Tried a propane forge instead of coal and it ruined my workflow

I got tired of all the smoke and mess with my coal forge, so I picked up a propane forge from a guy near Charlotte last month. Everyone online said it was cleaner and easier to control. After about 10 heats, I realized I was getting cold spots on my steel and having to reheat twice as often. The propane forge just doesn't hold heat the same way my coal one does. Maybe I need a different burner setup, but for now I'm back to coal. Has anyone else had trouble getting even heat with propane?

2 comments

2 Comments

sean_torres7119d ago

Oh man, I totally get that. I went through the exact same thing with my first propane forge, thought I was losing my mind. The cold spots drove me crazy, especially on longer pieces like a railroad spike or a knife blank. What finally helped me was relining the forge with a thicker layer of kaowool and rigidizer to really trap the heat in. A single burner setup just can't do what coal does with that even heat blanket.

gibson.sarah19d ago

My forge days taught me how small fixes like relining can turn a whole frustration around, same as when I finally caulked my drafty windows.