Editing Forge (section)

{{Short description|Hearth used for heating metals, or workplace containing such a hearth}}
{{other uses}}
{{more citations needed|date=August 2012}}
[[File:0 typical smithy in finland.JPG|thumb|The inside of a typical smithy in [[Finland]]]]
[[File:Muzeum Bierkowice-kuznia 1726.JPG|thumb|Wooden smithy built in 1726 in Opole, Upper Silesia, Poland]]
[[File:Lotyšské etnografické muzeum v přírodě (17).jpg|thumb|A smithy built around 1880 in [[Mērsrags]], [[Courland]], [[Latvia]] currently located at [[The Ethnographic Open-Air Museum of Latvia]]]]

A '''forge''' is a type of [[hearth]] used for heating [[metal]]s, or the workplace ('''smithy''') where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the [[Smith (metalwork)|smith]] to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by [[forging]], or to the point at which [[work hardening]] no longer occurs. The metal (known as the "workpiece") is transported to and from the forge using [[tongs]], which are also used to hold the workpiece on the smithy's [[anvil]] while the smith works it with a hammer. Sometimes, such as when hardening steel or cooling the work so that it may be handled with bare hands, the workpiece is transported to the [[#Slack tub|slack tub]], which rapidly cools the workpiece in a large [[body of water]]. However, depending on the metal type, it may require an oil quench or a salt brine instead; many metals require more than plain water hardening. The slack tub also provides water to control the fire in the forge.