jmeineke

Did you pre-heat? Also, how did you cut your hardy hole into the plate you welded on? I'm getting ready to repair a small one (pics in this thread) but haven't decided on how just yet.

I picked up this 90 lb anvil for $20 a while back and want to get some opinions on how I plan on repairing it. I was thinking about building up the missing section of the face with 7018 and then putting a hardface on it using this: http://www.amazon.co...e/dp/B000RGN1TY. I think I can keep the cost down quite a bit with this approach, but don't want to waste my time if it's not going to work. A few things to keep in mind: 1) I plan on using this for light work 2) I'm not concerned about messing it up and consider it a learning experience. Worst case, I'm out some money in electrodes and still have a hardy hole and a horn to work with. 3) I don't want to spend a lot of money on expensive HF rods. I've read Robb Gunther's Anvil Restoration procedure where he recommends Stoody rod, but the stuff isn't cheap and I've read elsewhere that I'd be better off putting the money towards a different anvil. What do you think? Is 7018 a good (or at least acceptable) base material to put a hardface on? The mfgr description of the HF rod linked above states, "Used to effectively wearface a part to extend its life. Provides medium hardness and impact resistance. Gives abrasive wear resistance. Deposits are not machineable or forgeable. Up to Rc53."

What type of welder did you use to weld up the edges and with what kind of rod / wire?

I was hoping someone might be able to help me ID this anvil. I don't have much info on it yet, but it looks like it's in decent shape and is on a fairly heavy stand. Any ideas on it's make and any guesses on the weight? I'm trying to find out more information on it, but this is all I have right now. Also, what would a fair price be for a broken anvil in the second picture? It still has a decent surface to do some hammering on. Would 20 cents a pound be about right for something like that? I appreciate the help. I hope to find out more details on the first one in a few days. Thanks.

Praying for your wife, and for you. God bless.

Prayers going up!

That's too bad... Would have liked to go take a look - sounds like it's long gone.

You can also order brand new spikes from McMaster-Carr - http://www.mcmaster.com/#97897a818/=5cywr7. I sent them an email a while back enquiring about carbon content and they responded that they did not have that information. The ones I ordered are stamped "HC" on the head which I presume means 'high carbon.' I know that's relative to RR Spikes and not what one would generally consider to be high carbon steel (hardenable, heat-treatale), but for the price, and for not having to worry about whether or not you are breaking the law, I don't think you can go wrong.

Hey Thomas - Do you by any chance know where that factory was located? Is there anything left of it? I'd like to check it out sometime. If there's anything left It might be cool to get some pictures.

Mine actually had two layers - a bright yellow thick top coat and a darker orange underneath that was much harder to get off. I know it's probably pretty rare to get one with two layers, but just be aware that under that new coat there could be some old stuff too.

I respect your knowledge, Thomas, I really do; but I still can't agree totally with what you're saying. If you want to treat the whole pile of rags as hazardous waste, then so be it - either way you're going to end up with waste, whether it's ground off, brushed off or chemically removed. I know I personally don't want to be breathing lead dust, I don't want my kids around it, and if there's a product out there that will keep that from happening, and it's generally regarded as safe to use when you follow the directions on the label, then I say go for it. I do agree with you, however, that it's not correct to say that because it's sold in a store then it must be safe; thanks for pointing that out. I know first hand what smoking does to your body as I just had to have a stent put in one of my arteries due to it being 85% blocked. I smoked for 25 years and agree it's nothing but poison. I'm sorry to hear you lost your mother-in-law and your grandfather to it. I lost my father-in-law to smoking induced cancer too, so I know what you're talking about. Having said that, though, we also need to keep things in perspective - Many, many things are carcinogenic, and almost everything in large quantities (including drinking too much water) can kill you. You can't drive down the road without breathing carcinogens, and you can't grill a steak over a flame without producing benzopyrenes which, incidentally, are one of the same carcinogens that can cause lung cancer in smokers. Heck, the gas fumes you breathe when you fill up your tank contain carcinogens (benzene and ethylene dibromide). I would argue that the occasional use of paint remover is one of those things that one should not worry about any more than inhaling fumes while filling up their gas tank or eating a flame grilled steak. The stuff I used is along those same lines - it even states that it is for occasional use only and to use in a well ventilated area. It's called "Low Odor Aircraft Remover" (it has an evaporation retardant). Maybe the stuff you're talking about / familiar with isn't something you'd want to come close to without a bio-hazard suit - I don't know... Having said that, I'll modify my suggestion to this: IMHO, I don't see anything at all wrong with using this particular product. If you use the same stuff I use, follow the instructions. If you're concerned about the waste, do as Thomas suggests and take it to a hazardous waste collection site.

Grant - Where do you sell your stuff? Do you have a website? You on eBay? I saw on another thread that you make touchmarks - I'd be curious to know how much that costs (plus I want to see what else you sell).

