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Questions on propane supply; bamberg, germany


Gijotoole

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Okay gents. I am a noob when it comes to pounding hot metal. I would like to not be noob long. That's where you come in. I currently live in Germany where everything is the way it is and people don't seem to be too creative with some stuff. I am trying to build a gas forge in my yard but I gave hit a snag. None of the five hardware stores in my city have an extensive plumbing supply, so I have to order my ex burner pieces online - no kidding. The shops only carry propane supplies as prepared items, not cut-to-length hose and a large variety of fittings and couplers.

Question 1: my reg is eh thread but I can't find propane hose without a lh thread (I understand why). Can I re-thread it a eh thread to fit my reg and use some hardening dope to seal it?

Question 2: since the threads are lh and all normal plumbing stuff is rh, can I cut an end off and use an insert with a threaded end to hook-up my tubing for the burner? I would use a clamp to tighten the hose around the insert ( which looks like a rubber hose coupling - slides into the hose).

Question 3: do any of you know anywhere in Bamberg, germany that I can find a blacksmith supply? I looked on Google maps, internet, phone book, it's not the same over here. The hardware stores all carry the same stuff.

If I can't find the parts I need I'll have to go with a weed burner and try to adapt my adjustable reg to achieve welding heat. I need some help.

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First, welcome to the fire and madness.

 

I have used hose barbs (the little insert thingee's) and hose clamps without any problem.  At some point you will need a swivel end to make it all go together.  I'm going to mention this, but I'm not advising you to do it (wink, wink), but I have seen and used the quick snap on air couplers on gas hoses.  Just saying. 

 

How would the regulator and bottle go together if you were building a BBQ?  The have to go together at some point.

 

This is the burner I use.  As you can see, it's blown, so you'd need a fan.  Anything in the 60 CFM range works fine.

 

post-46125-0-21751900-1383405122_thumb.j

 

post-46125-0-63234300-1383405136_thumb.j

 

Two different configurations

 

post-46125-0-87820600-1383405154_thumb.j

 

post-46125-0-84860600-1383405170_thumb.j

 

Hope some of this helps

 

Geoff

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hightemptools-dot-com and zoellerforge-dot-com both sell regulators, hoses and burners.  I've dealt with both companies and found them satisfactory.  They sell everything from the plug that goes into the propane bottle to the burner, so you can easily get a complete solution (if that's what you want to pay for).  A place like mcmastercarr-dot-com or mscdirect-dot-com are great at providing parts you can assemble together if you know what you're doing.

 

My major caveat is that I don't know what type of fitting you'll find on propane bottles sold in Germany.  If you're buying at the military PX, I imagine that it's a standard POL 2 fitting - but if you're buying at a local German store, I suspect that the fitting is some metric fitting that may not be compatible with all the stuff you'd get from an American supplier.  I suspect you need to do some more research on German propane fittings. 

 

http://www.wynen-gas.de/pages/gb/produkte/hauptgruppe/campinggas/obergruppe/reglerusaumbau.html?PHPSESSID=e94f4b30d5c2a801f286079f91555c98  is a company that claims that it sells adapters that let you connect USA grills to German propane bottles.  This may or may not solve your problem.

 

Good luck - make beautiful things.

 

J

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Are you military stationed in Germany? If so you may have more resources at your disposal than you realize. Many times guys can make use of base facilities to get things done if you ask the right people. Go see the guys who actually do the "work". You may find someone who will turn you out a part you need on their shop lathe or who know where you can grab a few parts out of their scrap dumpster. Going in with the right attitude and asking nicely goes along ways. Also don't be afraid to talk to these guys about what you want to do. Most guys who work with metal are always happy to help out someone with similar interests, and they might be interested in building one of their own and really "hook you up" with what you need. A few cold ones at the end of the day won't hurt either... Don't forget base rec facilities either. Lots of guys often don't bother to find out what kind of shop facilities are open to them thru the rec programs.

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Thx for the input. The folks on base aren't too helpful - installation is closing soon. I spoke with the local president of the Kontakt Klub and he can't find any good answers either. I'm going to approach some mechanics and see if they can use a dye to cut a rh coupler to oh threads on one end, that should take care of some issues. I gave the bayou classic adj reg and s blue rhino bottle, so that's not an issue. I was warned against using qd air fittings on my supply lines b/c they're not actually air tight. I hadn't thought about a swivel... I'll post with any more questions. Thanks again.

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Finding left handed dies aren't impossible, but they are very uncommon. Most of the left handed stuff I've seen made from scratch has all been lathe work. It's very easy to do left handed threads on a lathe, assuming you know how to cut standard threads. It's all just backwards. Of course you'll need all the specs on thread pitch etc for what you are doing. Machinery handbook should have all that info and just about every machinist has one.

 

Another option would be to cut and weld two together, but that doesn't help if you can't locate the right fittings to start. Here's a link to Western's catalog. I can almost guarantee in it's gas related, they have a fitting or combo that will do what you want. Trick will be understanding the CGA numbers and "language"  so you can get the correct parts.

 

http://westernenterprises.com/enterprises/fittings-accessories/a-b-c-d-size-fittings/

 

 

 

The easier way as mentioned is to use hose barbs. In a pinch take a standard propane line and cut the hose in half and splice in what you need either with standard fittings or hose connectors. If the base has a shop that does  flexible hydraulic lines they probably have the swage fittings to crimp over the hose barbs and make it "factory". If not they probably have fittings in male/female with swivels. I patched the power steering line on my plow truck one night that way when it blew in a storm. Simply cut out the bad part and swaged in a pair of mated SAE hydraulic connectors to "patch" things back together until I could get the right hose. You'd be amazed what a good hydraulics shop can do if you need custom hoses or lines.

 

Good luck, and thanks for serving.

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  • 1 month later...

Thanks for the help, fellas. I got the gas pron fig'rd out. Now I'm having problems gettit to forging heat. My forge has 180in3 and is made with bricks. I have no refractory or blanket and am not sure if I should put the blanket inside or outside the bricks. Any help? 2" of blanket will give me a 1" by 4" working area so that's a little out. I am using a zoeller sidearm burner and don't know if it's tuned properly. I'll work on it this weekend. I'll ask the Germans on post, that work at the boiler, iv they have extra blanket or refractory laying around...

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Thanks for the help, fellas. I got the gas pron fig'rd out. Now I'm having problems gettit to forging heat. My forge has 180in3 and is made with bricks. I have no refractory or blanket and am not sure if I should put the blanket inside or outside the bricks. Any help? 2" of blanket will give me a 1" by 4" working area so that's a little out. I am using a zoeller sidearm burner and don't know if it's tuned properly. I'll work on it this weekend. I'll ask the Germans on post, that work at the boiler, iv they have extra blanket or refractory laying around...

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Well, one question is easy to answer - if the forge is made of bricks (unless it's insulating fire bricks, which are light, like styrofoam) then you have to heat up all the bricks before you'll get much heat on your metal.  The bricks are acting like a heat sink.  

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Okay. Frosty commented on another topic for me and explained it in depth. I couldn't find any good explanations in one location so I had to ask about the bricks thing. I'm going to get some insulating bricks and use them outside the hard bricks, that should be a cheap alternative to ceramic blanket and refractory. Thank for the help.

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Soooooo, should i get a  oil-filled pressure guage or an air filled guage? Right now I have no pressure guage on my burner so I just get it started, max it out, and then back it off 5 full turns. My hard bricks were almost translucent this past weekend-i think that means too hot.

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