Sam Falzone

Greetings all, Does anyone know where I can find a good source for forge plans? I'm not talking about brake drum forges or washtub forges or anything like that. I'm beginning to seriously plan out my home smithy and i've decided that what I really want more than anything else is a red-brick forge with a great-bellows, just like the ones you used to find in the old blacksmith shops back in the 1800's. I know forge tables are more portable and mobile and probably more practical, but I figure if I'm going to finally have my own home smithy, then I want to do it MY way. My friend's son is a masonry apprentice, so I'm going to get him to do the work. But before that, I'm going to need plans and measurements. I know where to get a firepot assembly, I need to know the other details -table size -how deep should the firepot sit -and especially hood and flue dimensions Anyone have some good detailed plan drawings or know of a good book that will have all the information I'll need. Thanks in advance for any help. Sam -proud proprietor of the soon-to-be-realized Oakhammer Forge. (the design on my IFI avatar is going to me my forge logo)

Those hinges are fantastic. I'm hoping to be able to do work like that one day. Could you put together a blueprint or an instructional video to show all the steps in making those ? - I would love to learn how to make those. Great job. Sam

Here are the photos of the mousehole I picked up yesterday. The weight stamp is 0.3.15 which makes it out to 99lbs. Now I need to get a knotted wire cup and get that paint off. Sam

I agree with Mark. Looks like a Peter Wright and they're asking $1.66/lb - that is a really good deal, and if it's in good condition, definitely worth grabbing if it's in your budget. At 300lbs, you may never need to get another anvil again. Good Luck. Sam

This goes out to all the Ontario, Western Quebec and Northern New York smiths (and anyone else if you're willing to travel or pay shipping). Spotted a 500lb anvil in Kitchener, Ontario on Kijiji [ http://kitchener.kij...QAdIdZ205628643 ] Couldn't quite make out the brand but the price was pretty good $2.00/lb. So if anyone has $1000.00 and is shopping for a 500lb anvil, check it out. Sam BTW - can any of the anvil-aficionados on the list make out this anvil brand and tell us anything about it?

Another nice score today on Kijiji today. I just picked up a 100lb Mousehole for $1.80/lb - not a bad deal. I'll post pictures soon. The guy had painted it black but the inspection was very good - the paint layer was thin. Good solid sound, no obvious grinding marks that could have come from a weld job, some small chipping on the edges. I think it was a great score - I've always wanted a Mousehole . I want to expand my re-enactment rig into a teaching rig - I want 2, 70-100lb anvils for 2 work stations so I could accomodate up to 4 people at once. One down ... one to go. I think this has been a good day.

Actually ... no. You see, I went to the salvage yard after work with my wife - my wife and I commute to work together and she loves to visit the salvage yard as much as I do (sometimes more, I think). We also needed to go the auction tonight straight from work to make it in time ... so when I found that anvil right in the doorway of the salvage yard and heard what they were asking for it, my wife pinned me with the look of death and said, "So we don't need to go to the auction, RIGHT?!". Survival instincts kicked in ... I kept my yap shut and nodded my head ( ... my momma didn't raise no fool ...).

My wife has me on an allowance too. And I thought I was the only lucky one out there. I get $100.00 out of every paycheque (every two weeks) for tools and supplies for my various hobbies/crafts - which I also augment with "found" money (birthdays, christmas, selling stuff, etc). Sometimes I can squirrel it all away, sometimes only part of it and sometimes we need to use it all to pay bills - that's just the way life is. It's a great idea if you can fit it into your family budget - whether it's $10, $20, $100 or any amount you can swing, it's a little bit of something you can stuff away in a coffee can somewhere and slowly let it accumulate until you're ready to make that big tool purchase. Patience and perseverence is the key. ;)

HONESTLY ?!?!?! Even if you're not a metalworker ... how sheltered a life would you have had to have to NOT REALIZE that top face is broken??? :blink:

You know ... you're absolutely right. Looking back I realize that my choice of words were a bit too harsh and I appologize to any new smiths who may have been put off by my statement - you really have come to the right place for asking questions and learning about this great craft. My statement was made out of frustration and carelessness other than any intent to discourage. BUT ... the underlying message is still the same. -Be Patient (I know that's hard) -Save Your Money - bit at a time - if you can -KEEP ASKING and KEEP LOOKING.LoLook also in the not so obvious places. Keep checking Craigslist, Kijiji, local auction lists, scrap yards, architectural salvage yards, garage/yard sales, church sales, if someone's flogging it - go check it out if you can -Make connections with other local smith groups - maybe someone will take you on as a mentor and give you access to some shop time and maybe access to THEIR connections. It might mean you'll have to travel a bit to pick one up, or maybe ask a favour of someone to help you pick one up - but hey, that's what we're here for. Asking is cheap - the worst someone can say is "no". You'll have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Sam

Thanks Dan, but don't feel too bad in this case. It wasn't a scrap yard - it was an architectural salvage shop. So there was no danger of this anvil being melted down. If you have one of these places near you, check it out - they are SO COOL!!! The place I was at was like something right out of Sanford and Son, just a warehouse full of beautiful junk - 2 floors worth. I could have happily spent DAYS in there. Cheers. Sam

