The Day Has Come!! Test Fire of my Forge!!!

J. Keeton · Nov 19, 2005

To day was the first test fire for my forge I have been working on for like 4 months. I needed to cure the refractory cement. This is my first forge

. Hopefully not one of my last.

Specs:
The Pipe is 2ft long and 21in. Diameter

I have 2 burners made by example of Indian George http://www.indiangeorgesknives.com/building_a_forge.html (Thanks a lot by the way your site is a huge!! help .:thumbup: )

The blower is a 164CMF forge blower form Blacksmiths Depot http://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/Tem...ducts/Forges_and_Parts/blowers/164_CFM_Blower (Surprisingly powerful :thumbup: )

I purchased the inswool and refractory mortar from Darren at http://forgegallery.elliscustomknifeworks.com/ (Really nice people who know what they are talking about!! :thumbup: )

Here are some pics:

I am not finished with it yet though. I am still constructing a door, lining it with firebrick, building a stand for my blower, and putting some old wheels from a Jap bike on the front of my cart

.

Thanks for looking and for all your help with my constructing of this forge,
Jimmy

Peter_E_Ryt · Nov 19, 2005

Is this a general blacksmithing forge- that thing's a monster!
Have you cooked any metal with it yet?

tmickley · Nov 19, 2005

You could roast a whole hog in that thing!!!
Looks like it will throw out some heat though....

J. Keeton · Nov 19, 2005

I haven't tryed to heat anything in it yet. I was going to wait to get the door on it.

I was amazed, however, that it was kicking right along at only 5lbs of pressure.

And I was thinking about trying to cook something in it one day just for fun.

Maybe try for world record roast chicken.

The heat it thows is amazing also. I couldn't stand 4-5 ft. infront of it. (And the sound is so awsome. Music to my ears.)

Bruce Evans · Nov 19, 2005

Man that is one pretty forge...Mine all look homemade asnd yours looks store bought:thumbup: that is cool..

Here is to many happy hours of forging...

Now lets see some beat up steel

Looks like you did a really great job on the forge.
Bruce

J. Keeton · Nov 19, 2005

Bruce Evans said:
Man that is one pretty forge...Mine all look homemade asnd yours looks store bought:thumbup: that is cool..

Here is to many happy hours of forging...

Now lets see some beat up steel

Looks like you did a really great job on the forge.
Bruce

Thanks, Happy forging to you also.

The beating of steel is coming. I just need to make some final touches.

indian george · Nov 20, 2005

Damn, that sucker is big enough or what?????

Nice job.:thumbup:
You are going to need a bigger propane tank to run both them burners at the same time. You will freeze up that 20# tank in 15 to 20 minutes. I got a 100# at Home Depot for around $80. Good luck.

Hey!!! You could one of them rice burners in it and my Rice Krispies. HEHEHEHEHEHE!!!

J. Keeton · Nov 20, 2005

indian george said:
Damn, that sucker is big enough or what????? Nice job.:thumbup:
You are going to need a bigger propane tank to run both them burners at the same time. You will freeze up that 20# tank in 15 to 20 minutes. I got a 100# at Home Depot for around $80. Good luck.
Hey!!! You could one of them rice burners in it and my Rice Krispies. HEHEHEHEHEHE!!!

I was deffnetly thinking about buying a larger propane take.

(Look again, thoes are all Harleys, and one really rusty triumph in the back ground. Thats all that we work on.) www.profcycle.com

Thanks a lot for your site also!!

Jimmy

indian george · Nov 20, 2005

HEHEHEHE!!! Harley Krispies doesn't sound to good.

But then again you got to remember I am a Indian rider too.

Hey Red!!!!! I was checking out the Oleman's site. Him and I must be around the same age and started ride almost the same time.

Bigjohn · Nov 20, 2005

George ......behave on the Hog Krispys

J. Keeton · Nov 20, 2005

indian george said:
HEHEHEHE!!! Harley Krispies doesn't sound to good. But then again you got to remember I am a Indian rider too.
Hey Red!!!!! I was checking out the Oleman's site. Him and I must be around the same age and started ride almost the same time.

Indians are nice bikes. You were kinda right if you think about it. A lot of parts coming in say "made in Taiwan"

. But most of the bikes that we work on are older.

