First coal forge almost done with adjustable firepot

[HP500]

This is my first attempt at building a forge of any kind. So I dusted off the old Lincoln Tombstone welder and decided on a portable coal forge to start with. I was fortunate enough to find most of the metal for free out of scrap except for the plate I needed for the firepot. and the hearth plate. The frame and coal back stop were made from an old heavy equipment steel shipping crate my friend had in his junk pile. I got the hearth plate for $10 from a very nice local blacksmith. That determined the size of my forge, which is 24" x 22". I still need to paint the frame and hook up my air supply. After that, I should be ready to go! 

Top view:

 

The firepot/tuyere assembly is removable in case I want to use it for a larger forge someday. The firepot is 11" x 9" wide x 5" deep.

I'm beginner, so I'm going to start out practicing basic hammering techniques, making punches, chisels, tongs, other tools etc. and then work up to larger projects once I gain experience. Correct me if I'm wrong, but my firepot may be a bit large for the small stuff. Is this so? I came up with an idea to make the depth adjustable. I'm not sure if it will work or not, but i thought I'd throw it out there. I had a few old cast iron grill grates from my gas grill laying around. I cut one of them to size to use as a removable insert to reduce the depth to 3". I have more grill grates, so I can cut them to size to make the firepot depth any depth I want. Do you think this is a good idea or just a waste of time? What would be the ideal depth for punches, chisels, coal rakes, etc.? Here are some pics of the pot without and with the insert:

[Kit]

I'm not sure, but I'm tuned it so I can follow this

[Jim Coke]

Greetings HP, 

         Forget the grate your firepot will work just fine as is., You may consider a clinker breaker design for the bottom plate . Easy to make .. Just Google fire pot for a reference.  Lookin good have fun.

Forge on and make beautiful things 

Jim

[Frosty]

Yeah, forget the BBQ grate insert. The air grate you have now is just right. If you need to make the pot more shallow make another fire grate a little larger, insert it and let gravity hold it. As a construction tip, if you make a larger air grate make it larger than you need and fine tune the depth by grinding the air grate till it's right. 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Will W.]

Just out of curiosity, what are you using as an air supply?

[ThomasPowers]

Proper  depth will depend a lot on fuel and blower choices which *we* don't know...

[HP500]

Thanks guys. I will be using bituminous coal that I picked up from a blacksmithing class. For the air supply just to get going I will be starting out with a bathroom fan that has a variable speed controller. I may upgrade some time in the near future if needed.

[ThomasPowers]

So is the coal nut sized, great coking and very clean like the bituminous coal I buy at a blacksmithing conference in Ohio? Or dust sized bituminous coal that has to be mixed with water to get it to coke appreciably and not nearly as clean burning that I buy from blacksmiths in New Mexico?

[HP500]

12 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

So is the coal nut sized, great coking and very clean like the bituminous coal I buy at a blacksmithing conference in Ohio? Or dust sized bituminous coal that has to be mixed with water to get it to coke appreciably and not nearly as clean burning that I buy from blacksmiths in New Mexico?

Thomas, the coal is nut sized, great coking and very clean, so I imagine it is like the coal you buy in Ohio. The label on the bag says "Blacksmithing". I don't remember if there is more information printed on it than that, but I will look later.