Subject: Re: Blacksmith Shop Design

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 1996 00:42:47 -0500

Here are my two cents on shop design - one penny for each shop I've built.
 The first was 20x20 with 12' peak and 9' ceilings and was built in 1984 for
about $1000 total (I used a lot of salvaged lumber from frames used to hold
large pieces of glass during transit).  A friend and I built the whole thing
on Labor Day weekend.  It was built as a pole barn using 6" wooden poles set
3" in the ground.  I used a tractor with a 12" posthole digger to make the
holes and then set the poles in concrete.  After the concrete set, I
thru-bolted a 2x10 stringer to the tops of the poles at a level elevation.
 We built W-type trusses on the ground and then swung them up on the
stringers at 24" centers (this was too close and was overbuilt).  All the
trusses were tied together with 2x4's and then covered with corrugated
roofing.  The eaves were left open for circulation.  I also put in 8 pieces
of clear, corrugated fiberglass for skylights (this is really important for
reducing your light bill).  The poles were also tied together with 2x4's and
3/8" all-weather siding was used to close it in.  I live in Central Texas, so
there was no attempt to insulate the walls.  There were two windows and two
8x8 bifold doors hung shed-style on a single track.  It had a dirt floor with
a raised subfloor of bricks around the forging area.  This was a very solid
building and withstood many storms and a close miss by a tornado without so
much as a groan.  When I sold out, the new owners bulldozed the other
buildings on the property but kept the shop as a tractor shed.
 Unfortunately, with all my equipment, I had to back out the door just to
turn around (too small...).

My second shop was built in 1994 for about $3500 along the same lines but
24x36 on 12" poles with 16' peak and 12' ceilings.  I tried to skimp on truss
spacing and lived to regret it when a 70mph thunderstorm blast took the
ENTIRE roof off in one piece and cartwheeled it across the field and into the
stock tank (very noisy!).  When I rebuilt it, I went to 48" centers and it
has held up so far.  I have 5 windows, 8 skylights and 1 12'x12' shed door on
sliding track.  I can't stress skylights enough, especially in locations that
get a lot of sun.

Notes:  1.  Both shops had dirt floors - I prefer dirt because it's easier on
your feet, fire does not affect it, cutoffs do not bounce and you can pee in
the corner without going outside.  Dust is a problem but you can wet the
floor (use the liquid of your choice!).  If you want to set a foundation, you
get a pick and start digging.  I do think the suggestion of a small slab is a
good one for layout and such, I just haven't gotten around to pouring one.
2.  Absolutely build the biggest structure that you can afford - you won't
regret it.  High ceilings are nice for swinging steel and smoke clears out
easier.
3.  I have seen some great brick forges, but I think a fabricated sheet metal
stack, either side draft or top draft, is easier and cheaper to
make/install/maintain.
4.  Put in a big electrical service (100amp or more?) and plenty of lights
for when the sun goes down.  The 8' industrial fluorescents seem to last
longer and start better than the 4 footers.
5.  I built both shops and saved a bundle, but it goes a lot better and
faster if you have good, handy friends or can afford to subcontract some of
the work.  After the roof blew off, I rebuilt the wood, but hired out the
sheet metal to two pros who finished the whole thing, in the rain, in 3
hours!

After all is said and done, if I build another shop, I will definitely build
a steel pole barn with metal siding.  Less upkeep and less of a fire hazard
(wood still burns).  Hope this helps, if anybody wants to discuss it further,
feel free to send me an E-mail.

hollis

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From: Ralph Snel <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 1996 9:49:32 MET

I haven't built any smithy/shop yet, though I converted an old stable, and
am planning on building something bigger any year now.
What I have in mind is something in style with the rest of the farm, middle
of the 19th century. I plan to build the _smithy_ (for forging, not for
all the other stuff that requires light and power and nice temperature) in
half-timber, with dirt floor and fixed forge. Big doors, little windows,
no electricity. I've noticed that I don't need much light when forging. The
only thing that's fixed sofar is where I'll put the anvil. There's this
nice big tree that's standing exactly right... I intend to put the forge
along the middle of the long wall, so I can stick things in on one side
and out on the other. Bellows, probably BIG ones, maybe overhead. Something
I've noticed in a local smithy is a (natural) stone floor just around the
anvil, packed in dirt (I think), with wooden floor farther out.

Ralph Snel
[email-masked]
Sweden

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 27 Mar 1996 20:56:18 -0500 (EST)

While on the topic of building a blacksmith shop.....

a member of our Guild (who is not yet a member of this forum) is thinking 
of using hand made nails to put up the board and batten siding on his 
shop.  Does anyone have any comments of the advisability of this?  Given 
that the nails will be made of mild steel, will rust be a problem? 

 My old barn has oak board siding put up with uncoated wire nails and in 
places the nails have rusted to the point that the boards are loose.  
Also there is some discoloration  on the surface from the nail heads rusting.
  Granted, this has taken a LONG time.

Is there something that can be done to the nails after forging to 
decrease the problem of rust.

Comments?  Discussion?

Albin Drzewianowski
Editor, Blacksmith Guild of Central Maryland
Westminster, MD