I'm putting together a jabod I can move easily.  Instead of lining the bottom with bricks I was thinking of using an upside down cast iron skillet under the firepot. I'm hoping the air between the wood and the bottom of the skillet will insulate it enough to keep the bottom piece of wood from catching fire. Any thoughts or feedback would be appreciated. Thanks 

I believe the cast iron skillet will get hot enough to ignite the wood without some insulation under it. It will in all probability crack with the thermal cycling too.

I wasn't sure.  I'm just kinda spitballing ideas. There will be about 2 inches of dirt between the skillet and the bottom of the firepot.  I was also considering a brake or rotor drum. 

See the mark III JABOD forge. This was built as a portable forge. 

I was afraid red brick would spall.   I may just put 4 bricks direct under where I dig the firepot. Whetever I do if it doesn't work it will be easy enough to change. 

Red brick works just fine with charcoal, and I have melted hard fire brick with hard coal

 

Anthracite is the cheapest easiest to find fuel forr me right now  So that's what I'll be using for a while. I live in an apartment and the landlord is already apprehensive about the forge. I want to let Her get used to it before I start making charcoal. They burn yard waste in the back, but I had a difficult time trying to explain a forge to her. I don't see a difference between burning yard waste and making charcoal. I should say I do know the difference I don't want to be misunderstood. I don't see any fundamental difference. I want too let her get used to one thing at a time. Back to the point. I'm only going to line the bottom with bricks. There will be a couple inches of soil between the bottom of the firepot and the bricks. They won't be in direct contact with the fire. Can I use any type of brick in this configuration burning anthracite? I have read your post about using anthracite by the way. Very helpful. Thanks 

Don't call it a forge,  it's a 'raised fire pit'.  

I wish I would have thought of that. I tried to tell her the fire is actually going to be smaller than the fire when you light a charcoal grill. I think that is what swayed her over to my side.  

I asked her how big of a fire can I  possibly have in a 5 inch hole. 

Invite her over and make her something nice as a gift. Plus points if she swings the hammer a couple of times while making the gift.

 

Good idea. I'll have to put some thought into what though.i still have to learn the basic 8 techniques. I have no experience yet. As soon as I can make a drift maybe I'll make her a bottle opener or make a wooden swage and make her a spoon. Those are the simplest things I can think of she may be able to use and I can learn the skills needed to do it in a fairly short time. 

Charles I'm sorry I was mistaken. The post about working with anthracite was posted by JHCC. My memory isn't what it used to be before the knock I took on the head. 

They say there are three signs of approaching senility. Loss of memory is the first, but I can’t remember the other two. 

Then I have been old since highschool.

Good Morning,

I have been told it is "C.R.S. Disease'. Can't Remember S...... I can't remember what the 'S' stands for.....

Neil

Pnut: Another TBI survivor eh? Join the club, Iforge has a pretty large group of lucky to be alive club members, lots of TBI and various head issue survivors.  

You might explain how a properly operated forge is much more controlled than a BBQ. The heat's intense but localized and carefully controlled. Yard and garden items are generally good beginner projects and don't clutter up a house. . . Inside.

Frosty The Lucky.

Been a couple of years now but I had two concussions a month apart and lost quite a bit; of course mine were "brains over easy" compared to Frosty's. So welcome to the club!

So my oldest daughter is fond of reminding me, John. 

I was a victim of violent crime. I fought back during a robbery and was hit with a few things. A brick and a pipe with an elbow I think. I was stabbed also. A few years later I was in a motorcycle accident.  I'm pretty well recovered  except for some short term memory loss  and slight irritability sometimes.                                             Frosty, I did tell her the fire is much smaller than a BBQ grill being lit. I didn't mention it being any more intense. I thought that was obvious but if it isn't obvious to her I'm not pointing it out.

It'll be 10 years this September and I'm getting better all the time. My short term and transient memory don't differentiate sometimes but I've developed tricks that help. My emotions are to close to the surface: good, bad, odd. Low blood sugar has me arguing things I haven't thought about with people I haven't talked to in 30 years too often. I tried catching a falling tree with my head. I highly disrecommend it even though it switched off my desire to smoke. 

About 4 years studying the martial arts and Sensei drumming his first rule of being robbed into our heads regularly is probably the reason I've never been robbed. Hand them your wallet unless you're sure  they mean you or someone else harm. Then you go to war, do as much damage as fast as possible as you can, don't stop till they're no longer a hazard.

Sometimes pointing out the obvious is what it takes. Unfortunately, you can't explain the obvious to some folks. That's part of the learning curve too. I find being a likable Bull Shooter is useful, make teaching an entertaining and enjoyable experience works well. Bearing in mind always, nothing always works.

Life with people is an unpredictable never ending, sometimes . . . Interesting, learning curve. 

Frosty The Lucky.

Frosty, you are correct.  I think robbing me was an afterthought. The confrontation was gonna happen anyway.  I couldn't fight all of them but I focused on one of them.  I didn't know I was being stabbed until I seen the blade flash.  I thought I was just being punched, and not very hard punches at that.  I do know what you mean by tbi bringing your emotions close to the surface. Since my injury everyone tells me it changed my personality. I also deal with anxiety and hyper vigilance now. But I'm still here and trying to actively engage with life a little more.  After the motorcycle accident I kind of turned into a hermit and stopped participating in the world for a while. This last year I've been making an effort to.... Be again. Thanks for the encouraging words. I do a have a forge question though. I think the tuyere should be flush with the firepot and not sticking out of the dirt into the fire. I'm not misunderstanding that am I?  Thanks for helping. As soon as I the weather clears up I'm going to put it all together finally. 

2 hours ago, pnut said:

I think the tuyere should be flush with the firepot and not sticking out of the dirt into the fire

That is correct, but the good news is, if you do have it sticking out of the dirt, it will burn back all by itself!

Actually, even when it's insulated by the dirt, the tuyere in a JABOD can burn at the very end anyway. The heavier the pipe, the less this is a problem. Just be prepared to replace the pipe occasionally. Some folks start with a longer pipe and advance it incrementally as it burns back. 

JHCC, I knew the tuyere is considered a consumable. I'm starting with a 1 inch sch 40 pipe 24 inches long. So it can be advanced as it burns.                           Thanks. I haven't put the box together yet as the weather is unable to decide what season it is. I want to ask any questions before I start assembly. I know I can change anything I don't get right easily though. I'd prefer to get it right the first time if possible.

Side Note:.   Good advice on roberry deferral Frosty, try to be cooperative first. However, I read something the other day that was quite eye opening. Don't hand over your valuables. Throw them as far as you can and run in a safe direction. I had never thought of that before. And of course it's easy to say while never been put in that position.

pnut, sounds like you're on the right track. Keep us posted, and show us photos!