philip in china

Nice stand. So the brace across the centre takes the block when it is standing on edge? My block is only a baby at about 60 pounds. That "home made" block is interesting. Yes those edges wouldn't stand heavy work! What is it cast in? Iron, steel?

Thank you for that. With alterations that would be an excellent basis for any Anyang base I would imagine. Certainly as a cutting list and instructions for the 25Kg it is superb. Somebody had some details on the perfect way to isolate the slab on which the hammer stands from the rest of the floor. Does any body remember where that all is? I do wonder if somebody should amass all the information on Anyangs in one place- a book or a DVD or something. There is a lot of information out there and the hammers are becoming more common every month almost throughout the world.

Thanks, Sam. My dog weighs more than my swage block. He hides under the bench when he wants a nap which is most of the time. I know smiths seem to be divided into those who wouldn't be without a swage block and those who never feel the need for one. Interestingly many very experienced smiths never use them- I suppose they know other ways of getting the shapes. I like mine and use it quite a bit although it is only an artists one with no through holes. (I use a hardy hole to hold my stakes). I think for what we are doing I will leave it at bench height but make a frame to hold it. I notice somebody- probably a student has put a few dings in it which isn't easy as it is made from alloy steel!

Mine is, unsurprisingly, a Star of David (Magen Dofid) inside an anvil. Sean, my friend here, is a Baptist minister. His is his initials STW inside a fish symbol. Where do you get yours made? We got both of ours from bluebird tools. They seem to do a decent job at a reasonable price.

Have you looked in the Vaughans on line catalogue? They have quite a variety there. www.anvils.co.uk

Do I qualify? I am British although I haven't lived there for years.

I tried to start this some time back but I think the moderator chopped it when a swimsuit manufacturer joined in the forum. (Yes that actually happened). What are the relative pros and cons of one piece and 2 piece hammers? As a very amateur amateur should I even worry about such things?

Somebody (John N I think) posted a definitive set of plans to make an ideal base for a hammer. At the new place we will soon be pouring the base for my new shop so I would like to put as much of those plans into the base as possible. The only trouble is I can't now find the posting! Can anybody help please?

It depends on what you want and your budget! I have 5 main anvils but find that I use two of them more than the others- more to with where they are in the shop rather than how good they are- they are all top class anvils! One is a 280 pound Vaughans (note the spelling) from UK. Very good, very expensive. See www.anvils.co.uk for details. Vaughans do a whole range of single and double bick anvils in sizes upto 560 pounds. Another is the Rhino anvil from Steve at www.incandescent-iron.com That is made in China but do not be put off by that! It is an alloy steel anvil and is well designed. Plenty of anvils, and other tools, are made here including some famous "American" brands! The Rhino would be kinder on your pocket. They are in 3 different sizes, roughly a 140, 240 and 340 pounds although that is not exact- you need to see their website to get exact dimensions. I have 1 of each. On the subject of recently designed anvils don't overlook the Hofi. I have spoken to people who have used them and have found them to be very good. I think there is only 1 size at about 280 pounds but that is absolutely ideal for almost anything you are ever likely to want to do. It has a shelf and I believe that the feet double as upsetting blocks. That means that weight isn't wasted in a separate upsetting block as on some anvils. Also they have a number of pritchel holes.

What height does anybody use for their swage block? I am experimenting at different heights before I finally make my stand and would value any input from the experienced members.

If you want tool steel try www.incandescent-iron.com His prices are fairly keen.

I made a new piece for my stove yesterday. I was very pleased how it came out and how quickly I was able to complete it. The stove lid is a circle of 1/4" plate with a hole in the centre to use as a lifting point. Under the hole was a piece of pipe with a plate welded on the bottom. This sealed the hole so as to prevent smoke getting out. At the weekend the pipe snapped off so I had to replace it. The problem was that a similar piece would have the same problem- it stuck down at 90 degrees and so was a stop to me putting in logs through the door at the front. Having thought the matter over I got a circle of 3/8" platemaybe 5" across and heated it with the torch. I then put it in the biggest dish in my swage block and whacked away with a sledge. The resultant dish is much better than I had expected which is a rare experience! I then just arc welded it to the underside of the lid and it works beautifully. The dome deflects logs rather than snagging them. The effect reminded me a bit of the turret on a T52. Nothing probably of interest to anybody but I was really happy.

Mine is on a factory made plate base. I hope you are as happy with yours as I am with mine. It was worth the wait!

Here we have very high humidity so I just paint all the parts of my anvils that don't get used, then if I am not going to use an anvil for a while I just put a film of grease over the non painted parts. I know some guys on here say they don't like to see anvils painted. I can't say that it bothers me one way or the other but I would certainly rather see paint than rust! Some anvils definitely seem to rust faster than others. Is it the alloy used?

That is one of the classics of blacksmithing books. He gets it wrong a few times- like when he talks about packing but overall a very useful book.

I would use the safe as a safe and make a firepot out of something else I must admit. BTW where are you? If you are anywhere near Chengdu I know a guy who wants to buy a safe about that size.

I have heard from the manufaturer that it is actually not ductile iron. It is actually cast from the same alloy steel as the anvils so it should be very strong. Sorry for the misinformation.

There haven't been any wild bears in UK for centuries so whether or not bear traps are illegal isn't really of much relevance is it?

2 new threads from me in 2 days. This really is like old times. I want to make some big tongs to work with the power hammer. I have made plenty of small one handed tongs but never anything any bigger. Is there anything special I should do or are they just a bigger version of ordinary tongs?

I did a silly thing myself yesterday. I had been forging some rebar into square stock on the powerhammer. The tongs I was using had a very slightly loose rivet so I put them under the tup and pressed the pedal. Then spent 10 minutes trying to get the tongs to work again. That rivet sure is tight. Regarding idiots and the general staff I was once told that in the Boer war the Boers were told NEVER to shoot a British general. Apparently they were judged to be so stupid that each one was more service to the enemy than to the British.

How about that for a new thread? Last week I had a very basic level student who wanted to drift a hole out a bit. He was trying to do it cold so I told him it wouldn't work cold. He needed to heat it. Of course there is the language barrier here...... A few minutes later I saw him with a red hot drift trying to enlarge the hole. It was my fault. I should have specified which piece to heat!

I had thought of a couple of studs to hold it in place. After all it is just to stop lateral movement- it isn't going to suddenly fly (is it?) But the lip on the hole seems adequate. The frame gets slightly warm to the touch but I assume that that is caused by the compression of the air.

BTW I measured the anvil. It is 37" above floor level which is just about right for me.

Looking for new or second hand?