RossA

You mean you don't need big balls to test an anvil?

This might be a stupid question, but I am new so I expect I will ask a few of those.

Is there any optimal size ball bearing to use? Since I will need to find one at a hardware store, steel supply or someplace, I might as well get the right one.

Library card? I think I had one of those somewhere in the distant past. Might be a good time to get another one and see what I've been missing.

I saw this video on youtube where this young guy is making a knife out of a wrench. Interesting, but I also thought his home made anvil was pretty interesting as well. Not a lot of depth to the steel, but it apparently is doing an OK job for a beginner. I am hoping for something better, but it works for him. Anvil appears about 3:20 into the video.

Oh, well, I always like shopping garage sales and flea markets anyway.

Darn, just found 6 anvils within an hour of me on Craigslist. Most seem pretty expensive, at least $5.00/lb., even for one marked "CHINA".

Thanks. I may just decide to buy a copy for my own reference as I go along. I get the feeling that anvils are one of those things where once you get one, you eventually get another.

Never thought of Craigslist for stuff like this. I'll give it a try.

Good information. I have a lot to learn, but I am excited to learn and get started.

Never thought about coil springs.

<Rummaging through cluttered shop to find ball bearing>

I never thought of forklift tines. I wonder if that kind of steel would also be decent to start out trying to forge simple knives, machetes, etc? I know a lot of guys use old leaf springs for that.

So when you say percentage of rebound, I guess you mean that if I drop a ball bearing from 10" and it bounces back 5" that is 50% rebound?

I guess I need to find a known "good" anvil with good bounce, try it out and learn to judge the bounce, then use that knowledge when I am buying an anvil. Only problem will be finding the right anvil to learn on.

So i guess looking for a brand name is a key to getting something decent?

Makes sense to me.

Searching now. Thanks

The energy transfer was something I didn't realize. I guess checking for rebound is one of the main issues. Take a ball bearing with me when I go to look at an anvil?

I have been wanting to find a used anvil to get started with. I have always been a fan of flea markets, garage sales, etc., and I cannot remember ever seeing an anvil for sale anywhere in my life. Maybe it's because I'm in the big city (Houston) instead of a rural area. Maybe I'm just the guy who got there too late.

Anyway, I appreciate any tips on searching for a decent used anvil for a beginner. Thanks in advance.

OK, help out a newbie with the idea of a faceplate. Does this mean that most of the anvil is mild steel while there is a harder top welded on? Just learning about these things. I always figured that an anvil was just one huge piece of steel poured at a foundry. I know I have a lot to learn.

I see a lot of anvils here with three legs. Is that better than a leg on each corner?

I am totally new to anvils, so be gentle. I have always wanted to get into blacksmithing and general metalworking, but it hasn't happened yet. I have been doing some reading on anvils, and there is a question that I don't understand.

I have heard guys talking about cheap vs. quality anvils, and I understand that differences in iron/steel quality makes a huge difference in a lot of tools, especially those that need to be hardened. I have heard guys talking about hitting an anvil with a hammer to see if it rings and is made from a good quality material.

Where I am confused is this: It seems to me (in my admitted inexperience) that all an anvil does is to provide a large, heavy, stable surface to pound hot steel on. Why does it matter what quality the material is, as long as it doesn't deform or break under the pounding?

Thanks in advance for the education.