Mainely,Bob

Sorry,thought I was talking to the OTHER professor Powers. He`s such a kidder! (please take note of the big grinning smiley face.I`d make it bigger but I`m digitally challenged) :P

To each their own Tommy.I know plenty of old dogs capable of mastering new tricks. When the alternatives seem to run toward hauling badly damaged anvils to the scrap yard(it happens frequently up here)then I encourage everybody who has the gumption to pick one up to try their hand at it.It`s not as though you`re gonna ruin it any further than it already is now are ya? If you do then just bring it by and I`ll gouge the mistake off while you count how many times the electric meter goes round so I`ll know what to charge ya. Whatever keeps the wolf and the scrap man away from the door. :D

Talk to the boys at whatever yard is doing the overhaul/refit work on your vessels.We used to handle everything from 41 ft patrol boats to 110 ft drug interdiction cutters and had access to all sorts of things ranging from tug boat prop shaft pieces to chunks of thick plate.This is in a secondary boatyard in a tourist area (Boothbay Harbor,Maine) so the bigger yards would mean bigger scores I`m sure.Making friends with the guys in the "plate shop"(ship fitters) or the "outside machine shop"(handles power train,steering,winches,gun mounts,etc) would be a good place to start. There`s a recent thread on fabbed anvils with pics of something that could easily be made by welding a piece of fork lift tine to a tapered section of prop shaft.This would be easier to do than what you propose and give you an anvil that will have a horn and accept tools like a hardy and swages too. They must work fairly well because the people who are using them ask to buy them and the OP keeps having to make more. Do a search on "the iron dwarf" as he`s the one making these.

I used to hate machining stainless.You just knew during the clean up you would be cut on your hands in at least one place.Those long chips just get wrapped around everything and are razor sharp. :(

Now that`s what I`m talkin` about! Taking the skills learned by stepping off into something and learning as you go then turning around and further putting those new skills to use to repair iron for others,hopefully at a small profit you can put to other uses. Doesn`t get much better than that.Thanks for sharing the experience,and pics,with us. All you folks whining about not being able to find a decent anvil,you know where to go now. Don`t live close enough to ship?You now have a way to contact yet another someone who has done this repeatedly and has the pics to prove it.Drag that rusty,tortured boat anchor home and get to work!

I get all my 316 from boatyard scrap.Where is a good place to get the 304 Arftist? Is that what is coming out of the food mfg plants?I can go to Portland and get some there if it is.

Didn`t know you were into belly dancing Beth.You are truly a woman of many talents who is obviously capable of multi-tasking. Any links to videos of you forging while wearing one of those costumes and that strange yet exciting music playing on the shop stereo? I`m sure the leather apron,safety glasses and heavy footgear sort of spoils the effect and hinders movement somewhat.Still like to see it though. :D

I think you need to wait till you are assigned to your new post,look around and then get to know a few motor sgts. The military "can points" and corners of motor pools are some of the best places in the world to find high quality scrap for the low price of a bag of doughnuts, a 12 pack of brew,or a 1/4 pounder with cheese and a coke. I`d spend 10 bucks max as a donation to the motor sgt`s diet(don`t bother with officers,they`ll just tie you up in red tape and requisition forms)and be amazed at the results. :^)

It`s been said many times before,"Tools don`t make the blacksmith,the blacksmith makes the tools". All the opinions,conjecture and small things we bat around here shouldn`t keep anyone from doing what they are comfortable with and I sincerely hope it never does. Whenever I ask myself a question like this(and I talk to myself a lot :^) I don`t immediately run and ask eveybody else what they do,I first consider what I want to do.If that means grabbing a hunk of clay and working the problem out by actually standing at the anvil and hitting that clay with pieces of roughly shaped wood hot glued together then I consider the time well spent as I always learn something about either my approach to the work,my body or my tools. Once I can beat that clay with something that moves it effectively and is comfortable for my natural stance/ergonomics then I know what I need to make.It really doesn`t matter what it looks like as long as it WORKS. Most of the best tools many of us have in our shops are things that can`t be bought out of catalogs and those that can became part of those pages because they started as the efforts of one guy who was fed up with adapting to his tools so he made the tools fit him instead.Once his friends and neighbors stopped pointing and laughing, tried them and found them superior to what they were using they suddenly weren`t so funny anymore. The best shooters on the planet don`t buy weapons off the shelf and then throw themselves down on the ground in exactly the same position as the person on either side of them.They fit the weapon to their body,natural shooting position and the work at hand.Once they have everything fitted to them(the first step)they line themselves up in the "zone",get to work and let the competition try to keep up. Do you want to be a shooter or just another guy who`s qualified to carry a gun?

I`ve had luck with 316 stainless.It`s what most deck hardware/fittings for boats is made from and will resist salt air corrosion if treated properly as Phil suggests. I`ve also had some luck with prop shafts made from an alloy called Aquamet. The old wood boats used bronze hardware to good effect with oak frames so that may be an alternate approach if you can afford it.

