How to Make a Fire Brick Metal Foundry Furnace, Part 1: Cutting the Bricks
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- čas přidán 14. 10. 2024
- Today I'm building a better foundry. I use insulating fire bricks, some paper, a simple saw and a block of wood to shape it all. Next time I'll build an enclosure (as opposed to shelling out lots of money for a keg. I'm not made of money) out of sheet steel and apply mortar and a coating, made from satanite. Then it's time to start melting metal! This is intended for use with a burner, such as propane or oil. This will NOT work well with charcoal.
Part 2 is found here: • How to Make a Fire Bri...
Want to learn sand casting using your 3D printer? I can teach you!: paulsmakeracad...
This foundry furnace will be used for casting aluminum, brass, bronze, copper and other alloys. Probably not cast iron, though.
I got the bricks here: www.armilcfs.com. They have kaowool too and some other stuff.
This replaces my old furnace which I build in the video "how to build a better mini metal foundry", published months ago. That furnace, based on grant Thomson's mini metal foundry, used castable refractory cement instead of plaster and sand. It is still holding up, but insulating fire brick insulates better. The old furnace build is here (don't watch it, this new one is better) • Making a BETTER Mini M...
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Music: "Quirky Dog" by Kevin MacLeod. incompetech.com/
#metalcasting #foundry #forge
Similar Bricks to the ones I used: amzn.to/3VDIzoY
You'll need a couple 12 packs. It's expensive, i know.
These are 2600 degree rated bricks, you can also get 3000 degree rated bricks for about double the price. I used 2800 degree rated bricks. 2600 is honestly more than enough unless you cast iron.
Want to learn sand casting using your 3D printer? I can teach you!: paulsmakeracademy.mykajabi.com/joinus
Could I get the 2600 brick and coat it in the 3200 Satanite and safely do cast iron
Man, you got my hopes up and then immediately dashed them when you said "these aren't gonna be haunted though".
Had a friend in Norway refer me to your channel..I am so glad he did!! I will definitely be watching more content of yours!!
Found this cos I wanted an idea of how to cut rectangular fire bricks into cylindrical shape. Stayed for the rambling and general goofiness. You got yourself another sub 👍👍👍👍👍
You, Sir, are a riot while being informative...that's so awesome!
great coffee cup !
tks for the vid , helps a lot to build my own.
Thank you for this. I ended up using the exact same materials as you did. I made my furnace smaller though. I used an old propane tank as my outside which meant I had to cut all the bricks in half twice and then 7 1/2 degrees off of the outside corners of those. Took a total of 6 bricks (actually could have took 5 but mistakes were made) last piece locked all the other pieces into place like a keystone. Didn't even have to mortar in between them. Then I just coated them twice in satanite following the proper bake in procedure for each coat. Thing works amazing. Was able to go from a cold furnace to melted copper in 30 minutes. 12 minutes if the furnace is already hot. Best of all everything is holding up great. My walls show no sign of melting and turning into glass goo like they did in my first furnace when I tried to make my own refractory mix (4 parts Perlite 1 part 3000 degree furnace cement). Thanks again. By the way great channel I've watch all your videos and find you highly entertaining and very likable.
This is one of my favorite videos ever. Great content and great entertainment.
Thanks!
Dude! I found your channel through your “aluminium bronze hammer competition”
You won. Function beats aesthetics for a HAMMER lol
Anyways man your videos are fun to watch and it feels like we as a community get to know you as we progress through your channel. (Mostly due to your epic rambling)
Peace and keep melting stuff.
"Ahhh the emergency break is on" subscribed. Great video man.
Wow...The only You Tube channel I've seen that doesn't have dislikes !!!....Keep up the good work !!!
+Simply Jef oh they will show up sooner or later
Handsaw tip: watch the reflection of what you are cutting in the side of the saw as you go and if the edge looks straight from item to reflection you're good.
Woah thanks!
Well done my friend! :) Looks very professional so far!
Thanks! I hope it looks as good when its done, unless i screw something up! :D
You are a genius is what I was thinking as I watched and listened, Then towards the end of your build you got on camera and showed yourself sporting skinny jeans and a undone man bun. My wife noticed the russet potato in your pocket, the potato belongs in your front pocket not the rear. Geesh!! Anyway we both enjoyed your brilliance and humor. Thank you.
