If you follow my youtube channel you know I do a lot of forging with Hardwood Lump Charcoal. I have been using it for a long time. This is mostly because coal was problematic. It wasn't easily available in small quantities. But....

But.... over the past couple of years coal has experience a bit of a renaissance for a couple of reasons. First off coal has made it's way onto the internet. You can buy quantities as small as five pounds and have it shipped very economically in USPS boxes. Those boxes have no weight limit so these companies stuff the box full of coal and ship it!

Secondly, the renaissance in coal is also due to video games! Yes, I said it. Video games! Many many games have forging, blacksmithing and of course lots of swords, shields and armor. And this all has generated a renewed interest in the art of blacksmithing. Many more people are doing it. And this means that they need coal!

So, after all of that I just wanted to let you know that you actually have easy options when it comes to fuel for your forging!!

Your Four Options:

1. Gas or propane

2. Hardwood Lump Charcoal

3. Bituminous Coal

4. Anthracite Coal

And in this article and video I will go over two of these options: Hardwood Lump Charcoal and Bituminous coal.

I buy my coal from a company called coalforsaleonline.com. I love that name. It always makes me chuckle. And well, it says exactly what it is! I have bought it directly from their website using paypal. And now they are also selling their coal through amazon.com which is really convenient if you have an amazon account.

Here is a 25 pound box of bituminous:

Blacksmithing coal, 25lb box with free shipping

(You can also get Anthracite Coal on amazon, different supplier, Anthracite Nut Coal 25lbs )

Want to start out with a little less coal? They also have it in 16 pound boxes:

16 pound box of bituminous coal for forging

To see these two fuels in action you can watch my video here. And I have more information for you below the video.

I also have a tutorial on how to make your own lump charcoal from wood. Check that tutorial out right here: How to make hardwood lump charcoal for forging