So...is this going to work?

[Steven Crockett]

So I am completely new to blacksmithing and am really anxious to get started. I am trying to get in for as cheap/free as possible. 

In our backyard is a brick fireplace and on either side there is a storage area for wood also made of brick. I have a iron pipe (soon to have holes drilled and blower attached) sat in a v of bricks. I know that regular bricks can't  handle smithing temps so I've done some research and have seen some of these soup can forges that use a 50/50 mix of sand and plaster. So I plan to make that mixture and make a layer covering the brick. 

I would appreciate any advice or suggestions. 

[jumbojak]

The bricks could still spall even with a coating of homemade refractory unless it's really thick. The sand doesnt block the heat all that well. It just spreads the intensity more evenly. They might not spall, of course, but why take the risk? If I were you I would find an old barbeque grill and pack some clay or ash in if you are worried about the grill lasting longer. Bottom blasts hold up well to the heat, even without a refractory lining, at least in my experience.

Also, I would go with a simpler blower system. That long pipe might be able to evenly heat a longer piece of stock - though without considerable tuning it might well not - but you won't be able to work more than about six inches at a time anyway. A piece of steel, especially a small one, drops below forging temperatures remarkably quickly and setting yourself up with lower expectations of what the forge can do will probably save yourself a lot of frustration.

Unless you need a longer fireball the extra airflow will burn through your fuel much more quickly without you being able to do significantly more work between heats. A single source of air set up to provide you with a melon sized fireball is the most efficient forge setup I have found. You can work what's possible without spending any more on fuel than is absolutely necessary. I tried a wider air delivery setup and it really didn't help me at all.

What fuel are you planning on using and what are you hoping to make?

[Charles R. Stevens]

That my friend is a heat treating trench not a forge, lol. Most the time you only need a 6" fire ball (two bricks wide). 

Plaster of paris isn't a good refractory, its used by jewlers for low temp lost wax casting. Brick will survive under the fire faily well, fire brick better. 

[Steven Crockett]

3 hours ago, jumbojak said:

The bricks could still spall even with a coating of homemade refractory unless it's really thick. The sand doesnt block the heat all that well. It just spreads the intensity more evenly. They might not spall, of course, but why take the risk? If I were you I would find an old barbeque grill and pack some clay or ash in if you are worried about the grill lasting longer. Bottom blasts hold up well to the heat, even without a refractory lining, at least in my experience.

Also, I would go with a simpler blower system. That long pipe might be able to evenly heat a longer piece of stock - though without considerable tuning it might well not - but you won't be able to work more than about six inches at a time anyway. A piece of steel, especially a small one, drops below forging temperatures remarkably quickly and setting yourself up with lower expectations of what the forge can do will probably save yourself a lot of frustration.

Unless you need a longer fireball the extra airflow will burn through your fuel much more quickly without you being able to do significantly more work between heats. A single source of air set up to provide you with a melon sized fireball is the most efficient forge setup I have found. You can work what's possible without spending any more on fuel than is absolutely necessary. I tried a wider air delivery setup and it really didn't help me at all.

What fuel are you planning on using and what are you hoping to make?

Either coal or charcoal. I'll probably start with knives and ornamental stuff. Eventually if like to make hammers and axes. 

2 hours ago, Charles R. Stevens said:

That my friend is a heat treating trench not a forge, lol. Most the time you only need a 6" fire ball (two bricks wide). 

Plaster of paris isn't a good refractory, its used by jewlers for low temp lost wax casting. Brick will survive under the fire faily well, fire brick better. 

What if I made a partition? And only drilled hold in half of the pipe?

[Dale Russell]

http://www.iforgeiron.com/index2.html/blueprints/100-series/bp0133-the-55-forge-r183/

[jumbojak]

32 minutes ago, Steven Crockett said:

Either coal or charcoal. I'll probably start with knives and ornamental stuff. Eventually if like to make hammers and axes. 

If you are going to use charcoal I will warn you to expect burning cinders with a bottom blast. Once you have the airflow tuned properly they will decrease in frequency, but it's something to think about if there are potential fire hazards nearby. I haven't rigged up a side blast to use charcoal exclusively though my understanding is that they are much more suitable for that particular fuel.

The choice of fuel makes a big difference in the design of your forge. Mine is currently set up as a bottom blast, but the anthracite coal I have access too isn't ideal for this configuration. A few experiments with a side pipe helped a great deal in managing the clinker produced. If I had access to bituminous coal the bottom blast would probably perform very well.

Just something else to think about. If I knew when I bought my forge what I do now, I can promise you that I would have a different setup. What you have planned will work and at the price you would be hard pressed to beat it. View it as a learning experience and note what works well about your rig and what doesn't. Before long you will have a good idea of what conveniences you need and what will work best given the resources you have available. 

[Charles R. Stevens]

A side blast forge is certainly a better fit for charcoal, and burns coal just as well. 

1/2 the shown forge will be more effecent but a side blast will still beat it with charcoal. It acualy looks like you have the satart of an assian forge coing on their. Two walls 6-8" apart, about 6-8" high and as long as you like (with in reason) a foot works well but 3" with 4 tureer will get you a forge that will heat a katana...

remember that even axes and swords are generaly forged 6" at a time, viking era forges were side blasts with 3/4-1" tuyeer and burned charcoal. Swords, axes, knives, caldrens.... All matter of iron ware was forged in thies forges, and the anvils were not much bigger than a sledge hammer head.