bellows weight | The Forge Fire | Forum

Azur Jahić;16754 wrote: OK i was saw on internet that blacksmith put waight on top chamber of bellows.BUt blacksmiths in my place they use to tie a wire to bottom chamber and put rock or iron so the weight faster pulling chamber.They dont put weight on top chamber i was asking my self can that weight rip off bellows cloth when you do that

Hi Azur.

I think you would be okay to use a weight to pull the bellow open faster. As long as the weight is not too heavy and the bellows 'cloth' is strong enough. Try a little weight and see how it works. It's been a long time since I used a bellows but I don't remember waiting for the bottom board to go down. Send us a picture of your bellows if you can.

Good luck

I guess the answer is.... it depends. So far the bellows inside my wheeled U.S. Civil War era Traveling Forge works fine without a weight but the reproduction Civil War era semi-portable Naval forge needs a weight hanging from the bellows hook to work properly. A weight around 10 or so pounds is not likely to tear the bellows cover, and can increase the air flow from a medium to small bellows by decreasing the time it takes for the bottom chamber to fill with air. Weights on the top and bottom bellows boards allow a smith to adjust the air flow and movement of the boards to fit their needs. Other things that can be adjusted on a bellows include the range of motion of the bellows pole, and how far each chamber opens, and the size of the valves, and the speed of the valve action.