A matter of fuel

Z

ZekeTheGameFreak

Joined
May 10, 2016
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Coal or Charcoal? That is the question. What are the advantages and disadvantages of either? I always see shops using coal, so I am curious which is the better fuel?
 
propane makes more sense to me.

More controllable

Spend less time working on the fire and more time working on the work.
 
Propane hands down,

But heat is heat if I had to rate them from best to not best it would be propane, charcoal and then coal. Not that one is inherently better then the other but some take more skill and others less. Coal takes time and attention to get it going and maintain. Charcoal starts much faster and is easy to tend. But propane is bam on and running and off when I'm done.
 
Coal is cheaper, but smellier. It also takes more tending. It is dirty and will get on you and the forge floor. All cola is not the same, and only forging coal should be used ( Pocahontas #3).

Charcoal is simpler to use than coal, but more expensive, and burns faster. It is a bit less dirty, but still gets on hands and tracks if you step on fallen pieces. All charcoal is not the same. You want lump hardwood, or to make your own in a big charcoal retort. Do not use briquettes.

Propane is much cleaner, odorless, faster, more controllable .... and when you are done you just turn the valve off and walk away.
 
Depends what I am doing. For blades and thing I need control for, I use propane. If I am doing general blacksmithing on mild steel I prefer coal. Maybe its just my propane forge but my reheat time is much faster and heats seem to last longer. Coal is dirty and messy but I forge in a barn with a dirt floor so the mess doesnt really bother me. If I had to choose one propane would be it.
 
I forge in my backyard, so the mess ain't a big deal, nor is the smell. But I hear y'all in terms of coal being difficult to manage.
 
Don't the coal/charcoal/coke forges have advantages over propane?

They offer more of a carburizing atmosphere vs oxidizing atmosphere (oxidizing is more likely with propane).
They allow you to localize the heat better in a portion of the blade.

I believe ideally you want to get coke from charcoal and not use the charcoal straight?
 
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Charcoal is carbon has little impurity. Coal has all kind of varying non carbon crap. Sulphur, silica, oils, etc.
Charcoal needs more tending as it burns much faster, but a very clean fire. I prefer coal for its less tending.

Having said that, But to not answer your question, propane is best for the jobclock and overall cleanliness.
 
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Hopefully this is not seen as a hijack of this thread...

I attended a couple of blacksmithing classes a few weeks ago (link to thread below) and have been interested in setting up a forge to do some hobby blacksmithing (fireplace tools, regular tools, decorative pieces, and knives, of course). I'll be doing it either in our existing pole barn or under the eaves of a dairy goat barn/honey house that we're getting ready to build, so electricity/utilities may or may not be available.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1436276-Blacksmithing-Class-Pic-Heavy

My understanding from what I've read it that coke yields the highest heat, followed by coal, charcoal, then natural gas, but maybe I've been misled by the internet and the few books I've looked at. In my poking about, I did find an interesting wood-fired forge that will also work with coke or coal (manually cleaning clinkers required). This would work well for me since I have a decent supply of hackberry and other trees in the yard and pasture. Does anyone here have experience with this one?

http://whitloxhomestead.com/products/fullsize-whitlox-wood-fired-forge
 
Coal but I live in coal country..Ive been using it so long, the fire is a tool just like the anvil is..The thing I like about coal is I can shape my fire any way I want..I can have a fire two feet across or 2" across.cant do that with a gasser.I personally much prefer welding in a coal fire because we still do a lot of basic blacksmith work.Butt welds,drop welds and stuff.not to mention we still weld a lot of wrought..It takes a white hot fire to weld wrought to "itself" really well..We burned coal for heat much of my young life so its just in my blood so to speak..I have to say though, coal is not for everyone. Especially if your a clean freak..
Next is cost..Like I said Im in coal country. Eastern,Ky has as good a coal as anywhere in the country, better than most.much of ours and WV's come from the Appalachian coal basin..Pocahontas coal is 15K BTU's, I buy the same BTU's right down the road with only 1% sulfer.But then Im literially only one county over from the Pocahontas seam so you can see why the coal is about the same. I can get good met grade coal for less than $100 a ton. I could get it cheaer and for free for years but since the war on coal things have changed a bit..
It costs me to fill a 40# propane tank which is about $22..If your doing a lot of welding, like we often do 40# of propane dosnt go very far..A couple days..The same dollar value in coal will last a month easy..Dollar for dollar coal is about 1000% cheaper for me..
Now my circumstances are a bit special in that coal is better in almost every way but it wont be for everyone..We have a propane forge and use about every day but mostly for long and odd shape pieces. Fast tweaks and such. Its handy..
 
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