This is my first time watching your vids. You seem to be a talented and nice guys. So i subbed. Thanks
Love the extra stories, rants and captioning while doing your builds.
Like the education about pyramids while you cut bricks. A bit like a long journey in the car while playing spotto with the kids. The trip seems not so long.
Hey was just watching some of your casting videos for the first time, and you go and upload exactly what I was looking for
+ReachingthePeake _ good! I like when things come together!
Dude I think I actually enjoy your show more due to your rants lol
thanks! I'm glad, im pretty sure i can't help it
Firstly, we ALL need somebody to lean on, duh.
Secondly, lean on me when your not strong
Thirdly, this is the first video of yours that I've seen and you sir , have managed to stumble upon the golden ratio of self-depreciation>sarcasm> actionable instruction... which earned you a new sub.
I hope the rest of your existing/future content is just as watchable as this video was.
Looks like I made a captioning editing error in which I used the same one repeatedly. D'OH! 😭Too late to change it. Enjoy my screw up :)
Jeez, this guy... he makes me cry...
He doesn't make ME cry, this is the fourth time I'm watching this video, I've seen all of his videos and it's 2:15am and I have work tomorrow.
Ok, this guy kind of makes me cry, but just a bit, when I need to get up in the morning.
I think the captioning fits... especially multiple times
Paul's Garage Hey Paul and everyone else in the uk, try the "Artisan Foundry Shop". Although I am not affiliated with them, I do buy from them. And their quality is very good they sell JM30's for £9.99 each, which isn't bad (aka 1650c/3000f). I have bought from them and would recommend them. I know how hard it is to start even if just a serious hobby, especially if you don't know where you can source the correct materials (forget eBay). This company has it all you will need including real crucibles, (not stupid steel containers you see very unexperienced people using).
Paul's Garage, How much money in total did you spend on this?
Come for the bricks, stay for the squirrels fighting with light sabers.
“Squirrels fighting with light saber because.... Star-wars!” Nice!!!!
Now picture your finalized kiln,where you are square with one of the sides. From the right (inside) corner, make a square cut from top to bottom. Rotate and repeat for every side....
You only needed to cut one side of every brick to construct that.
Very nicely done. Funny too. I’ve seen a ton of these without commenting on mostly bad vids but a score with this one.
Watch you is like watching paint dry .... But i can't stop because the stories you're telling has me mesmerized is it one story or 3 they keep jumping around and i want to no how they fit together .i don't even care about the furnace anymore.lol
I wish i was as productive as paint drying!
"You may notice that this is brick shape." -Paul 2017
+Nicky D from other suppliers you can get other shapes, but those places seem to be more commercial and don't have internet stores
Paul's Garage lol I was just joking around but that's good t know! Thanks Paul!
Developing Mike Justice's idea, if you make an angled cut down the middle of the brick and then turn one side end-for-end, you achieve a full-depth mitre in one action.
Finally! Someone's sticking up for the ancient Egyptians!
Someone has to! I mean, c'mon, they're stacking blocks, not creating artificial wormholes!
Woooohoo!! More melting! Love this! Want to build my own. Can have as much brass as i want. Winter project together with velding stuff for the garden. At home sick this week, watch your videos as a pickmeup. Love ypur videos. Have even started buying books because of you. :):):):):)
+Jurassics glad to hear it! Not the sick part, being sick sucks, but books are always good!
I used a table saw with (3) stacked masonry blades, AND a respirator, and a shower, cuz it was a dust storm, but very accurate. I almost have all the 'sand' out of my hair now, 3 years later.
My garage floor still has the dust if I brush the floor hard enough...
This is really cool Paul!
hey Paul.greetings from South africa . very interesting .thanks for sharing.god bless america
Hello South Africa!
I'm really glad you showed your respirator at the end. The whole time I was watching my lungs were getting scratchy on your behalf >_<
Silicosis is no bueno.
+rumraggt agreed, lungs that work are very nice to have
YEAH looking forward for aloominum bronze casting!
+Sonytec me too!
Paul, I've really enjoyed this series. Planning on building my own soon. I'm curious why you say this design would not work well with charcoal. Ideally I'd like to get my feet wet with charcoal fuel then adapt the furnace to also accept propane. Are there any modifications you can think of that would allow this?