You can still find good deals out there, but they're not going to come up and bite you in the butt. You have to get out there and find THEM. I proved that just a few hours ago. I've been looking for a heavier anvil - I currently use a 120lb, which is fine and I'm not parting with it, but I just wanted a bit more mass. I was hoping to find a 200lb anvil at a auction tomorrow, but I instead decided to stop in at a salvage yard today after work and that's where I found her - a 175lb Peter Wright . Not the 200lbs I was hoping for, but 175lb is a reasonable compromise and the price was too good to pass up ... I paid $250.00 before taxes - that works out to $1.40/lb before taxes ( around $1.70/lb after taxes). She's got some battle scars and a bit of chipping at the edges, but there's still lots of life in her. If you want to get an anvil, you have to be willing to do the leg-work and you have to suck-it-up and actually shell out some cash for one - even a used one. Sam

I just posted this on the Anvil forum as well. I just picked up my newest sweetie (.. and boy does my back hurt ... no, really ...) Found her at a salvage yard - a 175lb Peter Wright ... paid $250.00 before taxes She's got some battle scars and a bit of chipping at the edges, but there's still lots of life in her. Not the 200lb I was looking for, but 175lb is a reasonable compromise and the price was too good to pass up ($1.40/lb before taxes - $1.70/lb after taxes) A good night . Sam

Well, I just picked up my newest sweetie (.. and boy does my back hurt ... no, really ...) Found her at a salvage yard - a 175lb Peter Wright ... paid $250.00 before taxes She's got some battle scars (... why are the cut marks always on the horn? ...) and a bit of chipping at the edges, but there's still lots of life in her. I'm happy, and my wife is happy too because now this means that we don't need to go to the auction tomorrow evening and she can work in her garden. A good night for us both . Sam

GOOD PUPPY !!!! What breed is he?

Check out this anvil http://stcatharines.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-tools-equipment-BLACKSMITH-ANVIL-W0QQAdIdZ205371991 Believe it or not this guy has the stones to ask for $500.00 for it. Sam

Thanks everyone for all the information. Unfortunately my offer fell through - I could only offer him $500.00 for it (...that's all I've got right now...) and he felt it was too low and offer (it only worked out to $1.81/lb). At least he didn't seem too insulted by it - he didn't call me any nasty names or anything. So, I'll continue to squirrel away bits of cash whenever I can and build up my anvil fund. I'm lucky enough that i already have an anvil, I'm just looking for a bigger one. Thanks again. Sam

Frosty I know exactly what you mean. Here's my story ... My wife's name is Leslie and she is the weaver/spinner in our steel/wool family. Last year, she came bounding down the stairs, bouncing and giddy like a two year old. She tells me that she had a line on a 45" loom that a weaver in Toronto was looking to part with. Leslie had a 36" loom, but she had wanted to upgrade to something bigger but a 45" loom was a few thousand dollars and we couldn't afford it. This was an opportunity not to be missed. So the next day we go to the address after work and meet with this lovely woman who was truly going through some rough times. She was separating from her fiance and had to sell the house and move. It was really sad and our hearts immediately went out to her This woman was a serious fiber artist, there was spinning and weaving equipment everywhere. She took us upstairs to where the loom was - it was a 45" LeClerc counter-balanced loom - exactly what Leslie wanted. I immediately began dismantling it to get it down the stairs and into the van, and while I was working we all three were talking about life and our crafts. She was rather surprised to hear that I did blacksmithing and she thought this was all great. I told her how lucky I was that I had a wife who supported my ambitions, and that how happy I was that we finally found something to support her craft ambitions. The woman perks up at this, goes to a corner stacked with boxes and comes back with a lovely vertical spinning wheel. "Do you want this one?" she asks. We were both gobsmacked. She insisted that we take it, she had others and she would rather the wheel went to someone who would truly appreciate it. We went home with a 45"loom, weaving bench full of little bits and bobs and a spinning wheel for free. We were determined to pay this good fortune forward. Leslie in turn gave away her 36" loom to a friend of ours who was also looking to upgrade ... and she, this week, gave her old loom to a lady in her spinning guild who was just starting out. Leslie also sent the woman who gave us the loom and wheel the first thing she wove on the new loom - a lovely shawl. She was thrilled to get it. I've had some good Karma moments too ... a few years ago, a colleague of mine sends me an email that he was cleaning out his class/shop - he had two anvils, did I want them? I'm sure I broke several traffic laws getting there after school and left with two 100lb Vaughan anvils in my van for free. Since I already had an anvil, I lent one anvil to a friend of mine who had picked up a riveter's forge at an auction and wanted to give smithing a try ... the other I lent to my 2 students. This past Christmas, I turned that loaned anvil into a gift for my 2 students. I've been very lucky ... it feels good to pay it forward. Sam

I deleted my original post here. I made a reply to something I read on the first page not realizing how long this thread had been going on. Just disregard this. Sam

Ya ... it does, doesn't it. Either way it would make a neat block anvil - good for blades. Sam

Hi guys, I'm scoping out a 275lb Fisher anvil - it's in prime condition, the table looks flat and the edges look pristine (at least in the photo), but I don't know anything about Fishers. What can you tell me? How are they built? Composition? [cast steel, cast iron base/steel top, wrought iron base/steel top, etc] Quality? How would you rate them? [poor, fair, good, excellent] What would you be willing to pay for a 275lb Fisher? Anything else you can think of? Thanks Sam

Sorry to hear about that. Did you try a shallower impression to see if it was more legible? Just spit-balling ideas. Sam

And I thought I wasn't going to learn anything today ... shame on me. I checked out the Vaughan website and they have LOTS of cool toys ... too bad they're all the way across the pond - shipping would be murder. And you were right Brooks/Vaughan are cast steel anvils - no wonder I love my Vaughan. Thanks Mark for the education - that was cool.

That anvil looks pristine. Those corners and edges look like they've never been used. Sweet find. Sam

I was going to say that it looks like my Vaughan anvil - except mine is only a 45kg. Sam