Has anyone ever made a forge using ceramic slip?

L6steel

L6steel

Joined
Sep 23, 1999
Messages
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I was thinking about making a forge using ceramic slip for the refractant. Since the body doesn't need to be very big really. I thought I could get a section of pipe about 8" diameter and suspend a 4" cardboard mailing tube in it with duct tape covering one end and maybe some wire on the pouring end. Then fill the void with slip and use a jitterbug air sander to vibrate all the air bubbles out. Once it was nice and air dry, the burners thenselves would fire it into ceramic.
Make any sense?
I know I'd have to cut all the holes while it was still green.
 
Well, there's about 25% shrinkage when the ceramic is fired, the thickness could be a problem trying to fire it without it cracking, plus it's not going to be much of an insulator because it has no air in it.
If you had a forge made of it, the outside would become as hot as the inside, almost.
Pur a plate on a burner on a stove, then see if the top of it gets hot using your fingers. I'll bet you'd only do that once! :eek:
 
Hi Michael, look here for some different ideas:

http://ForgeGallery.EllisCustomKnifeworks.com

Why not use a proper castable refractory such as Mizzou if you want to pour a solid forge? It's cheap and can be shipped in USPS Flat Rate boxes anywhere in the US for $7.70 for 30 pounds...

Are you looking to get into making damascus, or is this just a forge to forge blades and heat treat in? If you're not interested in Damascus yet, consider making it out of a ceramic fiber blanket such as Inswool for better efficiency...gas prices, and hence propane, are only going to get more expensive as time goes on...

:)

-Darren
 
Michael,

Drag your carcass up the the Hammer-in and you will see some very interesting homeade forges in action.
 
I'm still plannin on bein there Mark!!!!!!!!
I'm skiddish of the fiber blanket stuff. I heard the fibers can burn off and it's possible to inhale them. I think I'll go solid. I'll probably end up buying a forge. I figure it's safer.
Oh yeah, I just wanna make some blades and maybe some very simple damascus every now and then.
 
L6 all you need to do to the refractory blanket is seal it with something like satanite to keep the fibers put. or you could put the blanket in your pipe and then pour castable over it to make it a thicker seal, and still heat up quicker and keep the outside cooler.
 
Terry_Dodson said:
L6 all you need to do to the refractory blanket is seal it with something like satanite to keep the fibers put. or you could put the blanket in your pipe and then pour castable over it to make it a thicker seal, and still heat up quicker and keep the outside cooler.
Click to expand...


Terry is right on the money.

:)

-Darren
 
Thanks guys.

Could you elaborate on the castable poured over wool? Do you need to thin down the castable alot? I have poured one entire forge, some doors, and a floor from castable, and it always seemed to thick and heavy to go over wool. IOW, I thought it would crush the wool, making the wool lose much of its loft and refractory qualities. What sort of consistency are you looking for when pouring castable over wool?

Thanks,

John
 
Hi John, You are correct, the Inswool will loose some of its insulating properties, but, you won't have the direct contact with the forge shell and hence will not transfer heat to the forge shell as quickly where it can be radiated out to your shop...which can be a good thing in the Winter, a bad thing in the Summer, and always a bad thing regarding the propane bill. Think of it as sort of an incrementally better thing to do.

:)

-Darren
 
Thanks Darren. I'm still a bit confused.

What exactly won't be contacting the forge shell--the wool or the castable?

Also, again, what consistency are you looking for with the castable in order to get it on/in without completely crushing the wool?

Thanks,

John
 
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