Craig Tallant

Heard, I will take that info to heart. Looks like I have myself a Anvil then :). If I were to have the steel plate welded to the stake would it provide enough improvement to make it worth the trouble? Frosty, you are usually the first one to respond with helpful advice and not tell me to just use some clay in a bucket and use my forehead as a hammer like they did in the good ol days lol ... this has been a year and a half long project ( I move slowly with stuff like this lol) .. just wanna say I appreciate the help.

Sooooo .. I have been rolling slow and steady getting into this new world of pounding metal and am ready to buy my anvil .. funds are limited and I found a " Colonial" style anvil on Old World Anvils for 135.00 .. it is 4140 tool steel 4x4 and has a stake ... I still have a hard time figuring out a fair price for a beginner anvil .. what is the opinion out there.. I was also thinking of cutting a slot into the center of a double shoulder tie plate to fit tightly around the base of the stake .. is this a good idea .. its about a 12 lb tie plate.

Thank you all! I was already eyeing the legs and agree that they do need to be flared. I have a black iron post cap I can grind up and poke some holes in .. probably work out quite well actually

Good suggestions thank you, yes it is 3" deep ( also have a 2" unused drum sitting in waiting lol). It will be used completely outside as I do not yet have a cover of any sort constructed and no garage. The pipe is 2" I have a bunch of scrap this stainless I could use I suppose in place of the grill grate. The concept was to try and make it as mobile as possible without losing functionality.

From Base of Pot up it is abot 20" .. I think I covered all the questions.. lemme know if you need more info

I started this over a year ago and life sorta took me away.. no I'm back and the project I wanted to start over a year ago is almost complete lol. Please judge my design and tell me what you would change.. just a basic forge for basic beginner work. With the exception of the pipe.. it is made completely from parts and scraps from the at my property. ( old charcoal grill side shelf, drum from brake change, strange metal tube I found.. probably been hiding for about 20 yrs lol. and T-post for legs)

Well I have all the piping put together, used all black pipe .. I am wanting to keep the existing nipple that leads from the sink drain down .. I have a reducer since it is 1.5 inches and I am using a 2" pipe for the rest of it. Is that okay? I could not see a problem with it since it is only about 2-3 inches of pipe at 1.5" that opens up to a drain that is about 3" in diameter does anyone think this will cause complications?

No the cap is black. not aluminum or galvanized.

I remembered a conversation you had and spoke about using a bullet tuyer ( or something like that) .. the impression I got was something like what I am doing .. Its a post cap about 1/4 in thick I believe.. Will it be okay to use galvanized steel for the piping underneath ..

K .. that's easily remedied .. What topside diameter would you suggest .. 6-8 inch?

This is going to be made from a Sink I obtained for free .. the post cap was 2 bucks and the wood ash, sand ( red sand from property.. natural) and kitty litter are from property ( or house). Frame will be from sign holders ( the metal ones you see in yards of houses for sale) fits sink perfectly and will cut and weld to make legs and support. Could use lumber from property also .. either way its free stuff.. woo hoo. So hit me with your comments ..am I on the right track? Yes I know I misspelled sink..lol and the firebowl will be formed from the clay. No brake drum etc.

so basically what Dagr8tim was planning but with a lipped bowl ( and your pipe specifications) ... This got me thinking .. if clay is just as efficient for a firepot/bowl as metal what is the attraction to metal firepots/bowl ?

okay, I have read over the 55 forge concept and it is really very simple .... but I still think I am going with the sink idea for this reason .. I have almost all the material including a large sink about 20 feet away in my shed and with the 55 forge I would have to go out and either buy a drum or scout one out .. for me the simple way is to just use the sink.. I really like this idea in the pic .. it is the concept I have been really looking for. If anyone can find any flaws or have any ideas for improvement they would be appreciated.

Okay stupid question alert... I am brand new to researching making a forge .. I am more of a visual learner so reading all these posts sometimes leaves my eyes crossed and I gain little .. in regards to the sink forge .. I plan on starting with a small forge to play with and learn the attributes of the metal and etc .. was thinking of crafting chisels and other small simple shaped tools and the like .. can I not just clean up the sink and use refractory cement to line the whole thing .. or am I thinking too simple? Again .. just beginning and intending on starting out small.