small cast iron pan/hibachi/???

[CarvedTones]

I have been keeping an eye out for a cheap or free old hibachi or frying pan or ??? that is cast iron and big enough to use as a "mini-forge". The idea is you take an iron vessel, line with all clay clumping cat litter and you can use a torch to heat steel (tool or knife blanks) to anneal it for shaping and then later to temper by heating and dipping in oil. Hibachis are optimal, but a pan or some other vessel would work as long as it was large enough. I thought I would throw this out there in case someone has some worthless (to them) cast iron container or a suggestion for another container that would work to watch for.

 

[Mark Gottesman]

A hibachi is a great idea, but if one does not show up.

A brake drum (size according to items you will be working on) will also work..already have holes in them for air and mounting plates.

Or, I have made up a mix or portland cement and crushed lavarock. Cast over a form, let dry and then line with kitty litter. Cure with a small fire after it has dried a while. Bit more work, but good if you need a specific size and shape forge bowl.

 

[Mike Davis]

Then there's the old reliable coffee can forge since you are doing small knives.

Take a large coffee can and line it with ceramic wool, drill a one inch hole through one side of the can, spread apart the ceramic filler to make room for a propane torch to fit in. Turn the can on its side and stick the metal into one end.

The ceramic wool tunnel holds the heat in and distributes evenly within the small space.

 

[CarvedTones]

Mike,

That sounds fine for annealing, but for hardening, the instructions I am looking at (http://caribooblades.homestead.com/makingahook.html) only heat part of the blade (bolt hole forward) and make it sound like it is very important that you see the blade's color and work the flame around. they do use ceramic woll, but open. I was having trouble finding a small piece reasonably priced when I stumbled on the instructions for using clay in an iron container as an alternative. I have been offered an old frying pan that I will try it with first.