Yes melt/smelt/cast is what I mean. Sorry for any confusion, everything I've been reading has referred to the whole process as forging so I thought thats the word for the job. We're actually going to have a go at the 'Oliver' burner, as it doesn't need a blower.
I'm quite surprised if no one does this, melting down scrap strikes me as quite the saving for a home workshop. Being an amateur mechanic I've already earmarked a bunch of dead parts that would have gone to the pikeys scrap run that I can now put to good use.
Gas may become a costing, but we have a semi free supply of patio gas, hopefully be fine for aluminium temps.