Author Topic: building a forge{pics added} (Read 24724 times)

lew wetzel · « **on:** April 03, 2009, 03:54:59 PM »

i am starting a new project this week as i am building a blacksmith forge...my parents have one but they live an hour south of me and i cant always get down to use it....so,i will build my own..i work at a foundry and have got to know the old fella that re-lines our ladles using fire-brick and refractor pretty well..he is from kentucky and we always have alot to talk about when i am over in his area repairing his crane or putting new gears in a ladle or welding something for him.he spoke with our superintendant and he said i could have some of the cut-offs of firebrick and some refractor to build my forge...
the forge will be 26in. square and 6in deep.1/4in steel plate...the firebick i will be using is 4in by 6in..1in thick...and i will cover with refractor..i am building the frame this weekend and have the plate and pipe needed for the cleanout and air inlet...what i need is a blower...i would like a hand cranked like my parents...but i do have a small electric motor and squirrel cage that i could use till i find something more traditional..will post pics as i get underway...

Birddog6 · « **Reply #1 on:** April 03, 2009, 04:18:30 PM »

I have two of them & may sell one of them. They are Lancaster #40 blowers with stands. One has 1/2 tooth broken in a gear & the other one has a fill tooth broken in a gear. But I think they could be repaired if a feller wanted to wire weld or braze a tooth up. What is strange is they don't slip or bind with that tooth damage, they still work fine.

Holler at me if this is of interest. I don't know what the value of them are, maybe someone else on here can tell us.

lew wetzel · « **Reply #2 on:** April 03, 2009, 04:39:37 PM »

pm sent...

Birddog6 · « **Reply #3 on:** April 04, 2009, 02:19:26 AM »

I can't get the PM thing to work. I have replied twice & when I go to the message out there is nothing there.

Just email me at birddogsix@yahoo.com & put Forge in the subject line so it doesn't get spammed.

Scott Bumpus · « **Reply #4 on:** April 04, 2009, 04:39:58 AM »

Lew, please keep us up to date on this project. I have been wanting to do the same thing. Some pics would be great. thanks

Acer Saccharum · « **Reply #5 on:** April 04, 2009, 05:33:20 AM »

Centaur Forge: http://www.centaurforge.com/Coal-Forges/products/160/

They have all the stuff you need for blacksmithing/forging from refractory to coal to fluxes to hammers to swageblocks to crucibles. Get the paper catalog, the online site is weak. And books and videos......

great potty reading too.

Metalshaper · « **Reply #6 on:** April 04, 2009, 05:35:33 AM »

Lew,

Just an open forge or are you gonna rig a hood/ partial hood system?

My forge is an open brake drum version, using a crank blower. Other than the pot being a lil small for some jobs,, it serves for what lil bit I normally do. Big enough anyway, to drive my city girl wife, just a bit Crazy!

OF course, we do live it a fairly big suburb?

I think "most" the neighbors are generally amused by my antics.

Respect Always
Metalshaper

lew wetzel · « **Reply #7 on:** April 04, 2009, 06:31:50 AM »

metalshaper,i will make a hood for it as i will have it under a partition off my barn so i can forge on rainy days or when the snows flying...i am keeping this one small as i i want to do is some gun parts and some knives,maybe a hawk or two...

northwoodsdave · « **Reply #8 on:** April 04, 2009, 04:58:24 PM »

I am hoping to get a forge up and running this spring as well, so this is a very interesting thread!

Lew, it sounds like you have a good idea of what you are doing! Be very interested in seeing pics. I'll likely make do with a brake drum forge for now, though I'd like a better setup in the future.

Dave

lew wetzel · « **Reply #9 on:** April 04, 2009, 05:10:09 PM »

i googled "building a blacksmith forge" and got some very good info on all types of forges to build....using an old stainless steel sink insert with the double sinks...one side for quenching water and line the other side with bricks and refactory....build a stand and viola,you have a forge....they even showed how to buiuld one out of 2by4's and plywood,fill with dirt and stones cover with cement...dont think i would want to use that one myself but someone might ...
and of course the brake drum forge and tire rim forge...lots of options for the do-it yourself type of guy...

northwoodsdave · « **Reply #10 on:** April 04, 2009, 06:11:57 PM »

Lew

The inventiveness of forge builders seems inexaustable! In Nevada, I learned about brake drum forges. Up here in Northern Wis, the standard seems to be cutting the top off a good sized portable propane tank, and using that as the forge base. That gives you the threads you need for the blower tube as well.

I think one of the great things about home blacksmithing is that tendency to use whatever is at hand to build whatever you need at the moment.

Dave

lew wetzel · « **Reply #11 on:** April 05, 2009, 07:13:58 PM »

ok,i got the frame work all welded up and got the refractory put in and fired....decided to not use the fire bricks...changed my design!!!after i fire it for a while with the propane i will build a fire with wood in it and keep it going all day so the refractory gets super hard.....

