Monday, November 19, 2012

Utah Bound


I’m on my way to visit my son stationed in Utah for Thanksgiving. Last year when I was there we went to the Golden Spike National Monument. You can see in the picture how exited he was to be standing at the place where the two railroads joined (ya not really). He did like the trains though. This year I have more excitement for him as I brought my rock hammer and geological maps. Utah by the way Rocks!..... I didn’t mean that as a pun.

I forgot to take detailed pictures of my forge as Cincinnatus requested, but I did include a photo of the fire box and clinker breaker. I purchased it from Kayne and Son Blacksmithing Supplies out of North Carolina. Yes it was expensive, and yes I could have welded one up, but it was easier to buy one and in the end it will outlast and work better than anything I could have cobbled together.     

The clinker breaker is the three sided iron item in the photo. The metal rod next to it is the lever to turn it back and forth. The clinker breaker is held in place between the fire box and cast iron elbow. In use the flat part is oriented to the top creating a gap around the side. The gap is small enough to prevent coal from fall though, but big enough to allow air from the bellow to pass unrestricted. When it gets clogged with ash and clinkers the handle is rotated back and forth breaking up and cleaned out the obstruction. By 
the way the disk with the handle is the ash dump that goes on the bottom.

3 comments:

Gorges Smythe said...

I wouldn't even know where to buy good smithing coal around here anymore. I guess a guy could use charcoal.

Frontier Carpenter said...

I'm pretty lucky in regards to coal there are two places in Nebraska I can get it so I load up when I can. This summer I'm going to try using charcoal since that would be more realistic for the time period I'm interested in.

Cincinnatus said...

Thanks for posting the picture and the nod to the manufacturer. Coal: If you have a coal powerplant nearby, walk along the railroad tracks and pick up pieces that have fallen trackside. I have been able to pick up enough in fifteen minutes to keep the forge going for a few hours. Coincidentally, in the same town there is a master blacksmith. I doubt he walks the tracks, but for my little backyard tinkering, its answers the mail.