Blacksmith coke

[pondman]

Hi all

I am looking to buy blacksmith coke but have no idea where to get it. I'm in buckinghamshire, is there anyone on here that might know of somewhere that sells it? Any assistance will be greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance

 

[madkayaker]

Local coal merchant would be my first call

 

[Windy Miller]

Does this mean you now have a coke forge?

 

[pondman]

Local coal merchant would be my first call

I've tried my local supplier, they stopped selling it due to lack of interest for it. The local blacksmith near me said he uses anthrisite but I've heard it's not to great.

 

[chunkolini]

Sniff sniff.
I actually know a few coke using blacksmiths, but wont ask about their suppliers.

 

[hareng]

Works just as well.
http://kap-logs.com/homefire.htm

 

[julianthegypsy]

K.G. Smith, bit far from you, somewhere in northants as I remember, but they sell it. You need to ask for forge breeze incidentally.
Many years ago I used anthracite chips, its very different to use but I liked it. You need a bean tin with holes in the bottom for watering around the fire to contain it, otherwise it grows!

 

[pondman]

Does this mean you now have a coke forge?

It certainly does I decided to bite bullet and get one I found on fleabay. Now I just need to figure out the rest :-/

 

[pondman]

Sniff sniff.
I actually know a few coke using blacksmiths, but wont ask about their suppliers.

 

[steve.h]

I started off with my forge using anthracite, I was curious so I bought a couple of bags of coke breeze, I was not that impressed with it, I wanted to try it as I thought it would have less clinker in than anthracite but it was no better ! ! ! I have gone back to anthracite, it is half the price and lasts a bit longer than coke too. Anthracite is about the hottest type of coal in btu`s, it is more than good enough for all your forging needs, it will melt 10mm bar in under 4 minutes if your not watching it, I can forge weld with anthracite without any problems (well none other than my ability !!!).
I built my own forge with some 4mm plate, 1.2 sheet and castable refractory withthe base/legs made from 20x20x2mm square hollow bar, I use a high power inline 4" fan that puts out about 180 cubic meters an hour and that works well with the anthracite, I also have a 5" fan at around 240 M3 hr but its not needed. There are quite few smiths on here, I am still in my early days but anything you need to know there is plenty of help on here, another great scource of information is youtube, there are hundreds of how to`s on there, I have learnt most of what I can do from there, there is everything from managing the fire to making whatever you want, there are also a lot of really old books for free online, they are from around 1905 time, farm blacksmithing and blacksmith techniques etc, I can give you some links if you want them.
Have you got an anvil to go with the forge ?? I have 2 cwt 105kg one I paid around £100 for it, it was a little uneven on the surface but I worked on it with an angle grinder with flap disc and a belt sander, now it is great... happy whacking.

 

[Windy Miller]

It certainly does I decided to bite bullet and get one I found on fleabay. Now I just need to figure out the rest :-/

Good stuff.I have heard it said that coke forges are better, but I have no first hand experience of this as I have never used a gas forge. Maybe you could let us know the difference when you get it up and running? If you cant get hold of coke, coal will probably be ok , as long as it comes in small enough lumps. I have found the man made coal nut things to be a little too large and there were too many voids, so finding the 'hot spot' was sometimes tricky. Let us know how you get on, and post up some pics of course!

 

[steve.h]

You need to go for beans or peas, these are the smallest sized pieces, I use beans, I personally find these small enough.

 

[pondman]

Good stuff.I have heard it said that coke forges are better, but I have no first hand experience of this as I have never used a gas forge. Maybe you could let us know the difference when you get it up and running? If you cant get hold of coke, coal will probably be ok , as long as it comes in small enough lumps. I have found the man made coal nut things to be a little too large and there were too many voids, so finding the 'hot spot' was sometimes tricky. Let us know how you get on, and post up some pics of course!

Hey Windy

I've been using a gas forge since before we did the course and it works great until I need to forge anything wider than a bar. I can't do much of what we learned on the course because the hole isn't very big. Up until now I haven't really needed one but I've had a lot of interest in my sculptures and having a coal forge will make things a lot easier and I'll be able to make bigger pieces with less hassle.

I will post up some picks and let you know how I get on.

 

[pondman]

Hi Steve

Thanks for the helpful advice! I have wanted to build a forge for some time now but haven't because it would cost me more in time + materials than finding a reasonably priced one. I've bought an alldays and onions which from what I can tell is a reputable make, its been refurbished and has a near enough new motor. If I had to build it, it would cost me way more than I paid for it. Sometime you have to way up which option is more cost effective. I have a local supplier who sells anthracite beans/nuts so I get a few bags from him and see how I get on. I will have to get another anvil. Mine is ok, I'd like one a bit bigger, mine is 75kg which cost me £150 I couldn't find anything cheaper at the time and it needed some resurfacing on the horn but it does the job for now. I've really got hooked on smithing techniques for sculpture and am slowly building up a set of tools and am hoping to have a little set up in the near future, No need to rush though Saying that I still do and will keep doing a lot of my forming cold. Having the right tools makes cold forming easier than forging but forging bring great new textures to my work

I'll keep you posted on how I get on!

