Can we get a forge general going? Just finished mine today, now

What fan are you using? and are you melting or forging?

Well the first piece of equipment you will need are tongs so look up how to make them.

>>933291
Forging. Like rock animals, bootracks, coatracks, stuff like that. I have a spot on the top for smelting' i just need a cast iron bowl.

>>933293
Good idea.

>>933291
Hey bud, i want to melt some aluminium. I figured ide just fig a hole (with some pipe coming out ) and use an iron crucible held in place by some iron rods. Is it ok to just have the coals burning in a dirt hole like this? Can i just use firewood for reaching the temps i need?

I want to make a forge to melt down some old copper pipe I have and make some stuff from it in molds.

Would this forge work
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-To-Make-The-Mini-Metal-Foundry/

Or do I need something a little more heavy duty for copper? I know its melting point is a fair bit higher than aluminum.

>>933375
make sure that shit isnt beryllium copper

>>933387
Hm, ok, how would I do that and what would happen if it did?

I'm still reading and learning as much as I can about metallurgy but I have a ways to go.

>>933390
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beryllium_copper

magic huh?

Also i believe Beryllium Copper wont spark on a grinder or sand wheel?

>>933409
not sure on the sparking shit, im reading the wiki now and i dont know if it means it wont spark static or what?

also in general you should have a fume grade mask when smelting, forging, etc its not the 1500's wear the gay mask

>>933387
>>933390
>>933409
>>933412

http://www.copper.org/resources/properties/microstructure/be_cu.html

this website looks good too

>>933412
>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beryllium_copper
A spark is an incandescent particle. electricity means nothing here.

>>933412
>i dont know if it means it wont spark static or what?
Beryllium copper is used in place of steel for tools to be used in places with combustible atmospheres, like oil rigs. Unlike steel, it doesn't produce sparks when you hit things with it.

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>>933503
>spark
>ark
In applications where sources of ignition are absolutely unacceptable, you'd use beryllium copper tools, and anti-ESD grounding straps.

>>933315
Yes ish but.
probably not with firewood, but you can cook the firewood into charcoal in a retort if you want, and charcoal will work fine.
also, dirt hole isn't as good, because dirt doesn't reflect heat very well.
also also, be careful, there are cases of people setting fire to the root systems of plants back in the day, using a dakota firehole.

Why the fuck is it so hard to find coal on the west coast?

>>933674
Because most of the big coal deposits are closer to the east coast. Use charcoal, works pretty gud.

>>933674
Just what is the internet?

>>933679
I want it today. Not next week. I understand i can order it online, I'd rather drive, even to the next county, and buy it.

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>>933674
Because you're in the wrong country?

>>933680
What is 12 hour premium delivery

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPGZg45dGXA&list=PL9d6LkFNP1fGjdW2RxqSHdSO9D1FEl36c

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I built something similar to melt aluminum
I used these old rubber strips as fuel once and they burned so hot the inside turned to glass

pic related from the rubber burn


the furnace cracked after the first freeze though

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>>933955
picture of the failure

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>>933957

I retired it after that

I think my next one will be in a 5 gallon bucket and used oil fired

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>>933960
some bars ingots I made from cans and a few are from scrap 6061

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>>933961
my mold and crucible

the crucible is a piece of pipe with a plate welded on and some tabs for a handle
and the mold is angle iron welded to some flat stock

>>933955
>>933957
>>933960
>>933961
>>933962

Jesus you are retarded.

Burning fucking rubber strips? Do your lungs enjoy what you did to them or are they too stupid to notice?

Also your welds on that cast look like diseased dick and your ingots are terrible because you were probably dumb enough to pour into a cold cast.

>>934188
if they burned hot enough he would be fine

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>>934188
>thinks you have to stand right next to your Furnace the entire time.

>>933284
Appears that it would leak like a mother fucker.

>>934188
I was using a hair dryer for force air into the bottom and it was burning so hot there was very little smoke and the smoke went straight up its not like I put my face into the super hot chimney

also those welds were some of the first things I have ever stick welded
but hey at least I actually do diy things instead of just bitching about what other people do

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>>934260
also it was so hot that the wood in the picture was starting to burn and some of the siding on my house 30ft away started to melt

>>934188
Lets see your setup faggot.

> inb4 no replies

>>934261
wew lawd. That's quite a stack of scrap you got there. You bring that home from a job site, or do you have some other source?

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>>934359
from a job
its the cut offs for the concrete floor forms of an office building
they were just throwing it in the dumpster

I made over 1k from scrap off that job

that was not even the entire pile
heres one load in a 6ft bed

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>>934364
I did 15 floors of stairs

>>933962
>>933961

Did you use to have a website about aluminum forge stuff? I remeber a site u found back in the early 2000's with a dude that made s similar mold

>>934524
no I have never even seen that website

I just made it out of scrap I had laying around

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Op here. We have evolved.

>>933315
I made my original forge in that fashion, but I suggest using at least bricks or something instead of just the dirt for the walls. Literally anything that won't Doak up the heat as much as dirt will work for the walls.

>>934916
bricks are dried dirt but yeah i think bricks would be better

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>>933284
Joe Dirt Style

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>>934364
Good Job Recycling is a great hobby

I want to make a very basic forced air charcoal forge for melting aluminum and copper and stuff.
I want to line a steel bucket with firebrick on the bottom and ceramic wool on the sides, and make my crucible a welded steel rectangle.

1) is it ok to use charcoal in a furnice wrapped with a ceramic blanket
2) what is the thinnest steel I can reliably and safely get away with for the crucible, 1/8" 1/4" or 1/2"
3) would a steel crucible have good longevity

I'd like to try melting down my tin cans to make a crown using lost wax in sand. How stupid an idea is this? Can I do it in the back yard? Where do I get started?

