the hangman

I'm no expert; but I'd recommend taking an 80 grit sanding flap disk on your angle grinder and LIGHTLY grind a radius on the chipped edges. If you are new to blacksmithing - I'd lightly dress the chips like this and then use the anvil for a year. This light dressing should stop any further chips from breaking out. You can always do further dressing of the edges after you learn how you use your anvil. If you grind too much out - you really cannot put it back - just my 2 cents

I would jump on that Vulcan for $100. You can always sell it if you progress to where you want a better anvil. Any 100 pound anvil starts out at $250 around here - even in much worse shape than your photos show What kind of work are you planning to do ? Do you want something that is portable or do you have a permanent shop for it ? A 100 pound anvil is too small for large work. It will be fine for small stuff though. I have a 73 pound Trenton myself - but I have to carry it up and down a flight of stairs every time I use it. I plan to build a shed next year and I've been looking for a larger anvil to keep in there.

Nemdoug: When you say "Northern Michigan"; do you mean the Upper Penninsula or Upper Lower Michigan ? I am from Green Bay. I have been watching Craigs List and haven't seen a real lot of stuff in the UP - occasionally something will pop up though. A nice looking portable forge not too long ago. There is a good coal supplier here in Green Bay if you need that.

Vincent: Give it a try . . . if you already have it in your basement - what's to loose ? Do you have a forge or are you just thinking about getting into blacksmithing ?

What does "neoprene of plywood" mean ?

I do alot of camping with my family. Two years ago we were at a campground and a woman had set up a demonstration in the outdoor pavilian. She was selling dutch ovens and related camp cookware - like tripods. She had a very well organised demonstration where she was showing an amazing variety of dutch oven and open fire cooking. Stuff like pinapple upside down cake in a dutch oven, baking cookies in a foil lined cardboard box, bread sticks baked on twigs, etc. After the demo - she took orders for the equipment. The cast iron cookware is too heavy for her to bring it along. She had brochurs and you could contact her at home later if you didnt want to order right away. I don't know if she was married / if she actually made money or just covered her vacation expenses or whatever ? I would think you could sell some stuff in campgrounds and the like . . . and maybe make anough to cover your camping expenses - but not enough to live on. Maybe if you were retired and just wanted to suppliment your income . . . Just my thoughts

I paid $260 - maybe a little high in some areas of the country - but I've been looking for a year now and this is about the best looking anvil that I have seen. There aren't very many for sale around here. Anyway - it is mine now. I started dressing the edges - most of the chips are ground out already with a 1/8" radius. Oh ya - I also got a tree stump base and a cut off hardie with the anvil. Wow - thanks for the information. This is a great forum with very helpfull people Jeff

After 12 months of suffering with a lousy Harbor Freight / Chinese cast iron anvil – I finally bought a real anvil. The seller had no information about it other than it was about 70 pounds. I needed something light that I can carry up and down the stairs every time I use it. There are no apparent manufacturer’s markings on the sides. There are some numbers stamped into the front foot – under the horn: “73” I assume that is the weight of the anvil The other numbers appear to be “A 156 196 “ I know I don’t have much information other than the photos. Can anyone make any guesses on the manufacturer or approximate date of manufacture? I appreciate any info

I recommend a regular hairdryer also. I have been running my brake drum forge for a year now on a $10 hair dryer from Wal-Mart. I use coal if that makes any difference though. I also added a simple rheostat that was meant for use on a ceiling fan. It works very well and very quiet at low speeds. Jeff

R.Harrell: I have one of those HF 1"x30" belt sanders also. One of my other hobbies is building and flying remote-controlled airplanes and helicopters. That little sander is great for small work. I burned up my first one after a couple years and my second one is starting to go . . . I would like to find a similar unit - but made a little better Jeff

Thanks guys: I assumed it would be OK to keep it for years. I just wanted to check with you guys. It would be pretty hard to dispose of 2000 pounds uf useless stuff. Thanks Jeff

This may just be the dumbest question ever asked . . . "How long does coal keep ?" A little background: I've been learning a little blacksmithing for about a year now. I've found a local supplier that sells what seems to be good blacksmithing coal for $100 a ton. Smaller quantities are available at a higher price. The dealer is a large volume dealer and they normally sell by the semi-load. It is a big industrial facility and there are semi's and cranes and payloaders - back and forth. I have to drive way in the middle of all that. I've been lucky that they let me come in and fill my 5 gallon pails of coal for $3.50 each - which I still consider a good price. I am worried that as this hobby develops that I may loose my coal source - either they stop carrying this type coal or for safety reasons they discontinue letting me inside with my little pails. If I were to buy a larger quantity - is there any issue with storing it for a few years ? Maybe up to ten years. I realize that coal is a million years old - but does exposure to air or humidity and anything affect it? I would be storing it in covered garbage cans or something - not outside. I told you it was a dumb question - but I don't want a ton of "bad coal" either. Thanks

As a new person the I Forge Iron website; I spent a few days reading alot of the old threads. One thing I saw again and again was some new person asking a question and getting several helpful answers in return. Then the new new would come back and argue against the replies. I started to see myself doing that a little - So I bit the bullet and took your advice. I built the table this weekend using durarock board. I still coated it with furnace cement (I already bought it) to give it a nice smooth finish. The durarock was alot easier to cut than the firebricks (it is alot thinner) and I think it is going to turn out pretty nice. I appreciate all the input Thanks Jeff

Well, I think that means another trip to Home Depot ... Thanks guys Jeff

Bryan: I already have the black iron pipe. 2" black pipe "T" hooked up to a hair dryer on a speed control rheostat and an ash dump. I've been using it for about two months now - the forge itself works very well - I just want a table around the brake drum to set down my tools and keep a little extra coal ready and forming coke at the edge. How hard is that durarock board to cut in a circle ? Acutally I need to cut an inside circle . . . much harder than an outside circle. Jeff