toolish

does seem a bit cheap, although it seems to be a no name anvil, which might be the reason why it is cheap. Im no anvil expert but it looks a bit odd to me, very similar to my cheap chinese cast iron anvil I got for around 200 bucks (80Lb) 10 years back. Hardy hole looks very small and I am puzzled why they painted it. How hard you been looking for anvils, Ebay seems to push the prices up a bit I find

For Cast iron I would keep looking. Melting pot, most likely no use to you, Post vice if good worth around 150-250 Tongs - About 20 bucks each. SO you will be paying around $250 for the anvil. If it was a steel faced one or entirely steel then all good and well, But cast will not have a great rebound and will most likely not be in great shape if it has actually been used. So i guess it depends on your cash flow and how desperate you are. Not knowing where you live makes it hard though. How long you been looking for an anvil? Have a read, every second post is about buying anvils on here lol

Was getting just up to forging temp and hardening temp with it. Was having issues getting to welding temp tho. My solution was to add the fire bricks, add 60% more holes to my air tube and increase the air input via a bigger blower. I also have coke that I can switch to if it will make things hotter. Have not got to testing the modifications yet, But i think it should get hot enough for welding now. The charcoal seems to be lumpy enough to stay in a clump around the air source to not require metal sheets, Ill think about it next time i got it going tho. Thanks

It does look in alright order, If it does have a ring to it and your getting >70% rebound on the hammer test, them maybe the $500. However I dont think this will be the case, with no brand on the anvil it is not likely to be stell and you may just have an iron block,which will damage up quickly and be more hitting then it may be worth to do jobs. My thoughts if its an iron block $250 and petrol and thats a bit of an ask for iron block, if it has steel involved and rebound good then maybe 400-500 . Might just have to find some thing to hit on from the scrap pile for a while longer till a sweeter deal pops up (I waited 3 months and got 300Lb of steel for $160) Good huunting

real problem scrap theft and as the value of metals go up it will get worse. We get a fair bit of copper theft over here, people will cut live copper wires on the train tracks to make a few bucks or role around under trains to steal a few Kg valve made of brass. They were meant to have solved the copper pipe by not letting scrappers buy new copper pipe..... but i am sure some one will buy it. Over all it is just another thing to worry about it your day and will slowly push the [price of things up.

I am generally a flip flop kinda guy for the convenience factor, If things drop around the shop I bail like no tomorrow automatically (bit of a dance really). I usually wear a pair of thick rubber gum boots if doing lite grinding where I am just avoiding small sparks (have all the other safety gear on though) Thinking I might get a designated set of clothing for forging( Boots, old jeans, long sleeved cotton shirt) that way I dont get small holes in all my clothes lol Picked up a long leather apron which looks good, already got the ears and eyes covered, and got some thick long welding gloves if doing a job where gloves are the rage. But there was nothing on fire in that video Jim so Japanese safety shoes it was :D

Thanks, still trying to work out how i like things to be in the garage, yeah i should move the plastic away from hot stuff. Rather more air then less, bleeding most air off currently

Looks solid, whats it made from? Tempered? As I said it looks solid maybe the handle bit might be a bit short depending on what type of handle you go for. The point could probably be a bit more refined to be more pointy. But for a first and it does not look like a bannanna so that is always a plus lol. Keep it up and work on getting some sort of handle on it.

the grip provided by the rebar on the handle will be nice. Unless your just going to pick up thin plate with them i would thing about bending the handle a bit closer together otherwise your hand wont reach when thicker stock is used. Other then that looks solid to me, add them to the pile :rolleyes:

It is hard to see but that rail road is pegged down to your stump right??? Looks like a nice little rail road anvil to me, horn and hardy hole. I would spend you money on something else, like more hammers of tongs

With a customer review like that, Job done. Does the treatment of the glue make the rope around the handle no longer usable? I am guessing it does (however disregard following statement if it does not) which surprises me as most survival type people love random bits of para cord for making things, like fire bows and things if they are in a pinch. Thought the guy would end up putting a wrist strap on it, due to the hole at the end of the handle, especially with some of the work he is doing with it, But he still may i guess if it suits him, options is there. But as i said, job done, if the customer likes it then it has obviously worked.

Wow people are low, bet that guy used that for his job too. People will really steal anything that is not nailed down.

