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The Newbies Arena Are you new to knife making? Here is all the help you will need.

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  #1  
Old 02-11-2009, 08:42 PM
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calharkins calharkins is offline
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Building Forge

I have asked many questions on building a forge. Several people have been instrumental in helping me pick out what I need. I bought some 8 inch pipe and some 10 guage plate steel to go on each end. I ordered a regulator kit, blower burner kit, wool, satanite, and brick from Ellis. I bought a shop vac to use as a blower. My brother gave me an old barbeque grill. I will take the grill off and use the metal frame to support the forge. The barbeque grill also had a burner. I will keep the stove burner and use that to heat my oil for quenching. If you guys have any more advice please give it. Ray, I want to especially thank you for answering all of my newbie questions. Oh yea bribed nephew to do the welding and helping with this. I took the Tom Sawyer and painting the fence approach. I ought to be ashamed of myself.
Cal
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  #2  
Old 02-12-2009, 07:33 AM
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Ed Caffrey Ed Caffrey is offline
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My advice is DO NOT use the shop vac as a blower......that is WAY too much overkill. A blown type forge of the size you mentioned is only going to need about 120 cfm of air flow...something that you would get from a small "squirrel cage" blower. If you try to use the shop vac, your going to be pushing several hundred or even a thousand cfm. If the forge burns at all, it will only go huff, huff, huff.

A few years ago I sent a set of forge plans out to a fella, he called me about a month later all upset and angry saying that the forge plans were no good, because the forge would not burn. I calmed him down and asked him to go through the components he used, one by one. When we got to the blower, he told me that he had an old Kirby vacuum cleaner that he had hooked up for the blower....BINGO. Where the plans call for a 100-150 cfm blower, he thought that more would be better......its not. The key to building a propane forge is a BALANCE of the components.


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Old 02-12-2009, 08:44 AM
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Thanks for the info Ed. I will start looking for a different blower. Someone on here told me that would work. I know you are the master so I am going to follow your direction. I was in Montana last year on vacation. Had I been into knives then, I would have stopped long enough to get lessons from you if you had the time. When I get time to start trying, emphasis on trying, to make some damascus I will buy your video. Not as good as being there, but I am sure it will be good.
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Old 02-12-2009, 09:14 AM
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Ray Rogers Ray Rogers is offline
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Besides the overkill, shop vacs are noisy. But, you didn't say what size you bought. I have a large 5 hp shop vac that would definitely be overkill but I also have a small 1.5 hp unit that might do OK. A few years ago I had a tiny 1 gallon shop vac that probably would have done passably well.

Here's a link to the Surplus Center for a blower that might work.
http://www.surpluscenter.com/item.as...-1354&catname=

They only have two in stock and I can't be sure it will be all you could wish for but it's cheap and will at least get you started and it will be quiet. Later, if you decide to go whole hog you could look at the professional blowers from Kayne & Sons. They were $125 when I bought mine a few years ago ...


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Old 02-12-2009, 06:21 PM
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Hello Ray, the shop vac is a 5 gallon. I will have to check out the hp when I get home. Thanks for the link, I will order one. Can't wait to get everything in so I can start putting it together.
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Old 02-13-2009, 09:13 AM
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What ever the hp might be I'm sure the Shop Vac has more than enough to do the job, probably too much. But, if you do end up using it, that big gate valve should allow you to control the air flow well enough. Still, if the Surplus Center unit turns out to be enough for the job it will be much more pleasant to work with ....


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Old 02-13-2009, 01:37 PM
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I bought a forge blower from I belive Kayne & Sons several years ago. This thing could have been used as a leaf blower! But it did have a damper type cover to lower the CFM. I liked having too much blower, but I used a gate valve to regulate it. When all is balanced out, the 3" gate valve is almost shut. I belive they were @ $120 or so, but they were built like a tank, and was pre wired wth a switch and had universal mounting brackets.

Then again Ive been accused of being a bigger is better kind of guy

I have also used a shop vac, #1 is that they are not rated to run constantly, ( I melted one down) #2 They are noisey as al get out!! Your ears will ring for hours after you are done forging.

God Bless
Mike


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Last edited by DiamondG Knives; 02-13-2009 at 01:40 PM.
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Old 02-13-2009, 01:44 PM
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Here is a link to the blower I mentioned above. Yes it overkill, but it is ONE SOLID UNIT!

http://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/Temp...164_CFM_Blower

God Bless
Mike


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Old 02-13-2009, 05:38 PM
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forge

Use a hair dryer .Robert


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  #10  
Old 02-13-2009, 06:02 PM
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That link of DiamondG's is the blower I have also. My forge is set up with two forced air burners with long flexible hoses. This isn't a 'normal' set up at all and it requires a very strong blower to make it work. It takes almost everything this blower can produce to run my setup . So, I agree with G, a little overkill isn't a bad thing.....


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Old 02-13-2009, 08:20 PM
Doug Lester Doug Lester is offline
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That blower Mike linked to is about 100 cfm more than what you will need, but as he said, it can be choaked down. Ellis Custom Knife Works carries gate valves in several sizes. I forgot what I got from him, but it was way less than $120.

Doug Lester


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Old 02-13-2009, 09:10 PM
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Would a rheostat work to increase or decrease the speed of the blower? I know it will dim a light, but what would it do to a motor? I should remember this, but I don't.
Thanks
Cal
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  #13  
Old 02-14-2009, 09:19 AM
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On that blower (the one G posted), a LIGHT rheostat WILL NOT work..... well, let me put that another way....it will work for a few brief moments, until the motor on the blower burns out. To control that blower you have to use a ceiling fan speed controller....it basically looks and works the same as the light rheostat, but its built differently internally, and will not burn up the blower motor.

How do I know that??? Well, lets just say.....


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Old 02-14-2009, 09:23 AM
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A rheostat would work if the motor is less than 1 hp (it would be on a blower) and if the motor is build the right way (depends on the blower, but probably would work). However, let the blower run at full speed, the gate valve will control the air flow. I used my blower on a much smaller forge with a single burner at first and the gate valve was all that was needed for air control.

The gate valves in question here is a 2" valve. If memory serves, the local hardware store sells them for $35 to $50. Of course, it will be included if you buy Ellis' burner. It is the big blower that Mike linked to that cost $125 when I bought mine ...


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Old 02-14-2009, 06:26 PM
Doug Lester Doug Lester is offline
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I might add that I got my blower off Ebay for $50 and it puts out plenty of air.

Doug Lester


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