DIY forge question

Concrete is bad because it contains water. At forging heats it will spall and you'll have hot chips of concrete shooting off at you. Go to Wal Mart and get some Special Kitty cat litter. It's bentonite clay and perfect for that kind of forge. I made one based on that tutorial and it works well.
 
even after the concrete has completely cured (~5 days) will there still be enough moisture to fracture it? what if I burn some hardwood in it for awhile after it has cured, would that evaporate enough moisture that it wont fracture when reaching higher temps?
 
If you use concrete, all its going to get you is hurt! Concrete will not tolerate the temps your going to be using, and will fracture from the heating and cooling cycles.. I have seen concrete mass that basically created a land mine effect, shattering and throwing pieces/chunks of concrete.....the bottom line is DON"T DO IT!
 
Unless you use a refractory cement you will have problems. Even if it doesn't spall, the intense heat will drive the hydrated water off the concrete or cement making it weak and possibly crumbling. Breathing dust from crumbling, decomposing concrete or cement is not good.

ron
 
Listen to Ed!
I have seem concrete explode at pig roast temperatures, You do not want that burning explosion at forging temperatures

-Page
 
wow ok good to know! i got some special kitty and sand yesterday and my forge is drying out in the sun right now... but i want to burn things NOW! finished filing my first blade and making some multi wood handle scales yesterday and i cant wait to heat treat it... i dreamed about it last night :D
 
You'd PROBABLY get more longevity if you let it sun-dry all the way but that could take a while, even in summer. I let mine dry a couple of days and then got impatient and built a fire. No problems. I've tinkered with the shape of the channel some but I haven't had any significant breakdown. It's pretty fool-proof stuff. If you're heat-treating in it, you might try a muffle forge like Tai Goo's, as shown in this recent post. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=569465&page=2
 
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