Smelt report, July 2022:
The fire was lit and tools prepared at 6:40 A.M. and the last swing of the hammer was around 11:30 A.M. resulting in a almost 5 hour operation. I started with around 60 pounds of ore, 8 pounds of bloom fluff, and 5 pounds of slag. Everything was charged at a 1:1 ratio of 1 pound. 5-1 one pound charges of slag were charged at the end of the preheat to begin the formation of a slag bath.
Recovery:
This smelt yield a 10 pound poorly compacted bloom. Unfortunately with the struggles of trying to get the bloom broken free I lost precious time to consolidate the bloom. 40 pounds of slag was recovered, and 6-7 pounds of bloom fluff and iron bits.
Also…..
I don’t often post pictures of the building and preparation of the furnace and raw materials, so here’s a short photo gallery of that.
Digging the clay 
Adding fiber and sand 
All mixed up 
Making charcoal 
Roasting ore 
Ore after roasting 
Crushing roasted ore 
The beginning of the furnace 
The finished furnace with door and tuyere installed
Perhaps next smelt I’ll post a step by step manual with pictures describing raw material selection and preparation, furnace construction, furnace operation, and working the iron bloom.
I’m not an expert nor will I ever be, but perhaps my bit of knowledge that I’ve gained through trial-and-error can help my fellow smiths who wish to journey down the ancient road of iron smelting.