Is there any reason why one couldn't build a forge out of a propane tank or similar round metal item, that can be used horizontally as a forge and then turned 90° to vertical and used a furnace?

I want to build a forge that can also be used to melt aluminum or lead in a crucible when needed. It would be propane powered with a homemade mig-tip burner most likely.

I have been unable to find much information about the nuances between the two or why this wouldn't be a good idea.

Any thoughts on this? Thanks in advance!

It is certainly possible on a technical level, though the only realistic reason I could see for doing it would be a pretty extreme lack of space.

In general, tools that are built to do multiple tasks do them all rather less well than individual designed-for-purpose tools do each separate task.

I would recommend you build the forge for the task you want it to do. Research the burner carefully and buy or build the best you can with versatility high on the priority list (hints: all the hype and BS about welding temperatures is completely irrelevant if you are not intending to weld. Also "Temperature" and "Heat" are not the same thing at all; make sure you understand the concepts before you make any buying/building decisions). That way, the burner will be transferable between the forge and the melting furnace.

Do a web search for "Jeff Pringle Kaowool" to see how simple a basic melting furnace can be. You can, of course, make a more permanent shell than the couple of turns of wire Jeff uses and coat it internally. It's probably wise to do so if you have somewhere to store it between uses.

 

 

Tim is right, although in principle you "only" have to change the legs, into L shape runners, which allow the forge to also sit vertically to make the central change from forge to furnace. The devil is in the details. You must change the burner position much closer to the back wall, which must then be hard and flat; add an emergency drain hole in case of crucible failure; change the exhaust opening into a lid to give access to the crucible; change the hot-face (inner) layer of the wall to hard refractory. Then, you have to accept a generally lower performance level when your casting furnace is in forge mode...because now it is mostly a casting furnace and not much of a forge.

Sure but it's not optimal. Lead doesn't need a furnace to be melted in, keep your eyes open at yard, garage, etc. sales lead pots turn up every now and then I see a couple few a year and this is Alaska. Aluminum works better in a melter for the controlled atmosphere but it's a darned low melt compared to the most basic blacksmithing.

Why not just slide the aluminum crucible into the forge and take frequent looks at the melt with an inspection mirror? We're talking 1,100f barely red in a DARK room.

Designing a furnace to do both isn't going to be very good at either.

Frosty The Lucky.

Many home casters have started out by melting aluminum in a charcoal barbecue.