"explative" - my forge isn't that hot! It is also a good idea to use 'washed sand' the other smells like a river bottom at temp.

KevinW

forgeGee Kevin, it sounds like we need to get you set up with a better forge! (grin)

Here you can see my (relatively) new forge in operation.  In this pic it is running on just one of the two burners.

I'm running about 21psig propane to the front burner, as you can see on the regulatorregulator. 

This forge, once up to heat, will maintain a chamber temp of better than 2400°F running on just the one burner.   If I turned on the other burner too I could burn up mild steel pretty easily, though I mostly try not to.

Pyrometer These pics were shot rather hurriedly while I was in the middle of forging a batch of hinge straps and the quality is unfortunately rather poor.  At a later date I'll be re-shooting the pics with my good camera and a tripod so my buddy Steve, who designs and builds these burners I'm using, can have pics for advertising.

These are far and away the best atmospheric burners I've ever used.  After about six months use I really love the new forge with its up-blast burners, air curtain and guillotine doors.  It makes forging go so much more smoothly when you don't have to fight with inadequate tools. It was definitely worth all the time and effort to build it.

forgeYes we do! By color my forge tops out at maby 2000. Its getting time for a re-build. It is a stack of brick style which I've become very fond of due to its versitility. Forced air at about .75 - 1.5 psig propane. One odd ball burner, can't locate the plans that I built it from on the web anymore (the burner has been working for about 10 yrs. now) The chambers max size is 10" x 16" x 3" and the one burner is enough. I remember the pics of yours when it was new and shiney, I think maby it looks even better now. Question, how many cfm's does your air curtin push? I think my rebuild will have a stronger one than I have now. KevinW

The blower for the air curtain is probably putting out somewhere between 75 and 100 cfm, I'd guess. It's a thing I scrounged from the dumpster and it doesn't have any rating tag on it. I have it on a dimmer switch and usually run it about 1/3 power as that is plenty of air for the curtain. The curtain slot is about 1/8" wide by 10" long so there's a limit to how much air you cram through it. :-)

For an air curtain, the volume of the blower isn't as important as the pressure it puts out. A squirrel cage blower, for instance, won't produce enough pressure to overcome the resistance of the very restricted opening of the curtain "nozzle." The bower I'm using is a radial-finned volute blower that probably develops about 3 or 4 psi - I've never actually measured it, I'm just guessing.

I do know that for the air curtain to be really effective it needs to be as narrow a slot as possible. The narrower it is, the higher the air velocity and and therefore the better job it does of deflecting the "dragon's breath" up and away while simultaneously entraining fresh air from outside the forge. Mine makes it so I can comfortably put my hand within 6" or less of the forge opening. After working with this new forge I'd never build another forge that doesn't have an air curtain. It's just so nice to stand in front of the forge and not be broiled.

Rich

Yeah, washed sand is so much nicer than stuff that still has salt and dirt on it and that the neighborhood cats have used for a litter box. That can get a little bit TOO fragrant!

I really like that lamp! That would be just the thing next to my easy chair.

If you leave the sand in the pipe it could cause problems with rusting, particularly is the sand is beach sand that wasn't washed to remove all traces of salt.

Will,

Oh yes indeed it will weld! In fact, the temperature it is showing in that one picture is plenty hot enough to weld if things are clean and scarfed right. If I turn on the second burner it will get past a sparking heat on mild steel - I haven't checked it with the pyrometer but I'd guess it is around 2650°F or more. I know that I've neglected to watch the pieces a time or two and burned them up.

I weld in it regularly, usually A36 structural mild steel. High carbon steel will weld at a significantly lower heat, of course. The floor of the forge is hard firebrick so it is resistant to flux damage. My original plan was to use silicon carbide kiln shelf for the floor, but when it came time to build the thing I found I didn't have any on hand. The firebrick has been fine so far. I do try to remember to put a stainless steel drool tray in the forge just to be n the safe side, but I sometimes forget.

Mmm..
Still a coke man, myself, and a couple of rather half arsed attempts to make gas forges have not been very inspiring, but yours has got me tempted to have another go sometime!

Got a present yesterday of a box full of (maybe 100 or so)used chainsaw blades from a guy I'd mentioned chain "damascus" to a while ago. Luckily my drool tray was firmly attached just below my chin as usual!

Work is slow at the minute....so I'm going to try and stick some of that chain together now..maybe a couple of paperknives for my donor, and one for me.

Will Jones

I had to go with gas since there's no real source of coal down here these days. Of course, after I got all set up with gas a guy calls me and asks if I'd like to buy a ton of high-grade forging coal for a hundred bucks. Couldn't pass that up, could I? So then I needed to make a coal forge. I now have the firepot, blower and tuyere and just need to get it put together - one of these days.

I find gas to be clean, convenient and simple. When working with a power hammer it is really a bonus as I can load the forge up with several pieces and not have to worry about burning anything up. I'd have to pay more attention if I was using coal or coke.

I will get coal forge built someday, as solid fuel is very nice for odd-shaped pieces that are tough to accommodate in a fixed-chamber forge.

Rich