Behold! - an ancient (530 B.C.) Greek vase showing a blacksmith & his assistant . The technology remains the same today!



Smithing is dirty work. In addition a fire is involved , thus it became apparent I would need a suitable shed for my forge and other bits.
The general workshop is too full of wood and flammables.

My vague design brief was for a place big enough I could swing a cat around , close to my workshop (power , close to tools) , covered (rain and coal causes sulphuric acid which corrodes the forge quickly) and well ventilated and secure.

First I needed to excavate the bank near the workshop. This was a severe couple of days' work with pick and shovel and saved a few hundred dollars whilst improving fitness. Eventually I hit compacted gravel and could go no further.
I chiselled a bit deeper all round and installed an ag pipe slotted drain , covered with geotex and gravel. Do it properly or not at all.
Next some firm footings were in order - to save money and reduce environmental impact I opted to sink post holes and build  concrete piers. I set post holders into the concrete and once all was square and level , used treated pine sleepers as a base for future stud walls. The sleepers are supported on the piers and also by a drystone wall. Gravel (with a veneer of fine crushed rock) was used to bring the floor to level and ensure drainage.

This year I finally dropped coin on an old & presumably Victorian-era leg vise that had been sitting in an antique shop for ages.  It was rusty and mouldy but after dismantling and cleaning was found to be in excellent order. I'm not sure that the screw is original. There are no foundry markings.

In the likelihood of not being able to obtain a proper leg vise (they are rare) I read in an old popular mechanics magazine that  you can set an engineering vise into a barrel full of gravel for stability...Assuming you can find a barrel.



The leg vise requires a very stable foundation. I procured a steel post for $2 from the dump. After some though I opted to embed this in concrete , retained by a 4wd tyre. I poistioned this in a best guess position with respect where the forge will sit. I will place a window overlooking the vise for natural lighting and also should I need to bend a long length of steel - just can poke it outside.


The top of a vise is generally set at 39 inches . I carefully calculated the post depth and filled the tyre with concrete. A couple of hours later I sat the vise on top and embedded the post into the concrete to ensure there could be no lateral movement. There is a horseshoe bracket in continuity with the vise screw and I will bolt this to the shed wall later.







The Forge


1. Flange (galvanised was all I could find ; it works fine)
2. Black steel (bought ) and bronze/galv (cheap) pipe fittings
3. Heavy steel tray
4. Brake drum









The ash dump/air blast set-up. The bottom of the ash dump is a screw on end piece of high pressure black steel .
This prevents air from escaping below but can be removed when the pipe fills with ash from the fire.













The smithy , set up for ease of use on 19/10/08. Though small , the work will flow easily ( for a right handed person)
The anvil face is at knuckle height ; the leg vise jaws are at 39".
The forge sits on a heavy chequerplate sheet but the remainder of the floor is fine crushed rock (FCR)  - easier on the feet than concrete and it doesn't require sweeping.