I built my first forge today and did some metal work it was a lot of fun and I am for sure hooked. But I was just wondering if there was just something that I should know, so not to mess up too bad like with the coal. Which was a pain to get started.

Read Forges and Fires and refine your question. 

It is a sticky under Forges > solid fuels

 

Let us know what coal your using, your type of forge etc and the exact problems you are having. Add your location for better answers and so we can hook you up with a blacksmithing group near you..

"Is there something I should know" HEHEHEHEHEHEHE, Yup there is. There is a lot of stuff I should know too. I don't know squat and it would take me months to show you what little I do think I know. We will be happy to help just give us a little more detail on what you want to know now and someone here will be able to help more than likely.

Well, one piece of information is that clinker is bad and needs to be removed. Fires need air, the air controls the temp, the hieght of the coal mound controls the size of the fire.

yup, tons of stuff to know that you will learn, one thing that comes to mind-because nobody told me and I learned the hard way, always draw out stock square even when working round stock, draw square, then finish octagon then round it out.  Its fundamental and you may already know, but way fatser to be told than do it wrong till you get it right

Woodsmith

No woodsmith, I didn't know that so thanks. And ridgewayforge yes tonight I found out about just how bad clinker is

Yes, it's important to know that blacksmithing is much easier to learn from someone who knows what they are doing IN PERSON!

 

Why we suggest finding the local blacksmithing club and attending meetings and going to conferences.

There is so much to know that it is hard to answer your question without knowing what you already know.  I am looking to visit Tennessee for a vacation.  Maybe I could drop by if you could tell me a great place to catch Walleyes?

Welcome aboard middle Tennessee guy, glad to have you.

 

Why YES there are things you need to know and once the other guys get finished telling you everything they can think think of I'll get busy making stuff up. <grin>

 

Seriously, there are lots of things to learn and discover. You've come to the right place to ask questions, post process, mistake, discovery, etc. pics, we LOVE pics by the way. and just hang with blacksmiths of all levels of experience.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

If you're near Lebanon, every Tuesday night the Fiddler's Grove Blacksmith Association holds beginner's classes at the Wilson County Fairgrounds from 7-9:00 PM. 

 

You'll cut quite a bit off the learning curve by working with other smiths. I'd highly recommend you check out the classes if you're in the area. :)

Thank you guys and yes i went to the blacksmithing event in Cannonsburg and i learned alot. and thanks 56fordguy i will try to make it out to a class.

I've been doing this stuff for 30 years as a fulltime wage paying job, and the main thing I can say to you is you only stop learning stuff when you are dead.

 

Phil

Fann I find it a whole lot easier to start a small wood fire to get your coal going. Preferably I'll use pine and split it up with a hatchet into little splinters over a wad of crumpled newspaper or a handful of wood shavings from a pet shop, the stuff sold as bedding for rabbits, etc. A handful of that stuff works a charm.

 

After each forging session always rake out your fire to put it out and save the coke from just uselessly burning up. The coke is that light fluffy grayish coal that has burned a bit. Keep your coke aside in its own pile when you rake out your fire.

Once you are starting a new fire and have a nice little bed of glowing embers from the pine kindling going then add the coke on top of it. Coke starts much easier than raw coal. By now you should have a good fire going with all the wood burned away, your coke now burning and rake in some raw coal. Takes a little trial and error.

Good luck.