NomenCallide Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 Hey guys! (I took your advice and put my location in the profile Frosty) I'm making a forge out of an old wok and deciding between a couple designs and was wondering what you guys thought of this set up... I plan to make a couple modifications to it either way (the blower is the output from my shop vac for example) but I wanted to get some thoughts suggestions before I commit to any design. heres the video.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 That looks like a sate' pan, how wide and deep is your wok, and what fuel/fuels do you plan on using? Ok, I'm having parttimer's, who is the smith that uses the big stainless mixing bowl on a tripod with his traveling setup in Eastern Europe? He has that nice custom single horn stump anvil that fits into a forged square base. I know he dose fantastic axes. But I'm drawing a blank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 Bogdan Popov! Now to find his forge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 You say your using charcoal in the forge so I hope you mean real hardwood type charcoal and not briquettes. The real charcoal takes a gentle amount of air and usually a shop vac will be too strong. The hair dryer will work but you need to separate or disconnect it from the forge aluminum can by 3 inches or so. The open space will allow you to control the air flow by aiming it closer to the can for more air, and not as close for less air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 check out the pictures on his website. http://www.kuznya.kiev.ua The web site is in Russian so you may have to translate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 This is a $10 double acting bellows, a bit beter choice for charcoal than the electric one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 It's going to take a lot more than 55 calories to get steel to forging temperatures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 Does the maker of that video have some experience before trying to teach others how to do things? It does not look that way to me. That setup looks like it would be overly oxidizing in use; particularly *BAD* for knife blades. It could be easily modified at no cost to work better by controlling the blast and using dirt to make a deeper trough shape to the firepot. May I commend the Tim Lively washtub forge to you as one proven in through years of use for knife making. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 We aren't bashing you, but we have been were you are and have learned the hard way what works (and we have evidence that it has worked for a few thousand years) I personally would consider the box of dirt forge. this is cheap and easy to get you started. Use the $10 bed pump and a piece of 3/4" schedule 40 pipe and your off to the races. Then if you want to make the wok into a forge you have experiance with what works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NomenCallide Posted August 13, 2017 Author Share Posted August 13, 2017 Would a pump like this work at all? It would allow me to more easily control the air flow I think than the hand pump suggested earlier by you Charles and I can use it while saving my arms for the hammer work. As for not bashing me, I never considered it that way. I asked for advice because I know I am inexperienced and am looking to draw from you (collective) experience. I think I already have everything I need for the box of dirt forge actually... so I will look into that as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 Well the blowdryer will work you just need to figure out a way to NOT have it hard connected as they produce way too much air. They also burn up way too much charcoal too. Have you seen the discussion about using an old sewing machine pedal to both control air and turn the blowdryer off when you are not needing it? Not trying to bash you but more whoever posts "How to do it" videos when they don't know how to do it. "Will this work?" would have gotten a very different reply from me. Also look into the chinese box bellows or even the traditional european bellows, I've made them for under a dollar before using a junked line printer stand made from plywood and a discarded awning---line printer stand even had a piano hinge to use! (blowdryers have universal motors and so can be speed controlled with a simple rheostat.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NomenCallide Posted August 13, 2017 Author Share Posted August 13, 2017 12 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: Not trying to bash you but more whoever posts "How to do it" videos when they don't know how to do it. "Will this work?" would have gotten a very different reply from me. I did ask if it would work and what people opinions were lol as for the bellows, I tried making one before and it leaked like a sieve so I prefer the blowdrier method but my wife would kill me for it XD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 Not enugh air and it is only single acting. Order the one shown from Walmart, I got mine from academy sports. For charcoal with a 3/4" schedual 40 tuyere it is plenty of air, and it is quit. It was $10 plus tax. I like this style beter than others because it is bigger and the outlet is not in the handle. This is the mark 1 dirt box forge. Now if you don't mind squating to forge you can take it camping as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 Well there are some suggestions for that too (leaking bellows" including things like lighter valves, silicone caulk before nailing down the "leathers" a backing or topping cover for the hinges, etc. For my great bellows I used Al sheet with felt glued on them for the valves; only had it for 20 years so I don't know how effective it will be in the long run. My "leathers" were made from the heavily treated tarpaulin canvas used for wind wings on oil drilling rigs---free scrap material from a company that made them. I glued up dimensional lumber to get the snout and draw knifed it to external shape. The tue pipe was a 1960's table leg---the circular pipe ones that taper to the floor---cut it off at the diameter you want to fit the tuyere connection. And remember the double lunged great bellows does not use a check valve. The bottom lung only feeds into the top chamber and the top chamber only connects to the way out so there is nere an inhale through the tue pipe. (Two sets of valves, one on the underside plate that allows air into the bottom chamber and one on the stationary middle plate allowing air into the upper chamber. The top plate does NOT have a valve on it. The bottom plate is the one that gets pumped. The middle plate is stationary---no hinges! and the upper plate is hinged to allow it to fill as the bottom chamber is compressed.) It's important rigging the pumping lever correctly. I could pump my great bellows to welding temps in the forge with my (admittedly strong) pinky! A friend had to wrap the strap around his hand and pull with all his might to just get a fire at all---messed up his shoulder after a while but it was a "historic" shop and so nobody would allow him to put the bellows in *right*. (It had been installed by people who didn't know anything about bellows or smithing when they put a blacksmith shop in what had been a carriage house.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 13, 2017 Share Posted August 13, 2017 I have to open up my constatina bellows as I supe to the floating pin arrangement I used on the valves is hanging up, I also will use inner tube to line the canvas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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