gdp's Comments

Katanablog : Making Charcoal-Part Two

Wed, 10 Jul 2013 01:14:59 +0000

Steve, The jury is still out on how pine will perform in furnace. But here is a section from the Hitachi tatara site \\\"According to the Tetsuzan hisho, pine, chestnut, maki pine, and beech were good for making osumi. Shide birch, kobushi magnolia, and cherry were bad, while shii oak and crape myrtle were the worst. Sawtooth oak, nara oak, and scrub were favorable. For kozumi, pine, chestnut, horse chestnut, and Japanese cedar were all superior, while shide birch, shii oak, maki pine, kashi evergreen oak, and mochinoki oak were considered inferior.\\\" Osumi is charcoal for tatara Kozumi is charcoal for forging. There is no doubt in my mind as to the superior qualities of pine for forging. The main advantage is that it burns to almost to nothing. No small pieces and ash to block the airflow. Also because of its lower density it burns hotter-but faster. To get the heat required to forge weld large chunks of steel is in my opinion, not possible with hardwood charcoal unless you have an unreasonable air blast. I agree that theoretically hardwood has more heat energy than softwood but the effort to extract it makes it impractical for the type of forging I do (traditional fuigo etc). Other than having to pile on more charcoal on a regular basis, the pine makes the welding almost effortless in the amount of energy needed to power the pump. You are correct in the that there is wide variance even in the softwoods. I now use green or slightly air dried southern yellow pine. ( have a sawmill fairly close). But I used kiln dried white pine construction scraps for years with good success. Use what you gots:) And yes, I have to remember that the goal here is to make good swords not the perfect charcoal. ;)

Katanablog : Making Charcoal-Part Three

Wed, 10 Jul 2013 00:50:19 +0000

Hi Steve, Thanks for a great comment.Pre-cooking or \\\"roasting\\\" of the ore is a standard practice. It gets rid of a lot of impurities such as sulfur and makes it much easier to break up. Having said that the Japanese harvested iron bearing sand from the mountains and concentrated it by running though a big sluice to float out the lighter material leaving the heavier iron sand.They did not roast this iron source which was primarily magnetite. My source is rocks of ore so will roast at least some of it to see the results.

Katanablog : Charcoal

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:37:11 +0000

Rick, Good luck. Letus know how it turns out.

Katanablog : About KatanaBuilders

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 01:16:15 +0000

Thanks Mel, I have been a machinist most of my life as well. I am betting you can build a PH as too! Good luck and stay in touch.

Katanablog : About KatanaBuilders

Tue, 9 Oct 2012 04:13:19 +0000

Thanks Peter. I have been pretty lax about keeping it updated. Will change that shortly.

Katanablog : Sendai Construction

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 18:17:54 +0000

Jon, That is a good best guess. A sen is used for shaving steel.

Katanablog : Making Charcoal-Part Four

Mon, 9 Apr 2012 14:38:33 +0000

Hi Tristan,

The Charcoal from the Japanese kiln is working out very well. I have produced about 800lbs. With a full time job and time spent working on all the aspects of building the Kagi-ba I have been lax on updating the site. The Orishigane I made used the kiln charcoal. Pics are here.

I believe there is much to be done that can improve the charcoal from the self-fueling retort. I have set it aside for the moment to concentrate on the kiln method. I would not use a valve to shut down the gas because of the buildup of pressure in the barrels. Maybe a diverter would be a better idea. Venting and maybe burning a portion of the gases to control temp.I would welcome anybody improving the process. I would put it here on my website or link to yours.

Stay in touch.

Katanablog : Hammers

Thu, 5 Apr 2012 01:26:44 +0000

Hi Dave, I had a guy at local spring shop make it for me. Took some sweet talking and quite a bit of \\\'splainin let me tell you:). Thanks for the encouragement. I am focusing on this and hope to complete it soon.

Katanablog : Charcoal

Thu, 5 Apr 2012 01:23:30 +0000

Fredrick, It took about 45 minutes.

Katanablog : Charcoal

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 19:08:50 +0000

Thom, Great video. It is pretty cool how the process can be controlled well enough to produce the properties you need .For me this charcoal would be too soft and crumbly to use making blades. And vice versa my more solid charcoal would be almost useless in making preformed briquettes. Thanks

Katanablog : Making Charcoal-Part Four

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:32:27 +0000

Hi Thomas, Yes, that is a great resource. Thanks for sending it. I am about ready to fire my Japanese style kiln. Details here later. Have good day.

Katanablog : Back in The Saddle Again

Mon, 7 Nov 2011 13:50:22 +0000

Thomas, Thanks for sticking with me. Should be back on a once a week schedule now. Texas weather is now great. This is the best time of the year for us. Snow has been a small problem for us the last couple of years. The good thing is after a snowstorm in a few days it warms up and it all melts away. Ice storms in January and February are the bigger problem. \\\"You\\\'ve been\\\" is correct:)

Katanablog : Making Charcoal-Part Two

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 20:31:44 +0000

Thomas, Please do. The entire state of Texas is in severe drought. We have had 40+ days of 100F heat.

Katanablog : Making Charcoal-Part Two

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 02:33:11 +0000

Hi Thomas, Thanks for stopping by. I promise to continue once the weather gets cooler and not so dry here in Texas

Katanablog : About KatanaBuilders

Fri, 11 Feb 2011 14:02:00 +0000

Kevin, Cool-When you get time, send me your e-mail from my contact page and I will give you my phone number. We can definitely get together. Welcome to Texas. Dan

Katanablog : About KatanaBuilders

Tue, 1 Feb 2011 13:53:28 +0000

Hey Thanks Tim! Stop by any time.

Katanablog : Building the Forge-Part One

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 12:07:39 +0000

Kevin, I would have to same the same for you. I was really impressed with hamon studies you showed on Don\\\'s forum. I am tool-a-holic. The tools of any endeavor oftentimes hold as much or more fascination for me as the thing itself. I guess it is as in all things, finding the right balance is the key. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. Please come back and contribute however you like.

Katanablog : Setting the stage

Sat, 15 Jan 2011 18:23:53 +0000

Hi Frank,I am digging a pit because while I can sit and kneel comfortably in Japanese tradition I prefer the mobility of standing. I could of just as easily built everything up so that I could stand at ground level. But, I want a more traditional feel to my workplace. As far as why swords. Because I like them best. I have made blades off and on for 30+ years. And I practice the twin sword arts of Kendo and Iaido.But you are correct about the fine craftsmen who make planes, saws and chisels. I went down a path some years ago making woodworking planes, both western and Japanese style.Now at this time in my life I want to focus on the many aspects of the Japanese sword.Thanks for stopping by and commenting. Come back any time.I would welcome your insights.

Katanablog : Welcome to KatanaBuilders

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 13:01:34 +0000

Hi Bob,Thanks for coming by. Pick away. That is what this is for. I will have more on the original Fuigo I made and also on an "improved" version.

Katanablog : Welcome to KatanaBuilders

Fri, 7 Jan 2011 02:02:06 +0000

Hey Phil, I am glad you are with me. I think I am going to need all the help I can get.