I finally gave in and tried a coal forge after 8 years of gas only

For the longest time I thought coal forges were just messy nostalgia bait for old timers. I mean, gas is clean, consistent, and you just flip a switch. But a guy at a hammer-in in Ohio last fall let me borrow his antique Buffalo blower for an afternoon. Messing with the air flow and watching the fire change color to that blue-white core was weirdly satisfying. The heat penetration on a 1 inch bar of 1095 was noticeably faster than my gas setup. Now I'm rebuilding a old rivet forge I found for $40, but I still keep the gas around for quick jobs. Anyone else switch fuels and regretted it or stuck with it?

2 comments

2 Comments

holly_green821mo ago

You've had both setups for a while now, so which one do you find yourself grabbing more often when you're just doing a quick knife or a simple hook? I've been on gas for five years and keep hearing coal guys claim better heat penetration on thicker stock, but every time I try a coal forge at a demo the fire management eats up half my shop time. Does the coal actually save you time on a 1095 bar that thick, or is the cleanup and prep cancelling out the gains?

the_sean1mo ago

messing with the air flow and watching the fire change color" - dude you're describing playing with a campfire. It's not that deep.