The cost of solid fuel

[Marc1]

I am curious to know what you guys pay for solid fuel. 

I buy mainly Coke. Used to buy Coal and mix it but lately burn just straight Coke. 

The price of Coke has been going up and up. Ironic because we are one of the biggest exporters of Coal and Bluescope Steel is the largest producer of coke from coal yet refuses to sell to blacksmith associations. The result is that we have some retailers who import the coke back from China and others who buy wholesale from steel manufacturers. At the moment there are two suppliers in Sydney, one is a blacksmith association and the other is an independent retailer that has one mobile phone and does not return calls for weeks ...  both sell at about $1 a kilo. 

That means that a box trailer with half a ton of coke is about $500. 

I am wondering is this is the end of solid fuel forging. i prefer a coke fire to a gas fire anyday. Quieter and hotter, but for the first time ever I am looking at the price of coke and thinking why do I bother with the inconvenience. 

[TwistedCustoms]

When I was only using coke I was spending about $1000.00 USD per ton delivered. I switched to LP last year and honestly I'm loving it. I watched the numbers really close based on the smallest unit of each fuel. Coal and coke when purchased by the ton come to me in fifty pound sacks, not bulk. I use two grill size LP tanks ganged together on one regulator/supply line so 10 lbs of LP @ aprox $26.00 USD vs 50 lbs of coke @ $20.00 USD. I didn't use any instrumentation to measure BTU output on either fuel so this is purely anecdotal but for what I do in the shop day in and day out I get about twice as much production out of the $26.00 dollars worth of LP. I still have my solid fuel forges and I still keep coal, coke and wood charcoal in the bins. I like all those solid fuels better and if I were a hobby smith I wouldn't even consider switching to LP but for production it is more cost effective for me! Also, no trouble getting fuel. I can buy as little or as much as I want/need at one time so I don't have to purchase six to nine months worth of fuel to keep the shop rolling. With coal and coke when the bin gets low you either buy a large quantity or double the unit price for a small quantity. The convenience is a plus too. Now when I walk in the shop in the morning I open a valve and push a button and by the time I'm done tuning the radio to whatever I'm in the mood for the forge is ready to go. I can also set the psi to keep the forge from getting too hot and stick three or four blanks of whatever I'm making in the forge without fear of burning anything up. By the time I lose heat in the piece I'm working on there are three more at forging heat ready to go. Honestly, you can work yourself into the ground with LP if you want to. You can heat multiple pieces in a coke/coal fire too but if you go to answer the phone or get distracted you're going to lose some of them. That hasn't happened with LP. I have no trouble getting welding heat either by turning up the flow. Best of both worlds and it's cheaper. It lacks the soul and ambiance of a "real" fire, but money is money!

[SLAG]

Mr. Marc1,

It may be worth your while to chat up a attorney (a.k.a. lawyer, solicitor, or equivalent), in order to explore whether that tight sellers' market is not contravening Federal monopoly legislation.

I am not familiar with Australian law so I cannot offer any specific information.

In Canada they have a competition act that covers those situations. In the United States there is the equivalent Sherman Antitrust Act and numerous other Statutes that are applicable.

A lawyer that also smiths should be reasonable for such a discussion. He/she would discuss it in private with no writing to avoid liability. (and that question again depends on the particular statute and case law.

Alternatively, a third year law student or an instructor at a law school may provide the information.

It strikes me as strange that Australian smiths have to import coke from China as there is enormous quantities of coal in Australia.

(Indeed Australia is a major exporter of coal to the People's Republic of China).

If there is no way of buying coke, it would make a dandy article in the local media, and in 'question period' in parliament.

The preceding are some suggestions for alternate routes to solve the fuel problem for Australian smiths.

Regards,

SLAG.

[Glenn]

Induction heating is another alternative. It has limitations as to the size and configuration of the stock, but so does a gas forge.

[Marc1]

Twisted ... $1000 a ton delivered (if a ton is 1000 kg) is just what we pay here. Well actually more considering our dollar is worth 0.77 US.

Surely for the bladesmiths, LPG is the way to go. More controlled and no problems with twisted large pieces. For me since I make mostly larger stuff, it is a bit of an issue up to a point. I've seen a gas forge open all 4 sides for this very purpose. I wonder how hot it gets around that sort of forge ... 

You are paying a lot for LPG, our barbecue bottles are 9kg that is 20 lb at $18 seems cheap unless you made a mistake. 10 lb bottle is a rather small bottle.  

Slag ... most of the Australian economy is based on one form or another of monopoly or at best oligopoly. However the coal/coke market is as large as the amount of sand you can balance on a matchstick, so I doubt anyone would be interested. I had some thoughts of contacting a politician to lean on our local steel supplier to sell us a truck load to resell at the blacksmith association. But honestly I have long lost the appetite for plinking at windmills

My best form of rebellion may be to run an LPG forge on Autogas