Posted November 27, 2012 Share Posted November 27, 2012 I used the flange same as pugman, but I cut a piece of sheetmetal that fit flush with a lip that ran around the inside of the drum. I drilled holes in the sheet metal to match the lug bolt holes and bolted it all together, which helps keeps the flange in place. I also punched a series of small holes in the sheet to act as a grate. Generally I'm pretty happy with the set up, but the sheetmetal is a bit light and distorts a fair amount once the forge gets hot. When it comes time to replace it, I'm going to try and find something heavier, like 1/4" plate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 27, 2012 Share Posted November 27, 2012 on my brake drum forge I used two floor flanges one above the hole and one below it to trap the pipe nipple in position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Is that a brake drum or brake disc? (Gathering as much info and knowledge as I can while trying to piece together my own.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge Posted November 28, 2012 Share Posted November 28, 2012 Appears to be a brake rotor (disc) but the main thing is the bowl for the fire pot. What it did before is irrelevant as long as it does what you want in its new life :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 I was just curious. I'm building one myself and am using a brake rotor from a house trailer. I didn't know if it is too big or shallow or whatnot. I've fired it up in a temporary state balanced on cinder blocks. Will be setting it into a metal table I have as soon as I can. I'll try to post a link to a picture of some of the components including the drum.I hope I'm not doing wrong posting this here... should I have started a new thread? I don't want to cause problems by hijacking someone else's thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhardy501 Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Here is a picture of the brake drum I am starting with. Its a brake drum off of a 48ft box trailer. I will use a 3/8 plate on the bottom and 2" pipe to build the air intake structure and the ash dump. I will also build a grate to go in the bottom out of 1/2 round bar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 That is a big brake drum bhardy...lol. How deep is the firepit (is that the correct term?) ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhardy501 Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 I dont know correct terminology but the depth from the bottome of the cut out section to the base of the drum is about 2". Time I build a 1/2" grate in the bottom it will raise that to approx 1.5" in depth from the bottom of the cut out. I also want to cut a smaller window on the opposite side of the big opening that can stay covered unless I need to pass through something longer to heat in the center of the work piece. Atleast that is the plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Cool. Good luck with that. Post pics when you get it done please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 I can tell you that 1 1/2 inches of fuel under your workpiece is not enough. However there are many choices to elevate your work in the fire to the 4-6 inch area. Bricks are a personal favorite. I did rebuild my brake drum forge to get this desired depth so my bricks are now simply fuel containment. Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 4-6 inches... hmmm, now to figure how to achieve that with the resources I have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arcc Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 Just plain old bricks work well for me also. They eventually crack and break, but they are easy to replace. Firebrick is likely a better option, but use what you have. My firepot is ~4 inches, but with a few bricks I can bump it up to 6-8 inches easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 The heavy firebricks cut very nicely with an angle grinder. Makes them easy to fit into the a brakedrum firepot and get another couple of inches of fuel under the iron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 I just went and checked my brake drum. It has an outer diameter of 13" and an inner diameter of 12". It's only 2 1/2" deep. Using a 2" endcap that rests about 1/2" into the bottom... that would leave only about 1 1/2" of fuel. So... I have a 16" long piece of pipe that has an inner diameter of 13" and is about 3/8-7/16" thick. It slides over the drum, barely. I am thinking of using it to extend my firepit depth to the 4-6" that Phil recommended. Anyone see a flaw in my theory? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaughnT Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 LR, you don't have to go that far. The principle that Phil was talking about is the distance from your air entering the fire to the piece being worked. This area is often referred to as the 'neutral zone' because this is the area where the oxygen has been burned up the most. If you get your iron too close to the air entrance, it will still get hot, but you'll have excessive scaling. Same as if you had the iron sitting on top of the fire so one side was exposed to the open air. By getting a 4" thick bed of coals surrounding your work, between the iron and the air, you're giving a bunch of time for the O2 to burn up in the coals. Basically, your workpiece should be in the center of a ball of fire that measures at least 8" in diameter. What you need to do is get a piece of sheet metal (like the door from an old clothes dryer) and cut a hole in it so that your brake drum sits down in it, catching on the lip of the drum. Maybe the big hole in the center of the deck of an old lawnmower would be the right size. This gives you a large table that you can build your coal UP on. A big mountain of coal, so to speak. To be honest, I had never considered using a brake drum like you have, and I'm really impressed with how good of a fire pot it looks to be. The conical shape of the inside is very reminiscent of the coke pots being sold by Centaur Forge and others, and the depth doesn't look bad at all. I'll certainly have to keep my eyes open for one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 Vaughn, thanks for the information. I am definitely taking all info I get in and sifting through to find what works for me. I have a LARGE metal table in the shop I'm gonna drop it into.The inside isn't conical, it is the same depth across, the shape of the outside bottom part is misleading I believe. There are 'fins' that create the taper look from the bearing hub to the drum itself. I had coal piled into it with just a piece of metal with holes drilled in it for a grate fush with the bottom... it got real hot and heated up the metal I stuck in it real quick, or so it seemed to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaspar Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 Instead of building a table for my drum forge,I took an old push mower removed the motor wheels ect. and flipped it. The break drum sits down into it nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastRonin Posted December 5, 2012 Share Posted December 5, 2012 I don't have to build a table. I already have one. I actually set it into the table last night. Now I need to work on a base for my anvil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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