Diminishi

Frosty, All great points. I promise I am not bemoaning the use of a railroad track, however I am looking for that great find of a traditional anvil. I will absolutely use the time between now and then trying to develop this set of skills. I know that it takes an enormous amount of time to become better at this or anything for that matter, and there are people that probably wish they had a piece of track instead of what they are working on.

I posted a while back about using railroad track as an anvil. Last night while incessantly searching for used anvils for sale, I came across (for the 100th time) NC Anvil's 70# blacksmith anvil. The anvil is like $270 and has free shipping. Is this something I should buy? Or should I just use railroad iron until I can get a 'real' anvil of 100+? Everyone down here in Texas is selling anvils for like $5 a pound. I have even tried searching in neighboring states to no avail. I have the forge, a few hammers, am starting to make tongs this weekend. The anvil is really the missing piece here.

Well, I got the iron. The guy also had a whole box of knife templates he let me buy. All seem to be a lightweight metal. I can't seem to stand the iron on end. The Hitt able surface would only be about 1.5" by 1". So I am going with the standard top up setting. I will need to take it to a shop that has a torch to cut the rail off. Today I discovered how tough that stuff is with an angle grinder and cut off wheels. Everything teaches me something neq. Today's lesson was metal is hard. Lol.

​Charles, I will now be researching everything you just mentioned, as I have no idea what 3/4 of what you said is. That is a good thing. More knowledge and research can only ever help!

Thanks to everyone for their ideas and suggestions. I think I will probably stand it on end and try to radius a bit of a curve onto it. Trying to get someone to weld a piece of square tubing on the opposite end would also solve the hardy issue. All things considered, I am super excited to get to work on it.

Jim, Yesterday it was 36. Today it was 60+. The beauty of Texas is that if you don't like the weather it will change in a day or two. Except in the Summer... Which tends to be from May to October. Then life is miserable! Thanks to everyone for the welcome. I have been doing nothing but studying over the past 3 weeks. Anvils, Hammers, Tong types, forge construction, etc. The beauty of the internet. Last night I found myself instead of watching TV, watching 2.5 hours of blacksmithing videos on youtube. I am incredibly excited to begin this journey in life.

I figured I should make my official introductions. I am 33 years old and from Burleson TX. I am actually a Land Surveyor professionally, but I have had a life long love and interest in blacksmithing. I would eventually like to make knives and other bladed objects, but honestly I am just as excited about making my first set of tongs as I am anything else. I am set to buy a 2' piece of rail road track this weekend for my very beginner version of an anvil, and actually got my grandfather's old cast iron dutch oven to turn into a forge. I know it is a bit rudimentary, however I need to start somewhere. I will have a hard time convincing my wife that I need to put significant money into this 'hobby' until I can show her that I am gaining skill. I guess that pretty much sums me up. We have 4 kids between us, 3 cats (all hers, trust me), and maybe a dog in the future. See you all in the forums!

Thank you for the reply. I am worried I will have a very small area to strike but I also see what you are saying. Having a plate on the end doesn't help for any area where it is hanging over blank space. Great idea on the square tubing as well. I have no idea why I figured it should be more difficult to have a hardy.

I am new to blacksmithing and have been trying to put in the proper research to get started. I know that buying an expensive anvil and forge would be a waste until I learn how to properly control what I am doing. I found a guy that will sell me a piece of RR track that is a bit over 2' in length. The track has the box edge as opposed to the large round edge, so I was wondering about standing the track on end and having a shop weld a 2" plate of steel on the end. Is this a good idea or quick fix for the problem? I would then strap the anvil to RR Ties or a large stump to brace it out and then drill something into the stump for a hardy hole. I know this is a bit amateurish, but we all have to start somewhere. I am in North Texas (Burleson) if anyone has any direct experience with this sort of thing (or happens to be a great welder!).