Scott Bumpus · « **Reply #12 on:** April 05, 2009, 10:12:37 PM »

Thanks for the pics. That gives me some ideas. Does the refractory get mixed kind of like morter or is it more like drywall mud in a bucket, I am talking about consistency only here?

lew wetzel · « **Reply #13 on:** April 05, 2009, 10:16:00 PM »

it is thick right out of the bucket...wear gloves cause it is full of silica and ACID...almost like puddy...i have had a wood fire going in it for the last couple hours and i let it burn out and man is that stuff hard....now to let it cool and make up the blower attachment and get all that assembled..will be more pics to come...

lew wetzel · « **Reply #14 on:** April 05, 2009, 10:39:25 PM »

heres a couple pics of what it looks like after the wood fire hardened the refractory completely...

you only have to use propane to harden the top of the refactory..enough to suppert a fire made of wood...i walked my very large yard today and picked up sticks and branchs that had fallen all winter and kept my fire going and cleaned up my yard...

48mauser · « **Reply #15 on:** April 15, 2009, 02:41:26 AM »

Lew, what did you use for refractory and where did you purchase it? Thanks, Paul

voyageur1688 · « **Reply #16 on:** April 15, 2009, 02:52:06 AM »

The ability to make your own with what you have is a great hing indeed.
A couple years back a friend wanted a forge for a small project and had some pieces of scrap laying around that he was going to throw away. He had an old cast iron bench stand that was height adjustable. (What it was originally from is unknown) Also on hand was a old rim from his Peterbuilt, a steel plate, an old exhaust Y-pipe from his junked out chevy pickup, a tin can he could hang on the bottom for a cleanout, a roll of duct tape to connect his wifes new hairdryer.(Dont laugh--it worked fine for what he wanted to forge out) His wife stopped whining about her new hairdryer when he pointed out his antique highback cowboy bathtub which she had decided would make a nice planter if it had a better drainage set up in it while he was out on the road. The total time involved in this build was about a half an hour.
Todd

B.Habermehl · « **Reply #17 on:** May 02, 2009, 12:31:31 AM »

In my expierence refractory isn't really necessary. Good old creek bank clay works real well. Its free and it does not hurt the skin while your schmearing it on. BJH

lew wetzel · « **Reply #18 on:** May 02, 2009, 03:27:56 AM »

i work for a foundry ,we pour steel castings for g.e..and caterpiller...the old man that relines the ladles gave me a half bucket...

msblacksmith · « **Reply #19 on:** May 03, 2009, 02:33:26 AM »

have you done any blacksmithing in the forge yet?I would like to know how it works. good luck

lew wetzel · « **Reply #20 on:** May 03, 2009, 02:40:35 AM »

no not yet....will as soon as a good day appears that is hot and sunny and i happen to have nothing else to do....am really looking forward to it...have some buttplate blanks cut out and want to start bending them up.....

olsplntr · « **Reply #21 on:** August 06, 2009, 03:55:57 AM »

Hi Lew,

I just bought a forge on e-bay last night. Where did you get your

refractory mix from? I tried Centaur Forge's web-site and couldn't find it.

Is this something I can find locally like Lowes or Home Depot, or do I have

to order it?

Olsplntr

jmforge · « **Reply #22 on:** August 06, 2009, 05:17:25 AM »

Quote from: olsplntr on August 06, 2009, 03:55:57 AM

Hi Lew,

I just bought a forge on e-bay last night. Where did you get your

refractory mix from? I tried Centaur Forge's web-site and couldn't find it.

Is this something I can find locally like Lowes or Home Depot, or do I have

to order it?

Olsplntr

refractory.elliscustomknifeworks.com. Darren can hook you up with anything from plain old Satanite to bubble alumina.

JBlk · « **Reply #23 on:** August 08, 2009, 06:07:51 PM »

I have an old mud forge that is made out of eight inch steel, sides and bottom.The forge is lined with clay and it works just fine.The builder of this forge didn't put a door or cinder breaker in the tuyer so its difficult to clean.The builder welded up the same eight inch metal into square duct work to feed the air from the root blower into the tuyer.A forge like this would be very simple to construct out of scrap.

davec2 · « **Reply #24 on:** August 12, 2009, 03:34:54 AM »

McMaster Carr sells various types of refractory cement that I have used to make casting furnaces.

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Author Topic: building a forge{pics added} (Read 24724 times)

lew wetzel

Birddog6

lew wetzel

Birddog6

lew wetzel

northwoodsdave

lew wetzel

northwoodsdave

lew wetzel

lew wetzel

lew wetzel

48mauser

voyageur1688

lew wetzel

msblacksmith

lew wetzel

jmforge

JBlk