Frozenforge

It seems like the Columbians with a M on them are 100 lbs. All steel no faceplate in very good condition. There wasn't any way to date them other than somewhere between 1903 to 1923. In very good condition use and enjoy, Find a copy of Anvils in America. Expensive but well worth it in my opinion

If your working with stainless hardware just make sure the bolt and nut are very clean and the friction when you tighten will gall the two together! The type of lockingnut can vary depending if the bolt is under tension or shear loading. Quite often a bolt loaded in shear only is only snug tight and tension load is a specific torque to achieve the required bolt stretch to keep the fastener from loosening. Classic example of this is engine headbolts or nuts and connecting rod nuts. For high temperature applications mechanical locking, ( staked, piened, cotter pins, safety wired, lock tabs ) is necessary. For low temp applications ( nylocks, threadlocker, double nutting) On aircraft there are castle nylocks, both nylon and a cotterpin, I have even seen on larger bolts where the bolt is hollow with a mechanical locking nut, then a smaller longer bolt goes thru the larger bolt with a large washer that keeps the large nut from coming off. Of course Murphys law always rules!

I tried coal that you can get for free off the beach around Anchor River. The veins of coal are in the cliff bluffs and slough off down to the beach. With a 4 wheeler and trailer you can get all you want. Too good to be true? Probably. I have very little experience with coal but with my small rivet forge made a couple small pieces and just within an hour I got a clinker that was 4 inches across and just about choked off the grate. Im sure alot of that comes from my lack of knowledge with coal. Most of the coal is very flakey and smokes alot. Although there were a couple of softball size pieces that were very hard to breakup and seemed to burn much cleaner. Is all the coal for sale up here from Healy? Its the only active coal mine I know of up here.

It was in the hi 30s to low 40s here, too warm for this time of year for us. All the sand salt and gravel they put on the roads turns too a muddy mess. Besides spring is still 4 months away!

I agree with Thomas, that bottom die looks awesome. Would be worth finding out who to talk to about obtaining it. I like that there would then be a story of where it came from a how it was saved and reutilized. It is a shame how quickly we forget and dismiss technology once its been improved upon. I always try to explain to my son how things were made in the past and the different stages of manufacturing advancements. I get the rolling of the eyes quite often but now and then he will make a reference to something I said making it worthwhile.

One thing to remember is that the dent is just displaced material and often can be moved back thus eliminating most of the damage. If those are actual cuts where material was removed not miuch you can do. I would work with it as it is. If you need a very smooth finish on an item make a tool for the hardie hole. Usually those fine finishing strikes are relatively light.

Usually the instructions for the welder will have extension cord specs. The issue will be the amount of voltage drop due to the resistance. As the voltage drops tha amperage goes up trying to maintain the same amount of watts. As the amps go up the wire heats up causing either the welder to overheat or the extension cord to overheat. This is why voltages for large equipment are either 240 or 480, it lowers the amperage to get the same amount of power (watts).

Torque is what actually does the work, horsepower is just a torque vs rpm calculation. Of course if you cant apply the torque to the ground......

Nice repair, I like it when a properly done repair is blended in. There appears to bea weld line between the base and the top and I havn't ever seen the pritchel hole located where this is on any of the more common brands. Any markings on it at all?

Took a look in AIA ad there wasn't much info for narrowing down a date on a Kohlswa. Great find!

It could be freezing at the regulator. Normal pressure is usually no more than 15 psi at the upper end and approx 6 psi for regular forging.

I read 154875 in the picture. That would be 1908 according to AIA and the first year the entire top half was a single piece of steel. I have always found it interesting how the anvil construction process evolved over time with the balace of cost of raw materials vs cost of labor. Thanks for the pics. I keep my copy of AIA next to the couch!:)

Well done, anchor it down good to a good stand and it will work fine. Never too many anvils!

As Mr Hale said Its all in the details with atmospheric burners. Even something like small burr in your nozzle can cause problems. Look over all the instructions carefully and compare them to how you made yours. What kind of regulator are you using. Bbq grill regulators can't handle the volume or pressure required. Controlling the propane pressure is just as important as the burner. Pictures with details would help greatly

I have a tester, come on up! Sounds like not much change in weather if you got hit by that storm! Would they let you have an anvil as carry on?

You didn't buy it? Yes its a Trenton and from the picture it looks to be in good condition for less than $1 per lb! It appears to have a s/n on the foot which you can get an approximate date when it was made. The ones imported from Germany didn't have the weight on the foot, it was down on the waist under the logo. Don't delay too long deals like that are snapped up quickly.

I believe that the surface left behind after sanding or grinding is very on a surface finish scale full of micro peaks and valleys. When struck with another hard object like a hammer they are effectively forged smooth. You would be able to see and feel the slightest with ease. It would be interesting to see if a piece of hardened tool steel with one part polished vs another area left as ground by 120 grit would exhibit the same apparent hardness when struck by the same hammer with the same force.

Is your nozzle the tapered mig welding tip or a hole in the tube? I prefer the mig tip myself. Your flame looks slightly off center like it might need slight reaiming of the nozzle. While it is running slightly adjust the tube till you get the most symetrical flame possible.

Look up Ron Reil for good information. You might consider 3" if insulation to get the internal volume down so a single burner can be used. Typically a 3/4" burner can heat around 350 cu inch.

The inner layer will slightly melt and then it refreezes to seal and strengthen the dome. The key factor in keeping warm is that even when temps outside are well below 0 when you expose the earth and then insulate the area above it with the igloo it will warm up to around 20 degrees above zero without any heat source..

When on the hunt for an anvil or tools its a good idea to have a cash on hand cause if its reasonably priced then it will be sold very quickly. Keep doing your research so you can recognize quality items quickly and know what your priorities are. You can always get items to use for trading as well. I have found if you have something somebody wants you can get a better deal trading plus you make a new contact!

I dont have much experience in estimating weight but I would guess around 200lb to 250lb if thats is a standard hand truck its on.

Appears to be a Hay Budden. You can make out the BROOKLYN N Y part of the logo. If you look at the bottom under the horn there should be a serial number stamped. You can get an estimate of the date it was made from that number. It appears to be in excellent condition, just needs a sturdy stand, some hot iron, a hammer and some muscle power! The only abuse it has seen is lack of use!

Ill make sure to set the dvr to record the episode, great stuff!