Iron Smelting

[weekend_viking]

Hi all

I did a couple of Iron Smelts at Rowany Festival over in Australia a few years back. Considering doing one at either a NAAMA or Taupo sometime; Anyone interested?

Photos of previous smelt here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46906258@N00/sets/72057594111214397/

[Silver]

would be realy interesting
if you need a hand I will help
if not then I will stand round and watch

[hopies]

Cool - ! what do you need to get this going?

Ive lots of willow which im told is great for charcol - if anyone wants to come up for a weekend and make it it could be fun.

Where are you going to get the smelty stuff from?

thanks

Justin

[weekend_viking]

I've previously used mainly hardwood charcoals, but anything will do, I guess. Generally I buy five or six 20 kg bags, if there's a bulk source available.

Ore will be a mix of whatever new ore I can find between now and then, plus recycled gromp/slag and low quality bloom from the previous smelt. This will be the first time I've worked with lower grade bog iron type ores, in Oz I used high grade specular hematite. Preferred source that I know I can get to is probably going to be down in Cantebury, where there's a medium grade hematite/goethite ore I can access and stockpile for transport up here. It will probably require a hefty pre-roast, which can probably be done in my woodburner :-).

Haven't made the bellows yet, left the last set in Oz. Will need to be capable of at least around 1200 litres of air/minute, so fairly big. Although I am considering using quite a small furnace, which may allow me some trade off in the size of bellows used.

It's around five to eight hours work for a crew of anywhere between three and ten people, with the more people to spell the bellows slaves the better.

Iarnulfr/Zane

[psyclone]

Id be in to giving to a go.....

[weekend_viking]

Update:

A smelt would require about 6-10 people to work it, and an area about ten square metres working space where the owners did not mind a fair amount of clay, ash and cinders being added to the soil afterwards.

Generally I have to build the smelter on site at least a week before using it, but for a smelt at NAAMA I would have to bring a pre-built furnace - I'm not sure if this is feasible/economic yet. Operating requirements are around 100-150 kgs charcoal, and people to work the bellows for five or ten hours, depending.

As all the equipment would be mine, I'd prefer doing the smelt at the group campsite that I would be camping with (Drikka Nordica/MLHNZ if they are at the event, generally) for both security and safety's sake. Operating furnace temperature is around 1200 degrees centigrade, and although at past events it has been somewhat of a spectator sport, I'd prefer to do it at a site over which I have control and there aren't too many excessively drunk people about (they don't mix well with hot things, especially not at 1200 degrees).

Photo set of a previous smelt from 2006 here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/46906258@N00/sets/72057594111214397/

At the moment, I may postpone this to a later NAAMA at a site not so far away from me, as most of the people I camp with when I go to NAAMA's are probably not going this year, so my crew of known trustworthy helpers will be sparse, and my work leave balance is getting low, so I'm not sure if I can attend the event for long enough to do the work required to set up the furnace.

If I get time, I'll do a dry run with a transportable furnace this spring, and if that works, it may be do-able.

Iarnulfr/Zane.

[allfiredup]

Hi - your always welcome to our bit of farmland to set up a smelt permanent or semi up to you.

tons of room for a hard camp for anyone who is keen as well.

We have heaps of willow which I hear is good for charcol making so can chop up some of that.

Would be really keen to help get this going.

Also the help of my newbies!!

thanks

justin

[Archer]

What type of willow have you got, have been looking for some to make some Baskets with.

Cheers

Graham