Showerthought: Should you stick with traditional coal or make the switch to propane?

I've been forging for about 5 years now, mostly with coal because that's what my grandpa taught me. Last month at a meetup in Portland, a guy told me I was wasting time with coal and should try propane for consistent heat. He said it cuts your forge time by half and leaves less scale on the steel. I tried his setup and he was right about the temperature control being way easier. But now I miss the way coal lets you work a longer piece without reheating as much. Anyone else get a big change suggested that they actually tried and stuck with?

2 comments

2 Comments

derekp7010d ago

Finding it cheap" doesn't mean shit if you're burning twice the coal to get the same heat.

hollym1210d ago

That propane setup sounds convenient but have you actually weighed the total cost difference long term? Coal is cheap and easy to find in most places but getting propane tanks refilled adds up fast especially if you forge regularly. What exactly did the math look like when you compared your monthly fuel expenses between the two?