Thanks again!

 

[steve.h]

I know what you mean about being hooked, I started off by wanting to learn to weld (just because I wanted to), I got ok ok with the welding but I found I wanted to shape the metal, I started off by using my compressor to blow into my firepit, that was around 15 months ago, I have heart and lung issues as well as looking after the kids, so I dont get in the workshop as much as I like, the younges is at plaschool now so I have 3 days a week that I can do 3 hours so I will be knocking out stuff to sell locally soon enough, I am surprised how many people like the handmade stuff and are willing to pay more for it, just need to get the word out, I have interest from a few people already so its a good start, it will have to be a part time thing as my health wont let me do much more. I have never been as happy as when I am stood at the forge, it feels good, it is something man has been doing for hundreds of years, you cant say that about IT eh.

 

[pondman]

I know what you mean about being hooked, I started off by wanting to learn to weld (just because I wanted to), I got ok ok with the welding but I found I wanted to shape the metal, I started off by using my compressor to blow into my firepit, that was around 15 months ago, I have heart and lung issues as well as looking after the kids, so I dont get in the workshop as much as I like, the younges is at plaschool now so I have 3 days a week that I can do 3 hours so I will be knocking out stuff to sell locally soon enough, I am surprised how many people like the handmade stuff and are willing to pay more for it, just need to get the word out, I have interest from a few people already so its a good start, it will have to be a part time thing as my health wont let me do much more. I have never been as happy as when I am stood at the forge, it feels good, it is something man has been doing for hundreds of years, you cant say that about IT eh.

You certainly can't! Metalwork in general has always been my love from the first gate I made when I was 17 but when I did the blacksmith course and was standing over the fire working the steel it changed things for me!

Good luck with selling your work, passion and loving what you do will shine through and you will sell more and more. I'm getting so soppy in my old age but I really believe it! There are so many great artists on this site willing to help and share and it really does make the world of difference.

Many thanks!

 

[steve.h]

You are very lucky to have found it at such a young age, I didnt find it until I was nearly 40, I had a massive heart attack, cardiac arrest and bypass about 4 1/2 years ago, it was a massive life change, I was unable to work, still am as a 9-5. My grandfather was an engineer but he died when I was 14, my G G G grandfather was a blacksmith I believe, so it was about history for me, now I am hooked, I am teaching myself as I simply cant afford to do any courses at the moment, but I think doing a course can jump you forward in terms of confidence and skills quite a lot so once I have the funds I aim to do a couple of courses. Like you say this site is great for support and info, people on here are straight with you, unlike a lot of society....

 

[brewdexta]

Not idea if this is useful to anybody but I have 4 or 5 bags (possibly more) of coke cluttering up my barn that somebody can have gratis if they pick them up. They were given to me a while ago but doesn't burn well in my multifuel boiler, clogs up the raking system with clinker. Its domestic coke, no idea if that is any different to blacksmith's coke.

I'm not near my workshop until tomorrow evening to count the bags, I put it in 25kg plastic bags you get from builders merchants.

Cheers
Andy

 

[Windy Miller]

You are very lucky to have found it at such a young age, I didnt find it until I was nearly 40, I had a massive heart attack, cardiac arrest and bypass about 4 1/2 years ago, it was a massive life change, I was unable to work, still am as a 9-5. My grandfather was an engineer but he died when I was 14, my G G G grandfather was a blacksmith I believe, so it was about history for me, now I am hooked, I am teaching myself as I simply cant afford to do any courses at the moment, but I think doing a course can jump you forward in terms of confidence and skills quite a lot so once I have the funds I aim to do a couple of courses. Like you say this site is great for support and info, people on here are straight with you, unlike a lot of society....

Well if you manage to get some funds together, I can highly recommend Peat Oberon for Blacksmith courses. I was lucky enough to meet Pondman at one of Peat's courses, and I am sure he will agree with me when I say it was brilliant! I have done another one since then, and later in the year I hope to do another, but I think I need to put some more time in at the anvil before I spend anymore on courses. Practice is what is needed for me at the moment, and loads of it!

 

[bogmonster]

Not sure if you are sorted yet but there is a list on the I Forge Iron website - just can't find it at the moment...

Ah, here...

http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/6299-building-coal-supplier-list/page-6?hl=rudrum#entry111905

Not sure if any of these will help though?