well i spent some time and made a firepot fron some heavy sheet plastic...
when i got a desingh i liked i drew it up....

its 4 inches deep 13 inches long (including the lip)
and 10 inches wide (again including the lip)

dimensions are 10 1/2 " x 8 1/8 " x 4"

i am gooing to try to use ferkairs clinker breaker idea because i like it.

if you want it bigger i guess save it and then open it in paint!

Edited June 29, 200818 yr by Sabre

I think plastic won't hold up to much heat...

You looked at side-blast forges? A box with a pipe. I'm building one 24" square out of pine. They've worked just fine for millenia. Most of the inside of the box is filled with ash, sand, earth, pearlite, coal fines whatever you have around that is suitable.

Bottom-blast and side-blast work just as well as one another. To an extent it comes down to what you are used to, but I think it's mainly what you have to hand. There are threads about side blast vs. bottom blast if you want to look. I think the main advantage with side-blast is that you can make it out of just baout nothing, with little experience needed and very few critical sizes. I think that, being young, you presumably have little money available. If you built a cheap and simple side-blast forge (at least to start with) you can spend your time and money on practising smithing skills and buying fuel and tools. Heck if you get forgin, you might be able to smith yourself towards a bigger budget! (Forging money... )

Looks good to me. Mine is made real close to it. If you need me to I can post pics

shure! i need more reashurance that it will work

Here it is. This is my main forge since 1996 with about an average of 20 hrs a week. It has held up very well. It does not have a clinker breaker.

I'm still not quite clear on what you mean by "sheet plastic" here.

He used the sheet plastic just for a model. After he got it like he wanted it he drew plans . The plastic was just a mock up of what it will look like when makes it out of steel.

Sabre: Build it, man, Build it. It is great to see someone taking the answers they are given, and putting them to use. I have seen a lot of folks ask similar questions, but never show anything in the way of effort and results.

Now you have the model, which will act as the pattern. One thing left to do, build it. I think you will find it very rewarding to step back, build a fire in it, and say "yeah, I built it myself".:cool:

Design looks good, now take the info. and go..........BUILD IT! If you build it to plan, it will last you for years.

Take the plastic model apart and use it as a pattern for the steel one.

Frosty

Mine is very similar and works great, I made mine out of 1/2" plate and does not show any signs of damage or deterioration and would not change anything if I were to build another one of that style.

welder19

Go for it! Looks just fine to me.
Finnr

looks good, but be sure to use plate thas thick enough