Also, could I conceivably melt glass in these, or would I need a well designed furnace for doing that?

>>937761
I'm in no way an expert, and I still haven't gotten around to building my own furnace yet. But as far as the steel crucible goes, there shouldn't be any problem with using 1/8". You just need to make sure your welds are good and solid, and that your furnace doesn't burn hot enough to melt steel beams. If your shit gets too hot, the crucible can fail and dump molten shit in your furnace.

>>937831
Again, I am a casual, but I am planning to make one of these https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHD10DjxM1g
But I am thinking of making some changes to this design, like using actual refractory cement instead of the sand/plaster mix, and/or running mechanics wire or something through the mixture to reinforce it in case of cracks or anything. Anyone care to comment on these changes? Is it actually worth paying 3-4x the price for proper cement? Is it a bad idea to run wire through it?

>>937761
>1)
Yes, as long as it's the Temperature rated stuff. Don't go building your furnace out of Loft Insulation.

>2)
Probably 1/4", but use the thickest you can and throw it away once it's too fucked up. Ideally look for a cheap graphite crucible, they last a long time.

>3)
No. With Aluminium it'll last for a while, depending on thickness. But the Steel absorbs Carbon and molten Aluminium also dissolves Iron very slowly - so it won't last long.

For Brass/Copper alloys forget Steel, it'll contaminate your metal, and you're likely to melt through the bottom of your crucible before you pour, unless you're only melting a small amount and your crucible is really thick.

>>937831
>How stupid an idea is this?
Stupid

>Can I do it in the back yard?
no

>Where do I get started?
Don't

>could I conceivably melt glass in these, or would I need a well designed furnace for doing that?

Electric furnace

>>937893
Okay, so doing it in the backyard is a "no". Why not? Is it the fire hazard element? What makes the idea stupid?

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>>933284
Don't wait, just forge on ahead. Any resistance to the thread will just melt away.


Ok, I'm done.

For somebody who just wants to start playing with small castings, do the 1000W toys like pic related actually serve a purpose, or are they just powerful enough to be science fair projects? I've seen some of the graphite crucibles that fit in the coil, so I know it's a pretty small volume.

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i want to make a propane pipe burner, would this work out? i wanted to have 2 ball valves for air and fuel to make it easier to tune. i chose 1.5" because some plans i saw caleld for 1.25, but was inline without the t fitting, so i chose 1.5" to compensate for the diameter loss of the couplers.
1- should i put a reducer on top of the air valve or is it unnecessary?
2- should i try to find a 45* t/y pipe or would it not make a difference vs the 90* t?
3- what should i size the front reducer? how can i calculate what size it should be?

>>939307
i should mention, i say 2 ball valves but the fuel valve isnt shown. also by air feed, i mean outside air, not forced air. im trying to make this venturi style where it sucks its own air.

can you use those little coleman propane tanks for a propane forge or do you need to use a grill tank?

>>938085
Just YouTube it he's being a fag. What you're talking about it very easy to do. Maybe do foam not wax

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Op here, so does anyone know how i can use concrete as mortar with out it blowing up? A friend of mine gave me 15 bags of concrete, so i figured I'd clean all the bricks up and put it together proper like. As soon as this rain dries up I'll go find some ditch bank cinder blocks, pour a pad and mortar the bricks up. Only at $25 for the coal so fare.

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>>939472
Other side

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>>939476
Some tongs i started the other day and a coal rake.

>>939315
You *can*, but it'll be a hell of a lot more expensive in the long term, and you'll have to swap bottles every couple of minutes.

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>dat op pic

>>939522
It's coming around faggot >>939476

>>939479
>>939476
>>939472
Seems like the slude everyone pours into homemade diy furnaces on YouTube works better mate. Just get a steel drum and make one of those

>>939603
I haven't even used it yet, i did those in a quarter drum birn barrel. It wouldn't get hot enough to really work the metal.

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Big voodoo

>>933962

https://www.kansasbrass.com/kbf-pages/Equip-IngMld.php

Found it

>>933284

I'm thinking of making a forge for the hell of it

were can I get a crucible? I'm thinking of chopping up some kind of gas canister, but I don't know what kind of metal would be ideal.

>>941107
>where can I get a crucible?
My brother got one off Amazon for melting aluminum, a 1kg crucible is around $20

>>941107
you can make a shitty one by punching holes in a tin can and bending hooks in a wire hanger to pick it up with.
may last you a dozen smelts before dumping metal into your forge if your lucky.

>>933284

I bough some quikcrete because I thought that shit would never melt, but apparently it only is good up to 200 F

can I make use it to make a refactory mix?

What is a good refractory mix for 3000°F? Can concrete handle melting cast iron and steel?

>>938124
Casting copper wires and circuit boards? Wat

Is there a difference between using coal and charcoal? All I can find is charcoal in my neighborhood

>>942430
charcoal's significantly better - coal tends to have sulphides that react with steels, ruining it.

>>942418
If you have to ask these questions, you won't be able to melt iron yourself.

>>942459
be warned, some people have issues with the binders in briquettes of charcoal. hardwood lump charcoal is more consistent.
coal and coke became popular because they were much cheaper than growing and logging trees to make charcoal with.

I'm going to be making a small coffee can forge for heat treating the bits of steel that survive my workshop.
Does /diy/ know a good refractory mix for that purpose? I've seen so many different ways to do it that I don't know how to proceed.
The best *cheap* recipe?
Perlite is apparently optional?