TheMule

Ok fellas, got a question for you. When putting a new too plate on an anvil, what kind of steel plate would work? I have my eye on a piece of 4140 3/8ths plate but I know precious little about steel types and grades. Thanks in advance.

So something strange happened just now. I found an anvil for sale, and made an offer. The guy came back with "minimum price is 425, anvil cost 400 30 years ago". Am I crazy or is that math a little off?

1 hour ago, ThomasPowers said:

Mule; my local scrapyard likes to sell to folks, just go about 4 miles down the frontage road and turn right!

What town?

Guys, as always, I appreciate your insightand candor. I thought about checking a scrap yard but I can't seem to find one that will sell to me, they recycle only. Ideas?

Ok, so I realize this isn't quite on topic but, for lack of a better place to put this, what is the major difference between cast iron and steel anvils? Is cast iron just more fragile? Should cast iron anvils generally be avoided? 

I can't seem to find a devil forge on ebay. Do you have a general description so I know what I'm looking for? 

That's a fantastic amount of stuff I didn't know, and I thank you for it. That gives me more than enough foundation to start building on. This is the first time I've gotten into a forum for blacksmithing and I have to admit, I wasn't expecting as much as I've gotten.

Just now, Charles R. Stevens said:

Tho it's not recommended, ceramic blanket is ok for direct exposure. 

Hard brick and non insulating refractory cements are heat sinks

I see. Thanks for the info, I didn't know that. 

Wane cole?

54 minutes ago, Charles R. Stevens said:

Soft brick I hope, might I suggest looking at ceramic blanket insulation. 

Wold I have to cover the ceramic blanket with something or can it take direct heat? Also I'm having a hard time finding soft fire brick, any idea where to look?

41 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

suggest searching on "bean can forge" and "micro forge" "one firebrick forge"  So far the answer to most of your questions is: Yes, No, Maybe depending on information you didn't include like: hard vs soft firebrick; how the burner is positioned depends on how you build the forge; how hot do you need it? (forge welding is a stretch goal!) but again it depends on how you build the forge.

I'm really not ready for forge welding yet, largely due to a lack of knowledge and experience in it but also due to a lack of projects requiring it. I'm also not planning on anything large so I don't think I need a lot of heat. I'm afraid I'm pretty short on ideas. What I really need is to meet up with some local smiths but I don't know where to start looking.

So, I'm building a gas forge, very small for now because I'm not planning anything larger than a pocket knife. I'm planning to use firebrick for the forge due to being cheaper than refractory cement, and a single propane burner, probably just the simple kind of gas torch you can pick up at the hardware store. The questions I have for you guys are, do I need a shell for the firebrick? Is firebrick a good material to insulate a forge this size and capacity? Will my plan for a cheap gas burner work well enough to heat steel? And finally, what would be the best way to position the burner to be the most efficient?  Thanks in advance.