Wow, thats a lot of effort, good to see it can still be done with the determines one person. Gives hope for people starting out (me included, id love to be able to produce that sort of thing)

Very nice work there, nice wavy pattern. You do all the work your self or have help from a striker or power hammer? Looks like it would have been some effort either way

Guess you could take a little weight off one of them making it a cross pein and a straight pein for drawing out bigger bits of steel. Or you could make a really portable anvil out of it, maybe something specifically for arrow smithing. Or just have a few spares unless you just treat the heads like stock and make something totally different. Just a few random ideas

Long read, but an amusing thread, I think i go with a scale system, If people ask what my hobbies are Ill tell them I am an hobby blacksmith. If you introduce your self as a blacksmith outright it would mean to me that this was your job and you spent most of your day doing this task as a way of earning a living. Or I find this web site sums it up nicely http://www.phoenixrockgym.com/aaba/humor-youknow.htm You know you're a blacksmith if... your boogers are black your shirt is full of holes you're hearing impaired you shave less than twice a week it's no big deal when you catch on fire you don't know your shop dog's real color your grandfather wasn't a blacksmith you never charge enough for your work you stand around a fire when it's 100 degrees in the shade the dog in the scrap yard doesn't attack you one of your arms is bigger than the other it rains coal dust when you scratch your head "horseshoeing" means scaring them away your idea of a family vacation includes a tool sale you're happy to get coal for Christmas

Kind of span it out of my head, I have never had the issue you are having, So i really have not put that much thought towards it, and no RnD. The only tool I made which helped out in spring steel ring was the slotted L shaped tool I describer in an earlier post. I would make somethign like that, took me 2-3 min to make with a hacksaw and a vice, all done cold. This tool meant I did not have to grip the ring with the pliers just twist. I am imagining my tool would be similar to the ring tool described earlier as well.

Ok, If you stuck with the washers and you want a jig I would think of something like this. Two bits of solid bar next to each other, Cut a slot in both so the ring can be dropped into the jig from the top, Then put a pin through the middle to create a pivot point. Add two long handles tot he top and you can bent the things open with ease, Be a one by one operation, but less fatigue on your body. If not something using the power of a lever will prob be what you want. Even if you just get to priers that are welded to the right width, it will save you hands one force that is required. Any repetitive task should be broken down into each aspect and worked out if you can get around it, Your brain is the most powerful muscle in your body.

Real good deal, edges look good and horn is nice (from the pic anyways) All intact and good to go, Looks like you have founded it on something? Although the pic just kinda has it floating there lol Either way it's hammering time

Mate you need to fill out your profile so that people can help you out a bit more. Coke is available and depending where you live more available then other places. Google Coalcliff in NSW, If your close to that place you can get coke by the ton. Will charge you around 50c per Kg, which is really good compared to charcoal around 2-3 bucks a Kg. As stated use a gate not a fan voltage regulator, simpler and the fin likes being restricted anyways, kinda built for it. Good luck with it all, can be a big much when starting out. Drop location and see who is around you.

Thomas,that sounds like a great tip. Not sure why you are using washers from hardware store?? Get hold of some round wire rings, then you wont have these opening issues. If you can avoid a step in doing something thousands of times it is a lot of time saved

I think that ring idea was similar to the tool that I made, Dont know how the ring would do on tougher rings like spring steel. Would think it would result in some serious busing on your finger from the pressure. How are your rings being cut? I played with a fair few rings and never found I needed to open them up first. If you really really find you have to, why not just pull at the coil of wire after you wind it but before you cut it, They should evenly open up to what you want. But as i said my rings always lined up, maybe 1 in 20 needed a jiggle to get on and maybe 1 in 100 just didnt go due to the 2 ring combination but it would usually fit on another ring with a slightly different cut.

Why are you trying to open them up for? I found that 2 freshly cut ones always fit together sometimes wit a little bit of pushing, but I usually got them together. More you open the more you got to close. I did make a little tool too help closing if it helps. Get a bit of steel bar, bend the end 90o for a handle then in the main shaft cut a slit the same size and the ring wire thickness. Acts like a pair of pliers but easier. Never tried using two at the same time.

Wow your good wish I could dead lift a 400Lb anvil, I had dramas with 2 people loading a 300Lb one. Best way I found was to rock the anvil by its' horn up and down as I stacked some bits of wood and bricks under each side and continued the process till it go to trailer height, So bring some wood if you can. If you manage to get any type of measurement of the anvil you can compare to what is around to get weight. My guy thought my anvil was a minimum of 400Lb, ended up being 300Lb max lol When things are heavy people go nuts with the weight. If the rebound is good and the face is alright it be good what ever the size, as long as the price is right. Good luck, anvil buying is harder then buying a used car lol

rail road is fine to start on, especially if you have it secured well to a base. I got bored with mine and cut a hardey hole in it (lots of filing and drilling) If you have left over rail you can make a few hardey tools out of them, just cut off a few 1 inch slices and see what you can do. You will have to keep waiting, I waited and it paid off got something twice the size that I was expecting and paid half the price, Only 2 hours drive from my house too.