Smelting Iron in Africa

[RobWilson]

Most interesting , well I thought so 



Rob 

[EdK]

That does look interesting. I got through about 20 minutes of it. I'll have to watch the rest some other time. Thanks for posting the link.

Ed

[Mayhem]

Makes your home furnace look like overkill Rob! Thanks for posting this Rob, I found it very interesting.

The narrator did get on my nerves though. My favourite comment "when all the wood is lighted"

[f350ca]

Thanks Rob, had to skip ahead few times, Ok quite a few times but a neat process. Got to wonder who tried it first, then who came up with flux to create slag, etc

[DaveH]

Burkina Faso,  is one of the poorest Countries in the world, an estimated 1 000 000 will die of starvation mainly children.
Sad.
 
DaveH

[RobWilson]

(11-24-2014, 05:51 PM)EdK Wrote: That does look interesting. I got through about 20 minutes of it. I'll have to watch the rest some other time. Thanks for posting the link.

Ed

Hi Ed , it is worth a watch .

(11-25-2014, 08:17 AM)Mayhem Wrote: Makes your home furnace look like overkill Rob!  Thanks for posting this Rob, I found it very interesting.

The narrator did get on my nerves though.  My favourite comment "when all the wood is lighted"

LOL , aye they cheated Darren , no welding ! ha ha ha and what's wrong with "overkill "  ?   I do it so well lol.  So you don't lighted your BBQ LOL , must admit my grammar is twatfull   at times . 

(11-25-2014, 09:06 AM)f350ca Wrote: Thanks Rob, had to skip ahead  few times, Ok quite a few times but a neat process. Got to wonder who tried it first, then who came up with flux to create slag, etc

Hi Greg , yes it dose get you thinking of how it all first got started ,well it dose me anyway . A subject I may well looking to ,the technology has been around  a fair old wile , not sure if it fist came out of India 

(11-25-2014, 12:52 PM)DaveH Wrote: Burkina Faso,  is one of the poorest Countries in the world, an estimated 1 000 000 will die of starvation mainly children.
Sad.
 
DaveH

Truly sad that Dave .



All in all it shows what is possible if you have the right dirt and an old tree ,no battery's required .



Rob 

[DaveH]

(11-25-2014, 01:38 PM)RobWilson. Wrote: All in all it shows what is possible if you have the right dirt and an old tree ,no battery's required .



Rob 

...........and bloody strong arms for the bellows. That looked a real "killer"

DaveH

[awemawson]

Rob that was fascinating, thank you for posting. Many years ago I visited the Wealden Iron Group in East Sussex, where they had built an experimental bloomery furnace in the woods near Tunbridge Wells, replicating what is believed to have been used locally for centuries up to Roman times. It was remarkably similar to what was being used there even down to a pair of bellows using animal skins, but the 'valve' was a bit different. I took a turn for 20 minutes pumping and it VERY tiring! Our 'bloom' stuck to the furnace wall :(

[RobWilson]

Quote:..........and bloody strong arms for the bellows. That looked a real "killer"  

 
DaveH

Oh I dont no Dave ,,,,,,,,,, I reckon I could give it what for on the bellows ,for at least a hole minute lol  . Any way  I did say old tree , I would have knocked one of these up 


Rather nice bit of wood work , Museo Galileo ,Florence   . 

Quote:Many years ago I visited the Wealden Iron Group in East Sussex, where they had built an experimental bloomery furnace in the woods near Tunbridge Wells, replicating what is believed to have been used locally for centuries up to Roman times. It was remarkably similar to what was being used there even down to a pair of bellows using animal skins, but the 'valve' was a bit different. I took a turn for 20 minutes pumping and it VERY tiring! Our 'bloom' stuck to the furnace wall :(

Hi Andrew , now thats   , I bet it was good crack to . Did you get the bloom out ?  forge it into anything ? and lastly what fuel did you use ?  


Cheers Rob 

[awemawson]

The fuel was charcoal made from the local chestnut which is coppiced in profusion locally. The people involved were rather 'precious' insisting on absolute authenticity in all things, but the result was somewhat disappointing - I don't think it was hot enough really. The bloomery was authenticly built up from local clays and probably hadn't had enough time to fully dry before firing although it was fired for two days and the intervening night. I left when they started arguing whether knocking the bloom out would break the furnace :(