Sorry, but I would have to disagree. Lead paint is far more dangerous than paint stripper, especially if there are children who could come into contact with the dust; who knows how long ago that thing was painted? Unless you are certain that the owner himself painted it and what he painted it with, then I would assume that it's lead-based until proven otherwise. Lead based paint was used up until the 70's, and these anvils have been around a lot longer than that. Lead-based paint is no longer on the market for a reason - paint stripper is still being sold. As I said, follow the instructions on the can and you will be fine. Although lead improves paint performance, it is a dangerous substance. It is especially damaging to children under age six whose bodies are still developing. Lead causes nervous system damage, hearing loss, stunted growth, ADD, ADHD and delayed development. It can cause kidney damage and affects every organ system of the body. It also is dangerous to adults, and can cause reproductive problems for both men and women. One myth related to lead-based paint is that the most common cause of poisoning was eating leaded paint chips. In fact, the most common pathway of childhood lead exposure is through ingestion of lead dust through normal hand-to-mouth contact during which children swallow lead dust dislodged from deteriorated paint or leaded dust generated during remodeling or painting. Lead dust from remodeling or deteriorated paint lands on the floor near where children play and can ingest it. http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Lead_paint

I recently did a 309 lb Arm & Hammer that was painted. I used a product called "Aircraft Paint Remover" that I purchased from the local Autozone. The reason I didn't wire wheel it was because of the paint dust that you'll get on everything in your shop - not to mention you don't know if there's lead in the paint (not something you want to be breathing). Not too long ago I removed the paint from an air compressor tank with a wire wheel and a propane torch and it was quite a mess - If I had it to do over again, I would definitely use the paint stripper. The stripper is messy too and it has it's drawbacks (have plenty of paper towels on hand and a scraper and some oil to coat the anvil with when you're done - I like to use Marvel Mystery Oil, also available at auto stores, wally-world, etc.), but for me it was worth not having to worry about potentially breathing lead and having to clean off a coat of paint dust on everything in my small shop. If you decide to go the paint stripper route, just follow the instructions on the can and you'll be fine. Don't get it on your skin - it burns like crazy (don't ask me how I know this ). Wear eye protection. If you decide to wire-wheel it, I would personally do it outside and maybe even wear a respirator. Good luck!

Understood. Thanks!

Cool - I appreciate it!

I saw a list a while back about where to find certain types of metal (like if you need 5160 get some leaf springs, 1095 get some ???) but for the life of me I can't track it down now. Can someone point me in the right direction?

I've had pretty good results using Marvel Mystery Oil. I've wire brushed all my anvils (and my post vise and blower) to take the surface rust off and then put on a light coat on them and haven't had to do anything else to them so far.

Not yet - I'm still working my way through three blacksmith books right now (The Complete Modern Blacksmith, The Backyard Blacksmith and one other I can't recall at the moment). I've been reading what I can about knives online for now (primarily here on IFI).

Thanks for the advice. All I have right now is some 1020 and the A2. I'll look into getting some 1084 or 5160 as you suggested (I'll also be playing around with some RR spikes that I bought from McMaster-Carr). I agree that A2 is not for a beginner like myself - I was just trying to understand the properties of this steel a little better for the day I decide to give it a go. I have been reading about annealing, hardening, tempering, normalizing, etc., and think I have a pretty good basic understanding of it all. However, I just went back and read again the specs for A2 and I see my mistake - For whatever reason I got the hardening / annealing process mixed up. I'll restate my question now that I see hardening sounds pretty straight forward (whenever I do end up trying to make something out of it): Can A2 be annealed in Vermiculite, or does it have to be done in a furnace? Being even more specific, will Vermiculite limit the cooling to the "40 degrees F per hour or less" rate that is called for when annealing A2? Thanks again

I was wondering if anyone has any experience working with A2. I recently acquired a nice sized piece of it from a machine shop. From what I understand, Chris Reeve and Phil Hartsfield both use A2 and it is used in combat knives. Can it be hardened in Vermiculite? I have a good reference for the forging temps, etc., but the cooling rate has me concerned. I have no idea how fast a piece loses it's heat in Vermiculite or in a forge that's been heated and then sealed up (standard propane forge, 2" of Kaowool coated with ITC-100 and fire-bricked on the ends would be all that I am capable of right now). I probably will not attempt to do anything with this piece of steel for a while until I get some experience making knives in general (was planning on starting out on RR spikes). Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks

Merry Christmas to you too, and God bless.

I'm looking for a larger one and came across this one in my search. I'm sure a lot of folks on here don't *need* another anvil but also wouldn't pass one up if the price was right. Problem is I don't know yet what is and isn't a good deal which is why I am asking here first. Still learning. Thanks.

Hey guys - Here's another one. No markings, but it has a face plate and weighs about 150 lbs. The owner wants $225 (firm). Thoughts please? Thanks

If I were to buy it, this would actually be my third anvil (I think I have anvilitis). I just happened upon this one in my quest to find "the big one," but I have a hard time passing up even the smaller ones. I thought I should at least ask about it. :)