Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces & Kilns Paperback – Illustrated, February 1, 2004

I have been learning blacksmithing and metalcasting as a hobby for over a year. i have found troves of information on the net and in forums about propane burners for use in forums and foundries. But none of it covered the depth of knowledge of this book. I now feel much more confident in my ability to make a functional and efficient burner for my own use. The backgound info and theory in this book is approachable and usable. And the burner designs are well thought out.The only criticisms that i have are that the drawings are not great (but i have 20 years experience in hand drafting and CAD) and the step by step instructions can be a little vague. But after a couple of read throughs you can get the point. And if you already have the skills necessary, the instructions are really just a guideline to the end product anyway.Definitely worth the money i paid and am glad that it is now on my bookshelf.

A very useful source of practical guidance for making burners. Certainly it is almost a "must have" if one wants to make full use of experience of a very successful previous development and I have changed several of my previous (mis)understandings. I am very glad I bought it. Other useful references on the internet are also of use, but most are too scant on principles. This book does have many useful observations on principles, including fluid dynamics. However, while it presents fine detail in recipe form based on what the author did,but many descriptions are somewhat ambiguous, with gaps where the reader has to grope for the real meaning. There are also overlaps between expositions of different burners which might have been detailed in tabular form. It could have been written more concisely and precisely. References to details in diagrams are often not specific enough to follow without searching back and forward. However, overall it seems the best source for intelligent of one's own burners. There are some welcome pages on building forges and furnaces, with a lot of details of how the author approached some examples of these. A disappointing aspect of these is that there is no guidance on the proporioning of flues, which can have a significant influence on the performance and controllability.

If you want to avoid hundreds and hundreds of hours of searching and researching, buy the book. It has it all. I feel like I wasted all my time searching in books and on the internet. This is a must -have book for any person who wants to get seriously into metal crafting as a business or as a hobby.UPDATEOne and a half month later, I have lost count of how many times I have read the book. So far I have been more interested in doing these projects than the use that I will give them. Indeed, I only bought the book because I wanted to build a simple gas forge, but it has awakened a different type of passion in me. So much so, that now I am working on two burners, the hand torch, the propane tank forge, the hot work station and a coffee can type of forge and I have completely forgotten about my sculptures. This book has been written in such a manner that, even though I have no mechanical skills whatsoever, I have been able to build everything in a form that I did not know that I could do. The author has unselfishly given away years of research and experimentation, for the reader to accomplish state-of-the-art equipment that not only he or she will use, but also will proudly show them off as a personal achievement. My only regret is that my book has worn off from excessive use. I am looking forward to buy another copy or a new edition just for my library.

I didn't want a thesis on the subject when I ordered "Gas Burners for Forges, Furnaces, and Kilns" in Paperback by Michael Porter, rather I was interested in what I needed to do to build a small work area forge for melting and softening metals and glass. This book is thorough on this subject giving the reader just about everything he would need to become knowledgeable on the subject and allow him/her to build their forge, furnace or kiln to precisely meet their own needs. I am pleased with this purchase and will surely build several forges and kilns. I love it.

Since this is my first book on the subject, I can't compare it to any others. However, after reading and using this book, I don't find any immediate need to buy any others! It is well written and easily accessible to almost anyone. (If you can't follow the instructions as given you probably should find a safer hobby.)

This book was more thorough than what I had anticipated. I have to say, the price seems pretty steep, but the amount of knowlege it puts in your hands is priceless if you are looking to build a gas forge, gas burners, kilns, or crucibles. It might just be me, but a few details were a little difficult to follow and I had to reread it a few times to understand what the author was talking about. This is a great "how-to" book, and I think anybody interested in making these things should pick this up. Gas is a dangerous thing to fart around with if you dont know exactly what you're doing. If you read this, it might save you and your loved ones some grief.

Basic but very informative tome. Sometimes a little confusing, this is actually a step-by-step do-it yourself instruction book for several forges and burners. They are too large for my use, but the information and organization has helped me create a smaller custom forge that serves my needs very well. I used the smallest burner in the book. I seldom run it higher than about 50%. The forge contains about 135 cu. in. and I can melt just about anything in there.

All you need to know to set up a venturi-style burner powered forge

A book that I ordered for a friend - he gives it10/10 A specialist book for the professionals. No complaints so far