Ellis vs. Chili Forge

Be ye "Forges", "Forge Materials", or a number of other knifemaking materials............. Ya ain't gonna beat Darren.... End of Story.

Super nice guy that will work with you any way he can.

Just thought I would throw in my 2 cents worth.

signed........Robert......... (whose opinions are valued somewhere around $0.02)
 
I think I'm going to go for Darren's forge since everyone speaks so highly of it. Are the forced air setups really that much better?? I do plan to do welding but not in the very near future.

That is a monster anvil loussharp. Nice setup.

Thanks
Alex
 
ritzblitz said:
I think I'm going to go for Darren's forge since everyone speaks so highly of it. Are the forced air setups really that much better?? I do plan to do welding but not in the very near future.
Click to expand...

Now, I've never used one of Darren's venturi burners, but I've used others and they don't hold a candle to Darren's blown burners. I can tune the atmosphere and temperature in the forge to an unbelievable degree. I can tune the atmosphere to the point that I can leave steel in the forge for 5-10 minutes and it won't scale and I can hold temps to within 10-15 degrees. You'll also use less gas with a blown burner. I can weld at 2.5-3PSI.

-d
 
Cool, I guess the blown burner sounds like the way to go. I just have to find a cheap blower I guess. Any recommendations?

Alex
 
I know this is coming a little late for this discussion (I couldn't post for the last few days because of an issue with my IP), but here's my lousy two cents:

I have no experience with the Chili forge, but I DO have a rather strong opinion of Ellis Knifeworks...
When I considered building my own forge, EVERYONE had opinions and
suggestions on what and how to do it.... Darren actually spent the time to help me design exactly what I needed, right down to the smallest detail. Countless emails and phone calls were exchanged, and a seemingly endless amount of patience was displayed for a questioning neophyte such as myself.
Darren has become one of the single greatest resources for a knifemaker, whether it be through refractory supplies, items like cable for cable damascus, salt pot materials, burners, you name it... For years it's been professed that proper quenching oils are what is needed for optimum heat treating -- oils that are nearly impossible for a knifemaker to get. It was Darren that rose to the challenge, and it is Darren that we can now get this stuff from. I question whether or not there is ANYONE in the knifemaking community that is as much of a boon as Ellis Knifeworks, and there is MY endorsement (for what little it may be worth).

I know nothing about Chili forges, and that is neither good nor bad... but 'neither good nor bad' is hardly a ringing endorsement, now, is it?




....and to Dave Loukides, the side of that anvil says 'Centurion', doesn't it? I am SO jealous!!!! Those pigs are pricey, but MAN are they gorgeous! Does it work as well as it looks?
 
I wanted to add that a forced air burner seems to be a lot more efficient and easier to use, as Deker said, in my accounts... so one more vote from me!
 
I bought mine through these folks...

Kayne & Sons

I bought the 164cfm blower. Pricey, but more air than I'll ever need.

A lot of guys buy surplus blowers from all sorts of places. IG would be the guy I'd ask about that!
 
If you aren't going to build your own, go to Darren. I have ordered a few things from him, and I think he's a super guy. I'm most likely going to buy a forced air burner from him soon. My forging buddy and I are splitting up soon (nothing bad I just have to move soon) so I want to leave him the forge we built using Indian George's plans. My bud was the welder, and since I suck at it, I don't even want to try to build another. Have fun with your new forge.

-Mike Sheffield
 
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