56FordGuy

This is my first anvil, I think. It may turn out to be an ASO. I've had it for a while, picked it up from a scrap yard long before I decided to try my hand at blacksmithing. It's rough, for sure. Looks like someone tried to turn it into yard art. There's a groove carved on each side of the horn, and a small groove in the side of the face. It weighs about 150 lbs, and does have some rebound. I don't know how much is normal, but it's noticeable with a 3 pound hammer. It's completely dead behind the hardy hole, though. Is that normal? The only marking on it is a raised '70' on the side. The surface is rough, and the edges are worn. My current anvil options are this, a short (1 foot) section of railroad track, and a 4x4x2" steel block. I'm sure I will probably wind up using them all for something or other. Does this anvil look like it's in decent enough shape to use for a while, or should I start looking for a better one? The pitting and wear on the face has me concerned a bit, most anvils I've seen pictures of are much smoother. I've thought about trying to repair this one, and have read several threads on the subject. Just not sure if it's necessary, or worth the trouble if it's an ASO. Thanks for any input y'all have!

I appreciate the input. The blower I have doesn't have a gearbox on it. However, I think I've decided against using the electric motor. I may use a hand crank with a belt to the fan shaft. Might be kind of funny looking, but it should work and I wouldn't have to worry about plugging anything in.

I'm building my first forge, and have acquired my blower. It's a Champion #4. No hand crank, it was meant to be belt driven. I've found a few pieces of reproduction literature that lead me to believe it was originally belt driven from a hand operated lever. I am planning to use an electric motor to drive mine. Does anyone know what the appropriate RPM for the blower is? I'm concerned about running it too fast and damaging it. I can use a different combination of pulleys to change the speed, I'm just not sure what my target speed should be. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

I've heard there's a group that meets at the Wilson County fairgrounds, but haven't been able to find any more information than that yet.

Hey, neighbor! The forge looks great. I'm preparing to build my first one, I've gleaned a lot of information from your build. Just wanted to say thanks for the photos, they really helped to see how you were doing things.