tomfromuk

Err, I don't actually know. There's better pictures of it here: That was before I crudely painted it to try and protect it from the rain/frost/snow/ etc........

So this is an oak stump which split in half when it was chopped down. I did think for a while that I would be able to put the anvil on the stump and then carry it inside when not in use, but its just to heavy to easily move it. But those 'handles' do make handy places to hold stock/tools. It was also my 1st day forging metal today :) Tom

So I was flicking through the TV channels the other night and came across a BBC programme about a castle in France which is being built from scratch using the same techniques and materials as where used in the medieval ages. Some links below to the BBC iPlayer videos: (Not sure if they work outside of the UK) http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b04snhsg/secrets-of-the-castle-with-ruth-peter-and-tom-episode-1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b04sxt4n/secrets-of-the-castle-with-ruth-peter-and-tom-episode-2 And also to the castles website: http://www.guedelon.fr/en/ You can go and help them build it if it takes your fancy. They've got loads of crafts on site and of course they have their own blacksmith there doing blacksmithy things. Enjoy! Tom

This is great, cant wait to try it :)

Wow, this is amazing to see. Thanks for sharing :)

Hehe this is why I love this forum, there is always someone pointing out things that seem so obvious but something my brain totally missed. Thanks :)

I could also use some roofing felt on the stump, that would protect it from the rain and (possibly contains a layer of bitumen??) Tom

Okay, The anvil will be going onto an oak stump. I will probably place some carpet or underlay over the stump, and put the anvil ontop. That should reduce the ring and prevent that acids from the oak reaching the anvil. Hopefully I will start forging some metal this sunday. Thanks for the help Tom

So I collected my first anvil this weekend for £70, not sure what 'make' it is but if anyone knows please say. It was very rusty upon arrival but 1/2 hour with a wire cup fixed that. At a guess I would say it has a cast iron body with a steel plate on top, the anvil makes a slightly higher pitched ring when hit on the side at the top versus the when hit at the side on the bottom. The rebound seems reasonable, although without a metal ball bearing its not so easy to tell but probably around 60%-70%. It does appear to have some numbers on the side, two twos i think. 2 0 2 perhaps? 103kgs? I put it on the bathroom scales and it weighed in at around 90-100 kg's or so. The hardy hole is roughly 1 inch square and the pritchel hole is 5/8 of an inch. Its going to have to go outside on a wooden stump in the woods, I was thinking of painting the main body apart from the horn/face to protect it from getting rusty again and then just oiling the face/horn every so often. Ill cover it with a plastic bucket when not in use. One thing I'm concerned about is what effect the freezing weather will have on the anvil and if it will be okay to use. It never gets less than -10oC here. Thanks Tom

I think this may have been the page you where looking for Arkie http://www.anvilfire.com/iForge/tutor/claton/top_index.htm Tom

Here is my vice that I picked up for a fiver the other day. Screw threads are fine on it, small amount of damage on the part which the screw threads into. Just clamped it to the bench to take the screw out. I want to attach it to a post that's stuck in the ground outside, going to have to work that one out. Also got a tiny little hand vice, might come in useful some day :)

Hi, another similar question. I have some stone chisels, how suitable would they be for cutting hot metal? I dont know if they've been hardened or not. Sorry for the lack of usefull info. Thanks

Looks great. Do you mind me asking where you found the steel blocks? Or did you buy them? Tom

Hi, thanks for the warm welcome. I suppose ill just see what i can find and then see if i can make something useful from it. Thanks for the help

Hi So this is my first post here so i better say Hi :) But, with that aside, I see you are using what appears to be a 'wheel inner' as your forge top. Could anyone explain to me the benefits/drawbacks or using a wheel inner versus a brake drum and also which one you would advise using if trying to create a small forge at home. The obvious ones i can think of is that the brake drum is made from a metal which is good at absorbing a lot of heat pretty easily. Also the wheel inner will have a lot of holes in it which may need to be filled in. Thank you