Glenn

No one has suggested that you just get a good high carbon metal and make a rail road spike from that. Being a known metal, you will also know how to harden it and make a decently harden rail spike. (grin)

The stand, no matter how nice, may not be at he correct height for you and the way you work. If that is the case it will have to be modified. Ask the owner is he will reduce the price by $200 if you only take the anvil and not the stand. That will reduce the cost of the anvil to $4.50 per pound. Jymm Hoffman sells a 110 pound double horn anvil made in the U.S.A., Cast entirely of H-13 tool steel (hot working impact steel) Heat treated to Rockwell C 50 – 55 for $845 NEW. That is only $145 between the anvil offered and a NEW anvil from Jymm. The difference in price over the lifetime of the anvil is worth considering.

What can I make for Christmas 2018 ? Time is getting close and we need ideas.

What can I make for Thanksgiving 2018 ? time is getting close and we need ideas.

What can I make for Halloween 2018 ? time is getting close and we need ideas.

Anvil height Anvil height, how can you tell if it is the right height For the forge reverse engineer the height. Locate the sweet spot in the fire, about 1/2 to 2/3 of the way up the fire ball and make the table top around the fire pot at that level. That way you can lay stock flat on the table and it is automatically at the correct height for the fire. Use what you have and add a pallet or platform to stand on and try out different heights until you find what is a comfortable hand hold height for you. Try it for a while before you adjust the forge permanently to that height. Disconnect the fan from the air pipe to the forge. Leave an air gap between the two of about 3 inches or so. Aim the blower more directly to the air pipe for more air, and less directly for less air. This becomes an infinite air adjustment and you can choose what works for that fire.

You can not beat square inches and custom processing. Unless you add custom printing. (grin)

The pungent smell of skunk spray: A country or rural (not city) fragrance or aroma, best appreciated in small quantities and from a distance. A skunks way of using chemical warfare to explain respect to those on the receiving end.

There has been a good discussion on the site about gas forge burners, getting them to work properly etc. But what about open air burners, those used just for heat and without an enclosure? Think of a burner attached to a wall and standing out a bit where you can put sheet metal under it to heat it up for bending, hammering, etc. think making armour. Or maybe a hand held version to keep heat on pieces of iron that are being bent, or large scrolls. An open burner could be mobile and used to heat the bolts to help loosen them on machinery. What are the requirements of an open air burner, and how are they constructed so they work well?

What about farrier schools?

Upsetting blocks need to be located where they can be used. Top of the anvil, vise, bottom of the anvil, floor etc. I have seen Bruce Wilcock use the anvil portion of his power hammer to horizontally upset large stock supported by a chain hoist. Then there are the mechanical and hydraulic upsetters that are more for production work.

That is because you live north of Troy Ohio. For those that live south of Troy Ohio, it is all down hill. (grin) The main concern is not gas mileage but with all that weight behind me, will the brakes work when I need them?

Gergely: May I suggest that you mount the vise to the table in such a way that it is easily removed when you want to use the entire table top as a flat surface. One way is to weld 4 pieces of angle iron to a flat piece of plate, each piece of angle iron going into a hole on the table. Then bolt the vise to the plate using studs welded to the plate for the holes in the vise attachment hardware. To use, put the vise and plate onto and into the holes on the table. It can then be lifted and removed when you want a full flat table surface. Find a pipe diameter that will just fit into the holes. Cut it a bit longer than the thickness of the table and screw or weld a coupling to the pipe so it does not fall through the hole.These will be the dogs for the table. Make several. If you need taller dogs, then screw another section of pipe into the coupling. Next project is to make a hold fast for the table. The table tools will become as handy as hardie tools.

First off, where are you located. And what are you going to be forging? It makes a difference in the choice of forge you use. There is no one best forge. There is the forge you have and the one you will build when your project is larger than the forge. A couple of years experience on a brake drum forge you have become accustom to that style forge, large and open. A gas forge is limited in use to what fits through the door and what fits inside the forge. Before you invest you money, build a box the same size as the interior of the forge you are looking at, or 9” long x 4” wide x 4 1/2” tall, and place it over your brake drum forge. You will get a feel for the size of the propane forge.

Paint it with clear paint to protect the existing patina.