Like the show! I would like to have half a hit of what you took, couldn't stand a full hit. Keep it up.
Deciding the OD or ID of the furnace... Did you use some type of Online Calculator to decide the number of bricks and the angle of the bricks?? Nineogram would be after you decided the number of bricks.. What did you do before to decide to use the 9 bricks?? Just curious..
Interesting and hilarious commentary thanks Mr Paul. Seeing as you were talking about the Pyramids then you might be interested to learn that a French architect, Jean-Pierre Houdin, spent 20 years learning about and making a scaled model of the Great Pyramid of Cheops.
He actually sold his business and home in order to concentrate on his pyramid project and came up with some amazing theories.
Whilst making the computer model he surmised that the builders would have had a 7 degree internal ramp and that at the corners of the ramp they would have had to turn the blocks, which means having a small wooden swivel crane, in order that the builders could continue on up the next sloped bend.
This meant that the Pyramid would have been open at those points and that would mean that the stone blocks vertical lines (at those corner points) would have to be in line with the blocks above it instead of staggered like a brick/block wall. When you build a line of bricks you have to start with half a brick on the second course so that the end line is halfway along the lower brick.
There is a documentary about Houdin and his Pyramid obsession and they got permission to climb up the Cheops one to check out the vertical joints idea.
When you view the Pyramid from a distance you can clearly see an angled 7 degree shadow line in the morning or afternoon as well as the vertical joint lines, up close, on the corner blocks.
In the film they went about 10 miles away to an earlier step pyramid that had been opened up and there you could clearly see the internal ramp.
A computer company was so impressed with the Frenchman's model that they gave him some updated, newer software so that he could finish his model.
You can cut a few discs for raising your crucible off the floor for of the foundry. That's what I did with my funky off-cuts. If there isn't enough for a single brick to do the job, I just used two side-by-side as the crucible stand.
+zillustration I have most of a brick that I'll probably use as a plinth. Still I have 5 full uncut bricks. I smell a mini forge in my future...
Definitely make a forge !!! That is my vote anyway :-) so pretty much you should just do that LOL
+Christ Centered Ironworks I'm seriously thinking about it ;)
That's looking great! It would be a pain but you could cut wedges to fill in the triangle gaps with the extra firebricks. Looking forward to seeing the sheetmetal construction.
+eviltwinx that's a good idea. I was trying to save the small wedges I cut but the saw was taking too long so o switched to the one you see in the vids. Works sooo much faster. I have some ideas for the sheet metal, al depends how hot it gets.
Brilliant sense of humour enjoyment
Awww...I wanted a haunted fire brick😂
Impressive brick work!
I hope you used the extra bricks to build...a pyramid!
I don't have fire bricks, but I do have hydraulically pressed pumice bricks from Mexico and they can withstand extreme heat from pine charcoal.
"The world has changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air.
Much that once was is lost. For none now live who remember it."
Been looking for the link to where you purchased the bricks but can't find it. Can you reply if it is not too much trouble? Appreciate your videos!
Never mind... just found it!
What I don't understand is why no one cuts the bricks in the middle at the desired angle then put two flat sides together and have the proper angles on the outside with the only waste is the sawdust. You end up with twice as many cracks but they fit together well with minimal waste. These bricks are EXPENSIVE so why waste any more than you have to?
Wow just got a suggestion for this vid. You are amazing! You do me thinking of Bob Ross, but then one who teaches me somethin useful. I subbed and liked. Thanks for this awesome tutorial👍👍👍
How many bricks did you need for this project. I’m about to buy 20. I think that’ll be enough for mine...
Pulverize the cutoffs and mix with high temp mortar ... Even toss in the powder ... You can collect it as you make it with a clean shop vac ...
As a Pharaoh .... you are hired !
You could make a furnace extension with the firebricks you have left if someday you need a really big furnace.
+Léonard Durieux that's a good idea, I could add 4.5" to the height with the bricks I have
Why can't I make a foundry with a rectangle shape? What does this shape do for heating?
hello,we produce this shape brick
I feel like I'm getting popcorn lung just watching this.
The respirator is your friend 👍
I was lucky . I got mine from a closed carbide factory. They came from the furnace that melted limestone. They work pretty good. The bricks are 4 inches thick...
Holy crap. For real, I'm just over the border in Rockford. LOL.
