[TheForge] Re: News for a slow day

[Bruce Freeman]

Sounds like some of this came from us (NJBA)!  That's great.  I love
it when info we publish gets used by others.

Larry Brown (who responded earlier) may have photos of our TWO
forge-making workshops available.

On Tue, Dec 9, 2008 at 11:42 AM, Mike Spencer <mspencer at tallships.ca> wrote:
>
> Bruce> Post some pictures!  Please.
>
> Well, I can take a shot or two of my forge and burner and put them on
> my web site.  I didn't take photos at the workshop.
>
> Bruce> I'd like to see your design.
>
> Not mine.  Frank and Wayne worked out the design.
>
> Walt> Design used - why?
>
> Frank and Wayne worked it out over many months with (I think) a lot of
> trial and error. The most general principles were (1) burner that
> works well and is straightforward to operate without an industrial
> engineering degree and (2) forge body that works but is makable by a
> team of mixed skill in a weekend at minimal cost.  The post-workshop
> handout says:
>
>    BURNER: The burner used in this project is a normally aspirated
>    (ie not forced-air) burner of the type described by Michael Porter
>    in his book "Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces & Kilns", published
>    by Skipjack Press (2004). Anyone following the instructions in the
>    present document is strongly advised to read the relevant chapters
>    in Porter before attempting to construct the burner. The forge in
>    which the burner operates is adapted from a number of designs and
>    descriptions available on a wide variety of blacksmithing Internet
>    sites as well as in Porter's book. The specific burner...and forge
>    design...presented here are the collected results of the
>    authors' experiences to date in constructing several versions of
>    these units. However we fully expect that, as a result of the
>    workshop and further experimentation of members on their own
>    forges, better and more efficient ways to make these units will
>    follow.
>
> I'll ask if it's okay to forward a copy of the handout .PDF to you for
> possible publication, Walt. It may be a draft version or Wayne or
> Frank may not want it widely distributed for other reasons.  I see
> that Bruce Freeman, Robert Grauman and the NJBA Newsletter are
> credited at the bottom.
>
> Walt> Coordination/supply issues?
>
> Largely invisible to the attendees, but that was the "stupendous
> amount  of work" to which I referred. I believe Frank said he made 15
> trips to the fittings supplier, some 20 miles and around the harbor
> from his place.
>
> Walt> Gee... that would have been a nice one to have seen written up
> Walt> in the Hammer's Blow....I know WRABA might be interested in
> Walt> doing a workshop like this.  Can you enlighten us more?
>
> Several people were taking photos.  One guy in particular was all over
> everything with his camera.  I'll email him and see if I can put him
> in direct contact with you, Walt.
>
> One of the cleverest things was a fixture to hold the main burner tube
> to provide alignment and guidance when cutting out the air intake
> slots with a drill and then with plasma cutter (ahead of time, before
> the workshop).  The results weren't perfect but waayy better than
> eyeballing it.  And the attendees made short work of tidying up most of
> the resulting defects.
>
> Walt> I know WRABA might be interested in doing a workshop like this.
> Walt> Can you enlighten us more?
>
> I wasn't an organizer, just a humble attendee.  But I'll see what I
> can do.  As Andy remarked, "The key lies in the preparation.  Do that
> well and you will have a very good time." Frank and Wayne did a
> splendid job of preparation.  Of course, even then, you can predict
> that there will be problems but you can't predict what they will be.
> A couple of such problems arose (a shipment of refractory brick badly
> bashed about, some MIG tips faulty from the factory in a way nobody
> had thought of) but these were overcome in a timely fashion.
>
> Let me emphasize that anything I say about this workshop is *not*
> bragging 'cause I didn't make it go.  It's praise for the guys that
> *did* make it go.
>
>
>
> - Mike
>
> --
> Michael Spencer                  Nova Scotia, Canada       .~.
>                                                           /V\
> mspencer at tallships.ca                                     /( )\
> http://home.tallships.ca/mspencer/                        ^^-^^
>
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-- 
Bruce
NJ

The total lack of evidence is the surest sign that the conspiracy is working.