There are two ways to approach this.The first way is to locate the man in charge of maintaining that area,I`m assuming he would be a local guy and interested in making this area as safe and usable for people like families with children.He`ll be glad to see it all go away so he can get on with improving and landscaping the area. The second approach is to contact the state for permission to take a few pieces and get wrapped up in miles of red tape and end up with nothing but a pile of rust and being forced into taking responsibility for clean up of a toxic waste site after several decades of debate by rotating blowhards at the state`s capital. I recommend the first approach. Don`t even think about the third approach,that`s state property you`re eyeballin` there bub!

Excellent job! The beauty of something like this is that not only does it bring an old tool headed toward the scrap yard back to a useful life but it also teaches the skills needed to save and rebuild tools for others.With a finite supply of these type of things out there I`m surprised that more people aren`t taking advantage of Rob`s excellent instructions.Those skills are just a valuable as the ability to effectively beat hot iron IMO.

Glad to hear people are buying them. I`d stay in touch with buyers and get their feedback after they used them for a while to help improve the design.

I`d buy 2.That way you can have one for both the front and back gardens. I hear the squirrels go nuts over them. That is not an anvil,that is an overweight doorstop.

Now that`s how you can tell a true master blacksmith. When your raisin bread it evenly toasted on both sides,all raisins intact and the toe sticking out the end of your sock comes away unburned then you know you are in the presence of an item of work made by a master of the craft.A beauty to the eye and a delight to the toe as well as the palate. Priceless.

When it comes to taking a grinder to something that I want to take as little off as possible,like an avil or other tool face,I am in the hit it with the smallest stick possible camp. I start with 80 grit for most things and then see how that goes.The stuff you`re grinding will tell you quickly if you need to step up or down in a hurry.The problem with saying start with XXX grit is if you start with too coarse then you have to take the scratches from the too coarse abrasive out and that will cost you time and material and abrasives. Not having anything but a pic to go by makes it a tough call but when in doubt I start with 80 and then hit the really bad spots(like the edges) with something like a hard wheel if needed and then go back to an 80 to blend and I like to finish with a 120 but only cause I like smooth and shiny and have 3 boxes of the 120 left from previous jobs. As others have mentioned,flap wheels are basically a blending tool and belt sanders will leave a flatter surface if that`s what you`re after.They both use the same abrasives the belt just has more contact surface and a flat backing. One caution,buy the GOOD brand(like Norton,3M,or some other brand name from the US or Europe) flap wheels in either Si Carbide or one of the better high grade abrasives.You`ll only prolong the agony and frustration and spend more time changing burnt up wheels if you go the cheap Chinese route here.Trust me on this,I used pretty much everything when I was making stainless deck hardware for yachts and that cheap garbage really is a time waster here,especially for edges or hardened steel. I think maddog has 20/20 (pun intended)vision on this. I`d sell it and buy some thick scrap plate,set it on edge and make a metal moving machine like Brian B was come up with.You already have a fine bit of kit with that block and bick on the stump for demos. Life is too short to spend grinding ASOs.Save the flap wheels for that fabbed anvil. :)

Don`t know about anyone else but I learned something from your post there Stormcrow.Thanks for posting that info. Now I just have to get someone who has built a hammer with a beam like this that is air powered rather than mechanical to see if an air cylinder makes any difference. Anyone have any experience with this application?

Now that`s the kind of anvil you don`t hate to see the decorators tote off. Too bad that if it sells at that price it may cause others to raise the price of their serviceable anvils. :(

Let`s see the bottom of it Sam.That`s one of the easiest way to tell if the body is wrought,or cast iron. The next step would be to do a spark test to tell you if there was a difference between the base and the face.If they`re both the same then unless this is a solid steel anvil there`s really not much you can do except sell it and put the money towards an anvil that fits your needs. Many have tried to morph an ASO into an anvil but that skates very close to alchemy and those few that came close to success had access to tools and skills beyond what you have available sounds like. Sorry to be the bearer of sad tidings but...

Ok,two down one to go. How about the shackle/linkage question? BTW-as far as shock absorbing connections/alignment problems;why not just use rubber/urethane bushings like the ones in the ends of most automotive leaf springs? Is a flexible beam really that much of an advantage here?

Bad news Tim,my Mom says I can`t hang out with you anymore. Something about being a bad influence and cutting the bottoms out of your pockets. :rolleyes:

Not being a religious fellow Christmas doesn't have the same meaning to me as others. My Mother also passed away on Christmas morning in 2003. As it is, I learned that it isn't always a good idea to wait to tell others how I feel about them, because sometimes later doesn't happen. Now when I see something that I think a friend will like, I just get, or make it, and give it to them. No reason to wait till a birthday, or other holiday. I had fun, and I make new friends at these events. This was my second year. For some it was their fifth, or more. Last year we had around 45-50 show up for both Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Funny thing is that Howie is Jewish,but has done this for several years for his friends. This is his way of giving back to us. Good friends, and good food. What else do you need?

