Froge making question - 2 brick design

R

remist17

Well-Known Member
Well I had a slow day so I decided to try to put the 2 brick forge together. I was able to hollow out the center and was about 2" diameter. I drilled the hole for the burner at the top right side looking at the front. I purchased the atlas burner and regulator from USAknifemaker. I put some angle iron at the front and back and put some fire mortar on the crack between the two bricks. I started the burner and it would not stay lit. So I drilled a 1/4" hole in the back. The burner stayed lit. I am not sure if Im getting the swirl I need but about half way on the regulator the left side of the brick was orange. The right and part of the top and bottom was not orange. I put some square stock in the flame and about 10 minutes later it was red hot. I shut down the regulator and then shut off the tank. The blocks started cooling and the bottom block cracked in the middle.

So what am i doing right / wrong? IS it normal that the block cracked? I ll post photos tonight.

thanks
IMG_7560.jpg
IMG_7562.jpg
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IMG_7566.jpg

You can see the fire cement bubbled inside at the flame intersection. I was able to chip this out (the bubbles) I will have to put more on along with the some on the cracks. My thoughts are to put some reinforcement on the top and bottom to keep the cracked brick from giving way.
Any suggestions for me?
 
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You're not going to control thermal expansion, the bricks that get the most direct heat are going to take a beating regardless. Try not to use furnace cement, as you found out..it bubbles up and crystalizes. Get Satanite from a supplier to line the joints and the firebox.

If you're handy with a welder, you might try to make this simple forge. I've made and sold several and they work very well for forging and heat treating carbon steels. It's a permanent solution and alternative to the bricks. You can adapt the components you already have.






The dimensions given aren't written in stone. These dimensions allow me to ship one in a flat rate box. NO....this isn't a sales pitch.
PM me if you have any questions.

Rudy
 
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Thanks for posting this. I was hoping to make the bricks work bit maybe I need to look into this. Satanite, can this be found local or need to order direct?
Thanks
 
Hello, I am new to this also. I made one silimar to what Rudy described. I have only tried it once, but could not get it hot enough. I tried both Propane, and Map gas. I used a 50/50 mix of plaster of paris and playground sand for the liner material. I used a standard propane torch. Do i need a bigger torch as shown above? How long should it take to get to temperature? Thanks for the help!
- Jason
 

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Jason,
You're problem may be that the forge has too much interior for the btu thrown by the torch or the mystery mix is absorbing the heat. I've never heard of the plaster/sand mix but if it didn't blow up.....you're ahead of the game. Is this mix over the ceramic blanket ? The torch shown is discontinued (JH-27) but it still runs off of the small propane bottles. On my forge the cavity is only roughly 3 3/4" round by 11" deep and the torch has no trouble getting the interior to yellow within 8-10 minutes. I noticed a difference when I started pitching the burn tube just a smidge towards the back half of the forge and moving it forward towards the front. The burn is concentrated and contained in the back half of the forge .

Rudy
 
Rudy, thanks for responding.
It is just the mix, no ceramic blanket... If I remember correctly, the interior space is about 4" x 16". The port is in the middle of the tube but canted towards the back.about 30 degrees. i am willing to redo the liner, re-weld the port, or a combination of both to make it work, just not sure what to do?
 
I'd look into re-doing the delivery system first. I built a Reil type venturi burner (google) for my 20" forge with all big box store cheap parts, which delivered plenty of ooomph just short of welding heat and better control. I am dubious of the plaster/ sand mix , stick with the tried and true. 1" ceramic blanket, high temp mortar and maybe some ITC-100 or plistix. Move the burner tube forward last if it isn't behaving properly. It all depends on your needs and how serious you are. As it sits, you should at least be able to get HT temps from your forge with a little more fire.

Rudy
 
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