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Forge body idea


Paul Kin

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Hey all, I have just enough 2600° wool left over from my big forge to build a small one and was looking around at my scraps to see what would work for a shell, and found some 7” stainless insulated chimney... Now, my research tells me that its “likely” 2100° insulation. So obviously way to low temp. But what if I were to leave the steel inner pipe alone and just use my remaining 2600° wool for an inner liner? That would give me a 5”x12” chamber. I would also build up the floor with wool so its flat. I would end up with roughly 120-150 cu/in I think. All lined with Kastolite 30 of course. I know thats a very long narrow chamber of course. I more want it for a pass through chamber so could block it off as needed.

This is just an idea for a way to use my spare wool! Nothing is set in stone and theres no rush whatsoever. Just want your guys thoughts on it :) 

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Assuming that you are asking, whether this plan will work; probably.

If you are asking whether or not it is a good idea; that depends. There are two different types of double wall insulated chimney pipe; one kind employs ceramic fiber insulation (good) , but the other kind is asbestos filled (very bad to be working with, and must be properly sealed afterward).

Finally, if the forge is used for welding, its internal temperature will probably start oxidizing the very thin internal wall of the pipe away in fairly short order. these factors aren't meant for discouragement, but a reality check, to provide safe and sane parameters.

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Thanks Mikey I was kind of wondering about that as Ive heard some have asbestos. Is there a way to tell the difference? Is all ceramic fiber white? As I mentioned, IF I were to try it, I would put a 1” layer of my leftover 8# kaowool on the inside and Id seal it all with Kastolite. It would be a daily use forge more or less. My big 2 burner would be for welding as it has 3” of wool. 

Now I am not at all set on this plan! It was just something that popped up as a possibility. If its simply not a great choice, I will come up with a better plan.

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It MIGHT be okay Paul but it's not that hard to just make one that is safe and effective without taking chances. Just because you have a thing doesn't mean you HAVE TO use it.

Frosty The Lucky. 

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Good point Frosty! Maybe I will mask up and disassemble it and use the shell.... its pretty much the exact size I want for a smaller forge. And come on... a blingy stainless steel forge?! Who doesnt want that?? :P 

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Once again good point Frosty. My families health is #1 on my priority list. This idea is scrapped.

What I want is a 100-150 cu/in forge with a 1/2” T burner (cause I already have one that works well). I have a piece of 6” long x 9” diameter 1/16” thick air tank. But that seems a little short... what do you think?

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19 hours ago, Paul Kin said:

Thanks Mikey I was kind of wondering about that as Ive heard some have asbestos. Is there a way to tell the difference? Is all ceramic fiber white?

Both asbestos and ceramic fiber are white. I have seen photos of the ceramic fiber filled double wall pipe; the ceramic fiber could be seen through its open end, which may have been left that way for show and tell; I don't know which is the case. Asbestos filled double wall pipes are always completely sealed units.

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Panik, I was thinking that ya. I would need 9-10” tho so would have to order it in. I have some other stuff that I can fab up for free tho :P. Just takes more time of course....

Mikey, good to know! The 7” pipe I have (and was thinking of using until now) is asbestos then! So definitely ditching that plan!! Thanks for that tidbit! It will probably be a good one to store away in my brain.

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So, what actual advantage would this have over a piece of stainless steel stove pipe? It's already rigid. However, rigidizing the ceramic fiber blanket layer, followed by a Kast-O-lite 30 inner flame wall layer will stiffen up a stove pipe wall pretty well. So, it comes down to--so long as all precautions are taken--is which way a guy feels comfortable about.

WARNING!!! What constitutes a reasonable amount of precaution around asbestos, starts by learning how to handle it safely.

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On 5/7/2020 at 7:44 PM, Paul Kin said:

What I want is a 100-150 cu/in forge with a 1/2” T burner (cause I already have one that works well). I have a piece of 6” long x 9” diameter 1/16” thick air tank. But that seems a little short... what do you think?

My latest mini forge has a 6 inch length and a 43 in³ volume.  It is my go to for anything that will fit in it which is 90% of what I do.  This includes a 1.5lb hammer and all of the tooling to produce it.  It depends on the kind of work you want to do.

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Mikey, it would have no advantage except that theres no asbestos involve it the air tank piece. Infact I would far rather the stainless. Im just not willing to deal with asbestos. Im fearful enough of ceramic wool Id rather not mess with worse stuff. I dont mind fabricating. I actually quite enjoy it so I think Ill just ditch the stove pipe as its an unnecessary risk in my situation.

FrankenBurner, I think your right in that 6” would be good for most of my work with an extendable rest. I can always use my big forge for bigger stuff. Even then my 8”x12” floor has been almost to small a few times. Most of what I make is knives and hawks/small axes so a 6”x4.5” floor should be plenty.

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1 hour ago, Another FrankenBurner said:

My latest mini forge has a 6 inch length and a 43 in³ volume.  It is my go to for anything that will fit in it which is 90% of what I do.  This includes a 1.5lb hammer and all of the tooling to produce it.  It depends on the kind of work you want to do.

 

and how much does it cost to run it? I think people going through a lot of dough to run their big forges, would find that down right socking :D

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Yes, Mikey has pointed out my exact intention with such a small forge.  This forge sports a 3/8" burner and reaches welding temperature at 5 psi.  I forge at 3 psi and it only sips the fuel.  It saves me quite a bit more than a few dollars.   

I have found that I like the 6 inch length so much that I will be making a shorter large forge as well.

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Oh wow thats some serious fuel mileage! I will be using a 1/2” T burner and be around 100+ cu/in. Im making axes so I do need the floor space but want to minimize it to save on fuel. The big forge is nice because I usually have 2-4 projects on the go. But a break here and there would be nice too :P 

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As a general rule of thumb the output of a forge burner is a function of the square of it's mixing tube diameter. Meaning a 1" burner output is 2x that of a 3/4" burner. A 1/2" burner is 1/2 the output of a 3/4" burner.

Fuel consumption is on the same curve. A 1/2" burner uses 1/2 the propane of a 3/4" burner, and a 1" uses 2x as much propane. 

This is for the same type burner of course, do NOT think the output or fuel consumption ratio applies between different types or even styles. For example a 3/4" linear and a 3/4" T use different amounts of fuel and put out different BTU/second rates. Yes?

Frosty The Lucky.

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Yep makes sense! A single 1/2” burner will use 1/4 the fuel I am using right now. In theory of course! My big forge has 3” of insulation with a 1/2-3/4” (For heat retention) thick floor of mizzou and 2 - 3/4” T burners.

This new forge will be about 1/5 the size and use a single 1/2” T burner with only 2” of insulation and only have a very thin coat of Kastolite. So they are 2 extremely different forges. But this little one should make a drastic difference in fuel consumption.

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