Bos'n
Administrator 
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
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Ship's affiliation: Kokopeli's Curse
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Post by Bos'n on Feb 20, 2021 9:46:20 GMT -7
Had an old BBQ box with a heavy duty tube stand, bottom finally burned/rusted out after 30 years. Gonna turn it into a small propane forge. Plenty of videos on youtube for information. Here's photos of the progress- Attachments:
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
Ship's affiliation: Kokopeli's Curse
Areas of interest: Piracy, Woodworking, Koi, Folk music/instruments
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Post by Bos'n on Feb 20, 2021 9:49:38 GMT -7
Headin out to the Home Despot for materials to make the fire brick/insulation. Goi8ng with a 7/7/2/4 mix of vermiculite, perlite, portland cement and silica sand.
And picking up electrical conduit for the wind chime project too.
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
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Post by Bos'n on Mar 7, 2021 10:38:40 GMT -7
Obtained an old steel fire extinguisher. The bottom half will become a crucible to melt stuff in. Has a 3/16ths wall thickness. Might be too big, bout a half gallon capacity. Time will tell. Attachments:
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
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Post by Bos'n on Dec 26, 2021 11:42:16 GMT -7
Been a long 11 months. I finally got most of the refractory material collected. Perlite, silica sand, portland cement from Home Despot...unscented clay kitty litter from Petsmart... Still looking for a source of sodium silicate at a decent price. Stuff was about $5 a gallon back in the 80's, now $70+ online. I want to cast up a couple of different formula fire bricks and have our Blacksmyth give 'em 'ell to see which works best. Also on the prowl for a propane regulator bigger than the standard bbq type. The pressure to run the burners isn't much but the volume is greater than a bbq regulator can pass.
Points to ponder...
Will chopped up fiberglass tow mixed in prevent cracks? Have used boron fibers in standard concrete go the same effect. Will glass take the heat?
Is the sodium silicate necessary? Utube has many vids of mixtures without.
quick note: have found sodium silicate solution as cheap as $44 per gallon online. Probably as cheap as making yer own without having to work with narsty chemicals and the dangers involved.
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
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Areas of interest: Piracy, Woodworking, Koi, Folk music/instruments
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Post by Bos'n on Jan 10, 2022 20:41:54 GMT -7
Still stumbling along on the refractory mix. The 20 lb bag of supossedly "clay" kitty kitter turned out to be 95% crushed rock with a layer of clay dust, totally unsuitable for the purpose. Found a 20lb chub of ceramics type clay at hobby lobby. This will have to be cheeze grated down to powder to ensure it mixes evenly with the rest of the batch. Wish there was a standard formula to go by, all the blacksmyth type forums have conflicting info on materials and theres no real concences on which, if any, holds up decently in a hot forge environment. I' ll try to document what type and how much of each material is used. Our Smyth can give me the details on durability as he tortures each sample🔨
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
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Post by Bos'n on Jan 30, 2022 12:55:39 GMT -7
Just postin' tips as others might find useful. Clay out of the box don't cheezegrate worth a hoot. Made several small hockey pucks with it, will let it air dry then grate/powderize it. Has to be evenly distributed thru the mix. When mixing the complete recipe with water use the MINIMUM amount possible. Just enough to bind the dusty particles to the bigger stuff. Too much and the fines migrate to the bottom and the perlite floats to the top. Grab a handfull of mix and squeeze it- if water comes out ...too wet.
Now waiting for the hockey pucks to dry...........
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
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Post by Bos'n on Feb 5, 2022 11:44:01 GMT -7
Got the clay ground into a powder and mixed up my first batch of firebrick slop. Used a standard spray paint can top as a measuring cup. Formula as follows- 14 parts perlite 4 parts silica sand 4 parts clay powder 2 parts portland cement 5 parts water 1 part sodium silicate solution Ingredients were mixed dry, then liquids slowly mixed in. The amount of slop produced filled a 12"x 5"x 1.5" mold and about half a bladder buster foam cup. Air temp about 50 degrees. I'll let it set till tomorrow then age it for a few days, then cook it in the BBQ for a few hours. This is still a test, no guarantees if it works or will even harden, so don't bet the farm on it (yet). Attachments:
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
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Post by Bos'n on Feb 6, 2022 10:38:16 GMT -7
Changing the mix from 5 parts water to 6. First brick had several areas where the mix hadn't packed down as tight as I wanted it.
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
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Post by Bos'n on Jun 2, 2022 17:20:02 GMT -7
First test with heat went fair. The mix insulates well but has little shock resistance. The test item went blitzo when knocked of a 3' table. Too thin. Back side was cool to touch, front side torched dry grass instantly. Brother in laws cheapie Amazon forge was shedding its glass wool and Satanite plaster after about an hour. Managed to turn some old rebar into almost butterknife shape. (Not ready for "Forged In Fire" competition...yet.)
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
Ship's affiliation: Kokopeli's Curse
Areas of interest: Piracy, Woodworking, Koi, Folk music/instruments
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Post by Bos'n on Jun 4, 2022 10:48:45 GMT -7
Cast the top of the bottle this morning. Tried to work some 1 1/2"glass fibers into the mix to eliminate any cracking. Good in theory, doesn't work in practice. Can't get the fibers to disperse evenly and they end up as a dirty hairball lump. Pics as soon as the Capt'n trains me on this newfangled phone.
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
Ship's affiliation: Kokopeli's Curse
Areas of interest: Piracy, Woodworking, Koi, Folk music/instruments
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Post by Bos'n on Jun 5, 2022 11:52:25 GMT -7
Inside of the forge is poured. At 100+ degrees the mix requires 2 more caps-full of water. Interior dimensions will end up 6.5" wide, 5.5" tall and 10" deep. Bout 360 square inches displacement. The floor will be a big scrap of 1 1/4"soapstone. Bro in laws forge only had about 3/4" of insulation with a 1/8" Satanite plaster coat, was showing lots of wear after only a very few hours. Gonna order the set of unfinished tongs offen the Amazon. @$40 for 5 sets of tongs, ya gotta shape the ends fer various thicknesses and shapes, drill and put in a big rivet. Or buy 'em at a Farriers shop fer around $75 apiece. Attachments:
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Bos'n
Administrator
PIRATES! Because ye can't do epic shyte wi' normal people.
Posts: 924
Ship's affiliation: Kokopeli's Curse
Areas of interest: Piracy, Woodworking, Koi, Folk music/instruments
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Post by Bos'n on Sept 7, 2022 18:37:05 GMT -7
Safety warning- If you render your own Sodium Silicate solution utilizing all the narsty chemicals, STORE IT OUTSIDE. Have had 2 two liter polycarbonate coke bottle containers split and dump their load. Better safe than cleaning that crap offen yer floor.
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rikjohnson
Bilge Rat
Posts: 39 
Areas of interest: recreating the old technology, navigation, being on the water.
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Post by rikjohnson on Jul 4, 2023 16:34:54 GMT -7
I made a simple forge from a coffee can, a propane torch and some insulation.
Then a couple weeks ago, while in Cottonwood, I bought an actual knife forge from a local knifesmith.
Have not use it yet, too hot, but it is ready.
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