That’s crazy! I haven’t been there in quite a while
Ideas for extras (not sure on the personal usefulness for you) but since you asked: heat treat oven, smaller secondary forge, a pyramid that can withstand 2800 deg., an extreme easy bake oven, or just fill in all the gaps on the current project. Also, save your back and add a pivot for the lid instead of lifting it on and off every time 🤙🏻 Also also, great videos!
Really enjoy your videos laugh so hard keep it up
Mail those extra bricks to me...lol.
your micro plane is called a surform. good video.
How did you choose the rating of the firebrick? I went to the link and saw that you split the difference between the temp ratings.
Is k-26 the lowest temp you can get away with, or can you go lower and rely on the Satanite to pick up the slack?
The higher the better but satanite will help
Did you know that a respirator is your friend? Don't say I didn't tell you.
Use the leftover bricks to make a small arc furnace if you have an arc welder. King of Random has a how-to video.
Hello Paul, love your stuff. Question, what are your thoughts on using a combination of refractory clay and firebricks by filling in the gaps of the bricks rather than cutting them?
It might work but i dont have experience doing that myself: many people cover the bricks in refractory, that seems to work
Asking for suggestions on what you can do with the extra bricks? Must resist smart alec remark! Love your videos, keep up the good work. :-)
+Ron Yerke thanks! Smart Alec remarks are welcome btw
Just a thought since I bought some fire bricks couldn't you cut the bricks in half long ways and an angle turn the one over and put the two flat sides together so that you didn't have any waist but still got the angle you needed?
Yeah that would probably work
@@PaulsGarage thank you
Hey I don't know about "lite fire brick" but regular breaks are really fun to throw thru glass windshields.
+Clint Pmk stick to regular bricks. These would crumble on impact
Your partially covered Homer Simpson cup watching you work, was pretty freaky. He was judging you.
How many fire bricks did you use to make that oven?
I'm guessing 24?
And how much satenite did you order and use?
Awesome paul!
+Taite Lennox thanks taite!
you commented quickly!
Those spare bricks and off cuts will be handy for a microwave kiln.
Cant wait to see the finished metal forge your are building. And with the extra bricks make a mini brick pizza oven?
+Lucien Orion Hatter I could cook individual slices :D
Paul's Garage yes yes you could even mini pizzas 😸 you could make all kinds of good mini eats
I so enjoyed that, and nice furnace bro.
Had me laughing hard sometimes.
Adam, how hot does the exterior get? Was wondering if you should had fill the spaces between bricks should have had been filled in with Satanite? Thanks, Bob
PS Dude you are funny as hell.
It's a body rasp for filing down Bondo in body work available in auto parts stores
I've seen it marketed as all kinds if things. Lemon zester, too
You may be able to use the small cutoffs to fill the gaps between the bricks
I've thought about it. I still have them around here somewhere
Oh thats nice..didnt knew before that there where more "firebricks" with different abilitys
Thumbs up from me
Thanks! Glad I could be informative
Nice job done Paul, but with'n actagon you might had less cuts and much less waste on the bricks. At the end the shape would be near by the one you made. May be for the next furnice.
+Massimo Serra I'll look into that thanks for the tip
that dust mask you have I just got one and I love it thanks for telling me where to get it,now what would you recommened I make one out of to just melt aluminum? p.s. great videos
+Old School Repair Shop make what, a respirator? Or a furnace? For furnace anything works for aluminum. Bucket of castable refractory is fine.
The respirator I asked you about it I think a month ago I love it, and thanks for getting back to me about that
Hello. Sweet project. How many bricks did you use?
I ordered a couple dozen, but I think i had a couple left over
the first thing that comes to mind for the extra bricks is staging
.. place to put a crucible, propane torch nozzle, tongs, etcetera
I chose to make a forge out of them 👍🔥
Im looking at some of the firebricks in my area, and a local hardware store sells light firebricks that is up to 3000F, and it sells for $2.50. That doesn't seem right, considering every video that I have seen. What else should I watch out for too determine good bricks to use?
Satanite and koa wool is thebest way to go in the longrun...a bit pricey to start
Those are likely heavy fire brick, not the insulating kind. The insulating light bricks are rarely if ever sold at a store. Kaowool isnt all its cracked up to be either, heat rating is very low on it. You can order insulating bricks up to 3200f rating, bit the price goes up with temp rating. Mine are 2800f bricks they work fine for even cast iron when coated in satanite
@@PaulsGarage thank you for that reply! That follow up is outstanding!
How about the limestone that was cut with Lazer precision
Hey Paul, have you thought if using electricity instead of propane to heat your foundry?
I've considered it, yeah. I have access to a lot of heating elements so it's been an idea i've had to use dryer elements and stuff (nichrome wire), but that requires 220v and a lot of amperage, and until recently i didn't have 220v access in my garage. Also, fire is lots of fun :D I may do an electric furnace at some point, though.
Can you build a charcoal stove out of those left iver bricks?
I made a coal forge out of broken pumice bricks and they don't care about extreme heat. No crumbly walls, just soot from cardboard and pine.
Looking forward to this, I may copy your design. :)
Please do an tell me what you think!
I got mine from Sheffield Pottery. Love them.
+Trelathon Stormrage never heard of Sheffield pottery. I'll look into that
Don't need to buy expensive fire bricks. Hebel can do 3000 f easy. I put an oxy flame directly on one and it just goes a bit grey. Still holds together
I used mizzou refractory cement in mine and it worked great and this was a great videos
Mizzou is great stuff, i considered using mizzou myself, but this doesn't require mixing or molds and stuff. Mizzou is WAY tougher than insulating bricks.
Mizzou is good up to 3200! Well worth the dollhairs.
How many bricks did you buy total? I want to make this so bad as I currently have the plaster of Paris and sand furnace.
+Brody Shoffner the place I put a link to in the description sells these in packs of 4, I bought 7 packs so 28 bricks and I have 5 left over
wont hurt to buy the extra because the are brittle and mistakes can happen, better to have to many than to few imo. I found a local source in Orlando a pottery supply store that sells them individually. good luck.
Holy damn so the cost of this furnace is a good chunk of change then all said and done. Will have to talk to the wife about this one. Would a kaowool furnace make as good of a liner or is it better to use these bricks?
+Brody Shoffner depends. I ran the numbers, for the same amount and thickness of kaowool it's about the same price, and both need a coating like satanite or other refractory for stability and to keep the propane fire from destroying them. The highest rated kaowool I've seen is 2700f, you can get bricks for higher temps. Satanite is good for 3200 though so a good coating of that will make the kaowool last much longer.
I've always wanted to build foundry with firebrick but never got around to it
+Mr Butter its much more fun than mixing castable stuff. That's for sure
How about a small forge for hobbies knife making. I want to make one but I'm skint so I guess I'm going to have to make it out of not so many bricks. So any idea of how to do it?
Chris O'Brien use hard fire brick and use nine bricks
+Chris O'Brien id like a small forge for sure
Hope you make one. Give me some ideas of how to go about it.
Holy crap dude! I am hiring you the next time I smoke some shit! You can talk a storm...Egypt and stone work and aliens and shit....trippy!!!
yes id agree with others on making a forge i actually made a trench forge for wood/coal using a steel pipe down the center those bricks prolly would be perfect and stil be able to make an enclosed end as well...not to mention its a good work out making knives out of rail road spike......just make sure their not within distance of a railroad ya dont wanna break a law by stealing rusting scrap that will probably get buried.....but with the beating and forging pushing your cars with or without ebrake lol will become easier as will be moving heavy foundries lol
Could you please do a video on metal fume fever? I think it would be best to inform people who are doing what you are
I don't know any more about metal fume fever than you could get from 10 minutes of googling, so i couldn't make a whole video about it. I plan to do a bunch of casting in zamak (a zinc alloy) pretty soon, and i'll probably be talking about metal fume fever during that quite a bit (because zinc).
Paul's Garage That'll work. Thank you and I look forward to the video. Good luck with the melting and casting
the site you listed for the bricks seems to be 404. do you have an alternate source?
It's somewhere on www.armilcfs.com/
My daughter and I were wondering if your related to Tim Taylor's neighbor?
Excuse me
Is this brick a high temperature refractory brick or a white brick that is easier to cut?
This is white brick that is easier to cut. This higher temperature brick (2800) is harder to cut than the standard 2300/2400 rated white bricks, but I still use a hand saw to cut it
Hey this guy is funny. Thank for the Load.
Thanks! Glad you liked it