Bo T
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Posts posted by Bo T
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Currently, I've seen good anvils in good shape go for $3 - $4 per #. Good, new cast anvils (ductile iron and steel) go for about $5 per pound.
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Either send them out to be sharpened, (well worth it sometimes), or a soak in acid, followed by neutralizing with water and baking soda, then drying and a LIGHT oil coat. (and wipe away any extra). What I've read says it eats away the edge of the teeth down to a fine point again. You can't do it too many times though. Better to care for them properly, especially storage. Let em bang together in a tool chest or toolbox, and they dull in a big hurry.
Thanks.
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Don't discount old, used files either. I've picked up rusted "worn out" files that cut like liquid soap after a proper cleaning. You might not know how the job will turn out until you finish but a light picking with soft metal and a soak to take the accumulated rust off and sharpen the teeth can really work wonders. The delicate work doesn't take very long and it's really not that delicate to begin with.
People tend to junk files for silly reason - like being gummed up with oil - and as expensive as they are it can be worth it to have a second look. I just cleaned and sharpened a Simmonds bastard cut mill file that had been discarded and I swear it cuts better than a new Nicholson I picked up a few weeks ago. Just stay away from the really cheap files you see on shelves.
One other note: don't take the folks who claim that Mexican made Nicholson's are junk too seriously. They may be a mixed bag but they certainly aren't as bad as some would suggest. I haven't had any serious problems with them, though at the same time I know people who can properly use a file who have complained of poor quality. I say this because someone looking for files is likely to run across this sort of scaremongering.
How does one go about sharpening a file?
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I've seen a picture of one on CL in Cd'A Idaho. The mark appears to be stamped with a circle inside of a triangle.
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I'm not sure how well the spring clamps will work, but the rest should work well. I'd bolt the whole apparatus down to a solid surface at the right height and give it a try. I am not sure about the hardness of the base plate, but most smiths that I've encountered use the top of the rail as the main anvil.
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I paid a little over $300 for a Hay Budden that weighed a little less than 100#. That seems to the going rate around here. There weren't any added expenses except maybe a half hour of my time. The MacBell looks to be in better shape. Right now there appears to be a lack of good anvils for sale in the PNW. You might look at what new farriers anvils in the same weight range are going for.
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If you are referring to the one on CL around Portland Oregon, I would not pay the price listed for it and the stand. It appears to be cast and in good shape. If I needed an anvil and it had good rebound - $450.
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Could the anvil have been in a fire? Undamaged with good rebound $300 - $400 around here.
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I made a tool for popping off the hubcaps on my truck and a bunch of tent stakes for car camping. If I can find some #5 I am going to make some larger stakes for holding down a canopy (12 x12). Seems to be a good cost/benefit for these simple projects.
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The anvil appears to have a thin top plate. I'd agree that $300 - $500 from what I have seen.
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No Chemical reason not to use sugar as a source of carbon. In fact white table sugar is the largest Volume pure organic chemical available. It is simply carbon hydrogen and oxygen. Hot enough and decomposes into water and carbon. No sulfur no other mineral compounds.
That said most hardening compound use a number of chemicals that decompose at several different points and create more easily transported carbon compounds. I've looked at the formula of Kasenite the MSDS available on line gives potassium ferrocyanide (yellow prussiate of soda) as the active component.
However, since our predecessors used formulas containing leather scraps, cow horn, and walnut shells I have to believe that sugar, which they also had available, was not particularly efficient.
I'm thinking they just ate the sugar. Wouldn't charcoal be the most efficient at case hardening?
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The nut that I am using is a brass standard compression nut for 5/16" tubing with 1/2" x 24 tpi UNS threads. The 9/16" is the wrench or socket that fits the nut. The threads are not perfect so using brass is important to keep from dinging up the threads on the shaft. Good luck.
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Patrick,
I tightened the 9/16" brass compression nut on as far as I was able then backed the 3/4" nut up against it and tightened the two against each other as best I could. I used my large ratchet and 3/4" socket the hold the nut with the ratchet braced against my hip when I used the impact wrench. Even so the brass gear was moving back and forth 5 or 10 degrees.
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Went ahead and pulled the cone and put the regular nut and jam nut on. Didn't work, I could only put 30-40 lbs of torque on the nut before the jam nut started backing off.. Don't have power to my shop so I had to charge and lug the compressor out (to much of a voltage drop with the extension cord that I have). Held the jam nuts tight and gave it a couple of hits with the air gun and just about the time the pressure dropped to low - the nut came loose.
Which made my day. 
