April 21, 201412 yr Saw a little posting saying forge for sale at the old time buggy shop, but it also said broken, not working. Well I was curious so I called and met the guy after work. He said he had it for 30 years and his brother had it for a few years before that. He asked $60, I got it for $50. It has a decent size crack as you can see in the picture which I hope can be fixed. I am a bit curious just how it works, as there is some sort of fly wheel? I think its made of cast iron as it is heavy. I've seen buffalo forges on eBay, but this one has no distinct markings or writing to verify where it came from. Anyone out there who could identify it and maybe offer a value as well as suggestions on getting it fixed? Thanks for the help!
April 22, 201412 yr I've seen forges like that with a wooden stick you move up a down. The flywheel needs to attach to the blower with a belt of some kind. Andy
April 22, 201412 yr How would you set a value on a car not knowing if the engine worked? If everything was restored and repaired about US$120 because of the crack If the blower/ratchet system is not working much less. In general these are not worth much to blacksmiths as it is easy and cheap to build a forge mahap easier and cheaper than repairing one like that. They do make good demo systems to wow the crowd though and for small work. I would not want to be doing large work or good sized billet welding with one!
April 22, 201412 yr Author Guess I bought a nice lawn ornament. Chalk it up to a learning expierence.
April 22, 201412 yr My father use to say "It costs money to go to School", Your lesson of the day was anything is only worth it's scrap value or if you're dealing in livestock meat price per pound. Don't want it? Put it back on E-bay and keep your lesson to you're self.
April 22, 201412 yr Now I didn't say it was worthless just not worth a lot to most smiths. Check out the blower and the ratchet on the drive wheel If they have any issues it might make a better petunia holder. I wouldn't say that that cost you anything as I expect you will get at least what you paid for it if not a bit more.
April 22, 201412 yr If you were local I'd gladly pay you what you paid for it. Welding cast iron isn't that difficult, the cost of a box of Hobart Nomacast rods is under $20, should take 1-2 rods, be sure to preheat and then cool slowly. I've seen forges with blowers like that listed down here for ridiculous money, $2-300. I don't know if they sold or not but would guess it'd fetch more than what you paid. For someone who doesn't work with large stuff and likes to fix things it'll sell.
April 22, 201412 yr Author I took it back to the local buggy shop/blacksmith to get their opinion before I made a move. They said that crack was pretty extensive and he would have to mount a plate underneath for support rather than welding it. They also needed a handle, plate/grate to keep clinkers from dropping down, make a belt and another minor detail or two. Their price for the fix was reasonable enough for all of that. I think for a starting forge it will do me good for a bit and I can always upgrade later. As being new to everything, its easy to get caught up in the excitement of getting that first anvil, forge or what have you. What would be best to put in the bottom of the forge to prevent cracks again? Some sort of fire proof material or cement?
April 22, 201412 yr After dealing with several heavy yet delicate cast iron forges that ended up cracking over the years I now build mine of steel.
April 22, 201412 yr To make this one just useable would you line it with refractory cement or a mixture of kitty liter that's been discussed here before? My homemade forge from a brakedrum is lined w/ refractory cement which was the only thing I spent money on. I can see why they would want to brace it with a plate underneath though I'd have welded it and then kept an eye on the area.
April 22, 201412 yr Author Thanks Dan, I knew I had seen something discussed about fire proofing but couldn't find it in my searches.
May 16, 201412 yr Author Update: I had this forge refurbished, (aside from the crack) as I was going to have the crack secured and plated. Just so happens a gentleman who owns a museum saw the forge and offered me a $100 more than the cost to buy and refurbish it and that was with the crack still in it. Funny how things sometimes just go the right way. Maybe I need to use a certain someones tag line...how does it go? Viking the Lucky... :D
May 17, 201412 yr That'd be Leif den Heldig Frosty The Lucky. AKA Frostig den Heldig to some of my SCAdian friends.
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.