[TheForge] hello

[GHS]

To start with, keep it cheap to free. That way you can experiment without
committing until you have found what you like. Forges are like dogs. Most of the
time you can tell it is one, but there is a great deal of variation. You need
fire with a controllable air source. Everything else is an option.

It is nice to have the fire at working height. It is nice to have a shelf around
the fire for supporting work and maybe a tool or two. I like electric blowers
for the air. Most of the time a way to move smoke away from the face is a good
thing.

This time of year barbecue grills are being tossed out all over America. (Free,
portable,  mostly the right height, and comes with a lid for shutting down the
fire at quitting time.)

Fill the used grill with almost anything non flammable. Bricks and sand work out
well and can be rearranged as suits your fancy. CAVEAT bricks and rocks that
soak up moisture pose a hazard. A bit of water inside a rock sent a baseball
size chunk whizzing past my left ear awhile back. This was around a camp fire ,
but the same thing can happen around any fire.

While you use the new forge, think about how it suits you and how you could fix
what you do not like. Then try it.

All of the variations out there in home built forges are the result of materials
at hand, personal preference, and / or the type of work the smith most often
does. You still need to find out the last two.

Have fun.

Mike Graf

Jerry Frost wrote:

> > Hello Frosty:
> >
> > Thank you.
> >
> >
> > I was thinking of building a  small to moderate charcoal forge,the size
> > of work i do will probably vary from miscellenous things to large and
> > small swords and axe's.like i said im just getting into all of this and
> > im not really sure of anything yet.
> >
>
> Okay, the main difference between a coal and charcoal forge is fire depth
> and that's more a matter of fire management though folk who use charcoal
> usually make deeper fire pots.
>
> For a first forge I'd build a small one, perhaps a brake drum in a table.
> I'm a real champion of having a table on forges as it gives you plenty of
> room to rest work, tools and keep fuel handy. It doesn't need to be of heavy
> construction, even if you're making a fire brick table 3' square. It can
> even be constructed from wood if you line the table thickly enough, fire
> bricks for instance. You can ram a couple inches of damp fire or other clay
> into the table as well.
>
> Brake drums make fine fire pots and they're cheap. (read free) Don't get
> carried away and use a big truck brake drum it's really unlikely you'll be
> wanting a fire that big for a while if ever.
>
> My new coal forge has a duck's nest instead of a fire pot. It's a 12" sq.
> gap in the fire brick and an air grate centered over the tueyre. I stack
> fire brick around the air grate to make whatever sized fire I need.
>
> The forge is easy enough. There are a few other things to consider though:
> How much room do you have and how much equipment and tools to fit in it? How
> you going to lay it out? Who are your neighbors and will the authorities
> mind your new persuit? What other metal working tools and skills do you
> have?
>
> None of this is difficult if you already have the tools and skills to fab it
> up but if you're breaking in to all of it at once you're in for a few
> challenges. Still it isn't rocket science and there're plenty of folk out
> here to help.
>
> Frosty
> ------------------------
> If it ain't forged
> it ain't real.
> Wrought iron is.
> The FrostWorks
>
> Meadow Lakes, AK.
>
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