Forge Pics...in progress...at last!!

One question...did you use hard or soft firebrick for the bottom, and if you used the hard stuff, how did you cut it to fit???

I've got a boatload of the stuff, but can't really use very much of it, because I haven't found a good way to shape it without destroying the sodding stuff...!

Answer me this, and your hijacking will be forgiven!! :p

Kal

:D
 
Kal,

Sorry I didn't mean to Highjack, it just happened :D .
I just used the 1 1/4" soft fire brick you can get at any concrete block supply store. Thats all I could get locally and its suppose to take heat up to 2000, so I was told. its only purpose is to protect the bottom kaowool anyway and it won't be as messy as cat litter. Its easy enough replaced if need be, so I'll just have to wait and see.

I cut it with a skilsaw with a masonary blade, cuts like butter. I have a 2 burner venturi type forge from NC, but I wanted something I could weld in and not worry about messing up with the flux, and this one does heat very evenly the whole stock. I figured the total spent for all the parts, and it came to $265, but that included the regulator ($35) that you'll need no matter what type forge you build and ($85) for a new blower.Which if you'll order through www.grainger.com you can shave off $30. I also don't have a welder so I spent $50 for the forge body, have the holes burned in, weld the bottom plate and a shelf on. A good salvage hunter can most likely get the blower and body at a lot cheaper price. I have pretty well told all about this forge, but if you still have any questions just e-mail me.
Kal, I would be interested to know, what your forge will cost after you have it completed. Thanks for not getting POed at me for taking up some of our thread space. ;)

Bill
 
Can't get pissed off at losing what was never yours to begin with!! :D

You must live in a blessed region, Bill...I've looked for a local supplier of soft firebrick for a couple of months, now, and found zip! And you can get them at the local concrete supply house!! Aaaarrgghh!

So far, as I count it, I'll have spent about [quick computation goes on, accompanied by clicking of gears, smell of smoke, and Willy Wonka screaming, "Swifter than eagles! Stronger than lions...!"]

$425--Wow, all those bits really add up!!

I've cheated a lot, though. My price breakout runs something like this:

$99.50--T-Rex Burner, shipped

$99.00--100 lb. Propane Tank

$50.00--Fill for above

$25.00--12' hose

$35.00--Regulator

$60.00--Cost for makings for three batches of refractory (hey, it was my first time...YOU get everything right the first time???)

$15.00--Pipe

$10.00--Assorted screws, bolts, bits, widgets, gonkins, and sproingins to complete it.

$Free--3' RR Track for anvil

$30.00--having top ground flat on RR Track to do clean smithing on

$Priceless--Feeding the Steel-Beating Monkey on your back

If I already had a forge working, to get my fix o' smithing from day to day, I probably could've hunted around and saved a good bit. I could've built my own burner, but since it's my first, I figured, "...Better to err on the side of survival." It seems like one of the major costs associative to the whole mess is getting your tank and regs set up. The forge, itself, burner included, actually only ran about $185. And most of this is re-usable from forge to forge, and project to project...or at least it better be!!!

:D

Kal
 
Kal,

It sounds like your coming out pretty good to me price wise. I look at it as the tank, regulator, hose and gas are just necessary expense that you'll have to have no matter what forge your working with. Its sounds like we're not that far apart price wise except for the blower.
It sounds like your a lot like me, I brought the NC forge in January for about $500, and had no idea how simple these things really were, after seeing it, I knew I should have made one instead of buying but I forged over coal for several years and was eager to go to gas. we all live and learn. I just heat treated a blade in this vertical forge this morning, and you can adjust the heat so low that it will come up to critical real nice and easy, makes it so much better about getting more precise heats. You'll love your new forge this gas sure takes a lot of the mess out of forgeing.

If I can help you when it comes to getting fire brick, just let me know, but there usually at all concrete block supply stores, they usually handle everything needed in building fire places.

Bill :)
 
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