New charcoal forge

[Pault17]

After many years, I have finally made a "hopefully" workable idea.  I made a mini-double bellows and tied it to a Lively-style washtub charcoal forge.  I put it in a sorta-portable framework cobbled from scrapwood.  haven't fired it up yet.

bellows is "leathered" with mini-pond liner epdm/rubber sheet staplegunned to the plywood frames.  LImited pictures for now, till I try and fire it up.

I also put a piece of 3.25 round bar I had "laying around" into a buck of concrete for a post anvil I can leave outdoors with limited worry.

[781]

cant wait to see the results of the fire.
Looks like a very large fire pot do you plan to fire the whole thing the whole time you use it or block some area off with bricks?

[Marksnagel]

Looks cool Paul. I was out your way last week and picked up some coal on my return trip. Looking forward to seeing it fired up.

 

Mark <><

[Pault17]

781, you got it The idea is to block of the un-needed holes - Tim Lively's site shows him using clay to block the offending holes.  That way I figure I can customize the length of the fire.  I did not cut in the notches at either end;  i will see if I regret this.

 

Mark, where'd you get the coal from?  pittsboro area?  I too am anxious to light it up.  I have a 55-gallon drum and a half of pallet charcoal I have had for several years, and a brother in law just gave me 2.5 bags of cowboy lump charcoal.  messages from vulcan

[Borntoolate]

yeah I wanna see some fire to.    Is that first pic called solid steel round anvil in a bucket?    of cement

[Pault17]

Borntolate, the bar is a piece of 3.25" round bar about 31" long in a bucket of concrete.  The bar is supported 5 inches from the bottom of the bucket on a "table" of 1/4" square bent into two nesting upsidedown U's with a cross of #5 rebar below the table. 

this is not a striking anvil, rather it will be used as a training anvil for kids and scouts, and can be left outside pretty much indefinitely.  The total weight is between 140 and 150.

[Pault17]

The fire was lit!!  With the exception of the state fair, I have very little experience with a solid-fuel forge.  And charcoal is different than coal.  I have several things to do with the forge for tuning, but it works and gets great air flow/pressure.  I lit it last night and knocked out a quick little leaf key hanger/fob out of some 1/2" round.  Now I know what fire-fleas are.  woohoo.