Hehe, ya that’s a bad picture of me... Very outdated also. (16yo now). My mom is kinda holding me back from riding on the steet

, but I have been riding since I was 8.

J. Keeton · Nov 20, 2005

I have already started saving all kinda of old Harley parts to use for Damascus. (Transmission gears, Transmission shafts, Non-oring chains, ballberings, and stuff like that.) I can't wait to start beating on them.

indian george · Nov 20, 2005

J. Keeton said:
I have already started saving all kinda of old Harley parts to use for Damascus. (Transmission gears, Transmission shafts, Non-oring chains, ballberings, and stuff like that.) I can't wait to start beating on them.

Hey!!! When you get to weld up the chains give me a call and I'll walk you through it. The mainshaft that has the clutch rod going through it, this is how I going to try it. I am putting a under size W-1 rod in it fill up around it with 4600 powder..
My HD is 85 actually a 84 1/2 FXST. 1st year for the Blockhead it is all chain drive and 4 speed with a kicker. The tranny and primary is a Shovelhead.
For my oldest sons 16th birthday I got him a 450 Honda street bike, since then the turkey only rides crotch rockets.:grumpy: :grumpy:

J. Keeton · Nov 20, 2005

I'll deffnetly call you up when I start trying to do thoes chains. I feel I am probley going to need help with that.

You should of gave your son a HD sportster for his first bike.

May not of went in the rice rocket direction. You know HD does make a crotch rocket. Maybe something worth looking at if you have some spare $$. I saw some Buells in action and they are a nice piece of equipment.

Ya today I am going to try and make a large door to cover the large hole, than in the large door a small oppening. Any Ideas on how big the smaller hole sould be?? I was thinking 2x2in or 3x3in. What do you think?

fitzo · Nov 20, 2005

Buells are sweet machines. Buell Racing is about 30 miles from here, and both of the area HD dealers are Buell dealers. Every so often, cruising southeastern WI backroads you'd come across a factory guy out testriding a bike. Those things appear to handle as nice as anything and boy do they go!

J. Keeton · Nov 20, 2005

I am a Gold memeber now.

indian george · Nov 20, 2005

My oldest son is 37 years old they were not making Buells at that time. If I got him a Sportster he would of killed himself.

Now, back to your forge. Fatzo ( I mean Fitzo) and I were shooting the $hit on the phone today and started talking about your forge. Fatzo made the proper comment that you should put a vent in the rear of the forge so the force of the flames will not just coming out the front. Now you did do a really nice job in building it, but it is a over kill for knife making.
You really need one half that size for welding and forging knives. You will be wasting gas and time just to get it up to welding temp.
MC chain doing it by hand is a challenge.
Please feel free to call me do my cell 508 951 2719.

]

Peter_E_Ryt · Nov 20, 2005

Why not close off the rear burner and move the back wall forward until it is just behind the fore burner? It should work fine and still reduce the cost of gas shouldn't it?

indian george · Nov 20, 2005

Peter_E_Ryt said:
Why not close off the rear burner and move the back wall forward until it is just behind the fore burner? It should work fine and still reduce the cost of gas shouldn't it?

Yes you could do that, But just look at the ID of his forge.

J. Keeton · Nov 20, 2005

indian george said:
My oldest son is 37 years old they were not making Buells at that time. If I got him a Sportster he would of killed himself.
Now, back to your forge. Fatzo ( I mean Fitzo) and I were shooting the $hit on the phone today and started talking about your forge. Fatzo made the proper comment that you should put a vent in the rear of the forge so the force of the flames will not just coming out the front. Now you did do a really nice job in building it, but it is a over kill for knife making.
You really need one half that size for welding and forging knives. You will be wasting gas and time just to get it up to welding temp.
MC chain doing it by hand is a challenge.
Please feel free to call me do my cell 508 951 2719.

]

I am happy to know yall are thinking about me.

For that vent, should it just be like a 2in. by 2in. hole in the back end? How big do you sugest my door oppening be?

After I line the bottom half with fire brick, I was going to use the rest of my inswool on the top half to see if I could make it smaller in there.

I don't know what is considered good... but yesterday I was running it on only 5psi.