Propane forge
- Thread starter Janne
- Start date
there are lots out there. The Devil forges on ebay are ok, though could be better insulated (they are also the cheapest you'll find), Castree Kilns make some good little ones (I have several of their burners in use), forges by Swann are go but pricey, or y0u make your own. If you make your own then get the insulation from a pottery supplier (such as Castree) and either buy a ready made burner or make one yourself. Devil forges and Castree sell just the burner for that, as do Amel (but that also requires you to do some work on it)
Forgot the notion that you need something like is normally dropped on coyotes. An anvil is anything that you can forget on! I have lots of anvils and only one is of the classic type. Look for any large solid lumps of steel. So sledge hammers, axles, drive shafts, fork lift tyneside, etc. It needn't be huge either, my mobile one that take to shows weighs maybe 5kg and I have forged everything from keyring to axes on that
If you see any number of horses on the island, chances are there's a farrier as well. See what sort of a forge they use.
Good point. They will also be able to point you towards suppliers of tools,materials, fuel and other useful things ☺
Our local farrier runs a 3-burner propane forge, a mount in his shop and a mount on the back of his truck. Not much bigger than a very large loaf of bread.
It might be 3 shoes wide x 3" high inside. He says that it will heat a shoe to hammer on in 60 seconds.
I used some 1/4" copper rod and a bottle torch to hammer out some crude blades to fool with in the kitchen. Clumsy efforts.
So, I got him to hammer out a couple of copper adze blades from 1/4" x 1.5" copper bar.
The man's striking accuracy was a sight to behold. Clearly a most desirable skill (which I will never have.)
I hafted them both as D adzes some days later and gave him one and some money. Don't mind paying for a show like that.
All I offer in hindsight is don't get discouraged. Neat thing to do but I won't go there again.
It might be 3 shoes wide x 3" high inside. He says that it will heat a shoe to hammer on in 60 seconds.
I used some 1/4" copper rod and a bottle torch to hammer out some crude blades to fool with in the kitchen. Clumsy efforts.
So, I got him to hammer out a couple of copper adze blades from 1/4" x 1.5" copper bar.
The man's striking accuracy was a sight to behold. Clearly a most desirable skill (which I will never have.)
I hafted them both as D adzes some days later and gave him one and some money. Don't mind paying for a show like that.
All I offer in hindsight is don't get discouraged. Neat thing to do but I won't go there again.
Hmm a large coffee tin, four bolts and some nuts for feet, a drill, some plaster of Paris mixed with 1:1 sand and a inlet tube for the propane gas tube and bobs your uncle one instant forge.
Oh and check to see if your metal is magnetic, if it is then heat it up and when a magnet won't stick to it anymore cool it.
Need to cook it after at a lower heat to stop it from being brittle but a good stove should work.
Oh and check to see if your metal is magnetic, if it is then heat it up and when a magnet won't stick to it anymore cool it.
Need to cook it after at a lower heat to stop it from being brittle but a good stove should work.
No, the propane tank is pressurised, that's how the propane gets out, so turn the knob and out it comes, you just place the tube into the opening on the back side of the forge (through a piece of steel pipe (NOT galvanised) you placed when building it, then the gas will push into there and out through the entrance. With a modern gas torch you should not need any kind of blower, although you could make one out of a small vacuum cleaner I suppose.
This set up will only do small blades mind you, not big choppers...
This set up will only do small blades mind you, not big choppers...
some propane forges do have forced air as well and some folk swear by them, but the majority are naturally aspirated as mentioned. If you are using a solid fuel forge (burning charcoal, coke, coal, wood, etc) then you will need an air supply like a hair dryer or vacuum cleaner. Solid fuel forges are easier to build than gas, especially if you aren't planning to use proper refractory and burners.
This may have been answered elsewhere, but, what type of steel is your WWII drill bit? Is there a chance of it being HSS? If so, I would think it would be a very poor choice to start learning to forge upon.
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