Here are some questions I have about this design. While I can see where it would be useful to have the ability to adjust the attachment point of the cylinder to the leaf spring in order to dial in the hammer for both max performance and space between the dies,wouldn`t you want the cylinder to be as near vertical as possible for best action and performance? I understand that there needs to be some sort of linkage on one end of the spring(like the shackle that connects one end of a leaf spring to the frame on your car) to allow the transition of movement from an arc to straight line.Wouldn`t that linkage be better set above the ram rather than the column?The way it is in the drawing the leaf spring becomes part of an assembly who`s inertia will be contributing to throwing the ram front to back.I would think there would be less wear and tear if the spring were solidly mounted to the column and the linkage placed over the ram.Set up this way you prevent the leaf spring from moving front to back with the reciprocating assembly.Smaller and lighter assembly in motion(front to back)= less wear in that direction and less power wasted overcoming inertia. My next question may be common sense to some of you but it`s baffling me.If an air cylinder functions like a spring in these applications where the air in the cylinder compresses and provides the same kind of "whip" action that a spring would then why does the cylinder need to be attached to a leaf spring?Are the actions of the cylinder and the leaf spring that different that you need to have both?What this looks like to me is an air powered guided helve hammer with a flexible rather than a rigid beam.Doesn`t the air cylinder take the place of the rubber cushions or springs we see attached to the beams on guided helves?If so I`m not seeing the need for the leaf spring.What am I missing? Arftist brings up a good point.A solid piece of steel will add both hitting power and resistance to flex as long as it is a compact mass of optimum size and shape.Once you reach your target weight then I would think that the portion of the ram/tup that is contained within the guides could be hollow(as long as it had thick enough walls) as the guides will both support it and contain any flexing.Maybe half and half wouldn`t be such a bad idea in some cases.More labor intensive but if you are limited in material and have the time... Any feedback will be greatly appreciated,as always.

Gotta agree with you there.Look in any of the "galleries of fine furniture" and you`ll see they are rather reasonable.I think we may be a bit jaded by the fact we can pick up industrial bits and pieces and then slap nice wood tops on them ourselves for next to nothing. Now those other 2 sites who charge in the thousands of dollars for what I cart home from the dump(I cart it home for free) are another story.I have a few items in my shop that are exactly the same as what they are wanting mega-bucks for.Some pieces look like they haven`t even gone to the trouble to blow the dust off. I guess their customers are willing to pay the premium prices for the ability to say "I bought it in Manhattan and had it delivered".The folks who run those shops must LOVE e-bay! More than one of the "summer people" who has a shop up here stocks it by going to yard sales,farm sales and auctions.She totes the stuff down to the "Harbor" and the tourists buy it for astronomical prices.Many times they drive right by the perpetual yard sales where the shop got it for pennies.Locals have to fight these shop owners off at the dump too. After the tourist season ends they load whatever doesn`t sell in a rented box truck and hire one of us to deliver it to their "other gallery" in the Hamptons,Cape Cod,NYC etc where they can sell it during the Xmas season. The locals all know if you want something good at a decent price better get it before Labor Day when the folks "from away" arrive to buy everything up. Lately you see folks with laptops and cameras at the better auction previews clicking away for folks in Boston,NYC and points south to decide if they want to enter an on-line bidding war.Some retired folks who moved up here to live year round are making some good money on commission doing the " auction agent" thing. "The times they are a changin`".

When we used to cap oil wells we had to recover as much of the pipe as possible before welding a cap on the casing.The pipe had been concreted into the well so we had to find the free point and blast it.I had demolition experience in the Army so I was the one who packed the can with jelled nitro and sawdust. I had a new(and not too bright)hand come over and watch.I told him not to touch the nitro(it`ll give you a wicked headache if you aren`t wearing gloves as it can be absorbed thru the skin) but he just couldn`t keep from handling it anyway.I finally took it from him and laid it back in the box.He asked"What would a stick of that do if you hit it with a hammer".I told him I had never taken the time to find out. A couple of minutes later one of my buddies tapped me on the shoulder and said"You`ll want to see this" and pointed to the floor of the rig.I could see the newbie up there with a hammer in his hand.Before I could holler at him Chico told me "it`s OK,he`s just got a bit of nitro about the size of your fingernail he wants to hit,says they do it all the time down in Mexico". He had it on the top of the jacks(about anvil high) and hit it with a four pound drilling hammer.The hammer rebounded with enough force to knock him out for a while.I saw him 3 weeks later and he looked like a cross between a raccoon and a unicorn. There`s something about explosives that just draws stupid people like a moth to a flame. :rolleyes: