[TheForge] Ceramic Chip Forge Workshop?

[Peter Fels And Phoebe Palmer]

Helmut Hillenkamp built a series of domed forges that had a flat 
refractory table base. The dome had a low opening for smaller items and 
  was light enough that the whole top dome could be lifted off for 
better access. The burner was in the top of the dome and the whole top 
could be used to heat, say,the middle of a piece of plate.
Jonh Fick did indeed patty-cake up his hi alumina balls by hand like 
little meat balls...PF

Jeffrey Polaski wrote:
> I Have some ramable refractory, but I haven't used any of it yet...
> Couldn't you just roll a little bit around in your hands and make balls
> that way? Think of making cookies out of cookie dough...
> 
> This is just speculation... Maybe, if you want to get fancy, you could
> use zircon as the "flour", that way you get more heat reflected off the
> balls.  Or a little ITC-100? 
> 
> Another guess, but you'd probably want to bake them in a forge first, so
> their good and hard before you used them as chips.
> 
> I was thinking that you could put half a "clamshell" over the chips, to
> reflect back some of the heat. It would be pretty easy to make out of
> sheet metal or straps, ceramic blanket & ITC-100. The drawing below
> should give you a good idea of how it would work.
> 
>  |  <-- pipe
>  |
> [ ]----------\      
>  |       /--------\
>  |      /          \        <-- "clamshell"
>  |
>  |-------\********/---|     <-- table & chips
>  |        \******/    |
> 
> 
> 
> The clamshell is hung from a rod connected to a collar that's slid over
> a piece of pipe.
> 
> I have no idea if it would be too useful, but it might let you get a
> little more efficiency out of your forge, and maybe make it a little
> hotter.  It seems like a fairly obvious thing... Has any one else tried
> it? 
> 
> 
> 
> Jeff Polaski
> RGS Webmaster
> (949) 824-6363
> 
> "The cow is of the bovine ilk;
> One end is moo, the other, milk" 
> 			-Ogden Nash
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net
> [mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Keporter at aol.com
> Sent: Saturday, July 16, 2005 11:34 AM
> To: theforge at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [TheForge] Ceramic Chip Forge Workshop?
> 
> 
>  
>  
> In a message dated 7/15/2005 2:55:20 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,  
> jpolaski at rgs.uci.edu writes:
> 
> Yea! I  made a contribution!
> 
> First, a melon baller, next, World  Peace!
> 
> Jeff Polaski
> RGS Webmaster
> (949)  824-6363
> 
> World peace? Probably not. However, you did make it into a book. The  
> following is a quote from the ceramic chip forge chapter:
>  
> "It isn't  necessary to use a premium filler choice in the beginning. 
> However, round balls  will give better flow characteristics as the flame
> moves 
> through them, and will  be easier to push work into. Small balls made
> from rammable 
> refractory are not  going to be inclined to crack if they're made
> carefully; 
> it is hardly a tragedy  if some of them do. 
> Jeff Polaski  was the first to suggest using a melon  ball cutter
> (kitchen 
> tool) for forming refractory balls. You can also  find..."
> Mike P.
> 
>  
>  
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