|
Great thread.
I am no Blacksmith by any means but i have made a few things with fire and steel. As far as primative forging I started with a hole in the ground, literally.
My first forge, age 10, was a hole in the ground. Nice NC red clay about 16 inches in diameter. Approx 16 inches deep. The grate was nothing more than a piece of heavy sheet metal cold chisel cut into a rough circle, then a 16d nail was used to punch holes in it. A 1 1/2 inch pipe 3 feet long was set at approx 30 degrees into the hole. The bottom of the pipe was resting in the bottom of the hole. The sheet metal grate was then set over that creating a hollow spce at the bottom of the hole. The grate was sealed around the edges with clay. For a blower I had scrounged a small squirrel cage fan of something. The fan was only 3 inches in diameter. It was duct taped to the remaining end of the pipe. A fire was built and one a bed of coals was established the blower was turned on. This baked all the clay around the edge of the grate for a tight seal.
The anvil was an 8lbs sledge laid on its side, the forging hammer was a 16oz Plumb.
There was many days and evenings turning big flat pieces to small pieces of many shapes and sizes. Not being able to afford the big nice knives that i wanted, I soon started making them. I still have a few from that time.
|