Anyway. pulled the fan and fan shroud and after fighting for a while got the grease cup off. If you use jam nuts don't take them off as the next nut might be stuck as well. Anyway off to buy a lottery ticket. -
I just bought a 94# Hay Budden in very good condition for $325. I was able to pick it up on the way home. 0 travel expenses. 1/2 hour of time. If there are any hammer-ins around you might figure on going. The last one I went to had a 160-180# Peter Wright with a nice stand (VG) and really good rebound for $550. This seems to be the going prices around here for vintage anvils in very good condition.
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Patrick,
You are stalled at exactly the same point that I am. I'll try a jam nut on the rear of the shaft. I have to remove the cone in back to get enough threads to lock the nuts. I'll let you know how it goes.
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One bladesmith uses iirc a 4"x4" cutoff set in concrete. I think it is 4140 and has some length to it. He set it on end and put a different radius on each edge. I think he also set it higher than his regular anvil due to the type of work he was using it for. Heat treating a large piece of steel like this involves quite a bit of work but is certainly doable. Good Luck.
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Looks like that bronze worm gear is really worn. I still recommend not futzing around with it. Any misalignment between that and the shaft when you reassemble will accelerate the wear and shorten the life span. Use some degreaser or kerosene to clean/flush out the inside well then recoat it with motor oil. A few grains of sand isn't going to hurt anything.
As for the bearings, the rear shaft is just loose ball bearings. The other three sets can be replaced with bicycle race ball bearings. I don't recall the size but I'm pretty sure all three are the same size. When you pull the handle off, is there a lot of wear between the shaft and dust cover, or is it a nice fit? Oblong/oversized hole would indicate a worn cone nut.
If you insist on removing the fan, try a large channel lock grabbing the hex between the fan blade arms while you break the nut loose with a socket. Worked for me, just be careful not to break the fan arms (grip it tightly).
Dang it, that is too easy:( I'll give it a try tomorrow. Doesn't the fan need to be removed to service/repair the front bearings? Making sure that the rear ones are adjusted properly.
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From my understanding, you should be able to work your metal, successfully across a wide range of temperatures. Put a near perfect piece of steel in the coils and note the time it takes to get it to the high forging temperature. If you run them at this time interval then hopefully, you will still get the less than perfect pieces to the lower forging temperature or above.
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Yea. I've read a lot and have been paying attention to those "what not to do" suggestions. I.e. don't lock the brass gears to remove the fan nut. But, I may need to pull the gears to get to the front bearings. If I cannot get the fan nut off then I may have to clamp the worm gear shaft just behind the front bearings to get enough leverage to remove the fan nut. But that is in case my other efforts fail. I have a list of reference material that I am going to get and one includes DVDs on the Champion.
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My first anvil is an 8# sledge head set in concrete. Knowing what I do now I would have skipped that step and moved directly to a good anvil. It works, but not as well as a better anvil. You can work on a flat piece of steel, but the bottom hardy is a useful tool and it needs a hardy hole. The money you spend now on a good used anvil has a good chance of being returned if you sell it (as long as you don't ruin the anvil). Just imo.
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On the rear of the worm shaft, you have the cone nut riding on the bearing balls and the rear hex nut. Between them is a washer with an ID tab that rides in the shaft slot. The purpose is to adjust the cone for fit then put the tab washer on and tighten the lock nut. The tab washer would keep the lock nut from changing the setting of the cone. You should notice that on the cone nut, there are two wrench flats near the large end. If you can fit a thin wrench to go over these flats and hold it, you would be able to turn off the front fan nut.
One piece of advice I have from personal experience, if you don’t absolutely have to remove the worm shaft, don’t touch it. Trying to adjust the end play to get the worm gears properly aligned so the handle turns smoothly in both directions is a pain.Right now I am
Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.
OOPs! I've already pulled the washer and cone (and dropped several bearings). I've noted how the gears bind when the worm isn't aligned. I'll clean and grease the bearings and set the worm gear in position, then retighten the rear cone. I've discovered that the compression nut for 5/16" tubing has 1/2-24 threads. Hopefully, that will work as a jam nut and allow me to loosen the fan nut. From what I have read, I am pretty sure the play and vibration is due to the front bearings/races/cones needing work.
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I cleaned them up and put some penetrating oil around the cup. I used a channel lock set to the right size. I had a little problem with one cup but it came loose after a while. I'm still stymied by the fan nut. I tried some epoxy on the rear threads to try and hold the rear nut but it wouldn't hold. I'm gonna order a 1/2 x 24 tpi nut for the next try. A pipe wrench should work fine. Let me know how it works out.
Bought an Anvil, please help.
in Anvils, Swage Blocks, and Mandrels
Posted
It looks like a smaller anvil. As a user it not worth much. It might have some historical value.