Brasilikilt

I will also be trying to forge a pair of tongs, the 2 pair I have now are designed only to pick up flat stock. I will also do some more whacking on a leaf spring to make a cutting blade of some sort.

I think that if you really don't need this anvil, you *could* donate it to a community college that has a welding/blacksmith program. #1 You would be able to claim the donation for your taxes and get back what you paid for it. #2 These types of schools have most, if not all the equipment needed to refurbish this anvil, and I'm sure that there would be students who would love to get some practice doing something like this. When they were done welding on it, they could send it on down the line to the machinist students so they could mill down the face..... When all was said and done, you get your money back and the school has a large anvil for students to use and learn on for years to come. I took a Community College Blacksmith course last spring, and I can safely say that my fellow students and I would have been very eager to get an anvil like this into usable condition. Just a thought I had.......

Yes I already have a 3'x3' piece of mild steel plate, some lengths of 3" pipe and a brake drum, just need to weld it up and figure out a way to blow air into it

Ohh yes, the addiction has already taken root! I might as well be injecting coal dust and wrought iron particles in my veins I should clarify....the wood pile isn't NEXT to where my smithy will be, it's sitting right on top of where the forge, anvil and post vise will be. I had an idea to expand my "10'x12' Tuff shed (the yellow wall in the background) out 8 feet into this area, but for now I will try to move the firewood into the yard trailer and perhaps scrounge up some lumber to make some type of roof and enclosure to see me through the winter. I plan on mounting the post vise to an old railroad tie that's buried upright in the ground, or something different if anyone has a better suggestion Ohhh I also don't have everything yet........I have hammers, a good anvil tongs.......What's missing????? Thanks for looking Iain out

Greetings and Salutations I've written quite a few posts since this last Spring regarding my quest for an anvil, tools etc I just recently mounted my 180 lb Trenton on a fir stump and gathered up from the shed and garage most of the odds and ends I've acquired. I know that there's not much here, and still it has taken quite a bit of combing through the weeds in order to put this rust-covered assortment together, and none of it has been cheap! You can see the large pile of firewood in the background that my Grandfather was nice enough to deliver. It's unfortunate that the most convenient and least unsightly place in the whole yard to store this wood is the future site of my smithy Anyways, thanks to all of you for giving me so much useful advice The purchase of just about everything here was influenced and/or inspired by this forum in one way or another. Thanks for looking Iain

Hey Samuel PM sent

I first saw that forge design a couple years ago and have always admired the concept behind it. I will most likely end up building one, and seeing yours is just motivating me to get it done sooner :-) I know the design is intended mainly for blade smithing, but how do you think it would work for general black smithing?

Dang, I wish I had known about the Blacksmith's swap meet! I was in Key Center, Wa buying my anvil on the 25th Anyways, is it just a once a year thing?

Wow, good lookin' out. I already have my post vise, so I'll leave it for someone who needs one. I paid about the same amount for mine :-)

Hey, this guy is in Pennsylvania ANVILSFORSALE - ANVILS FOR SALE He always has all kinds of anvils for sale......don't know how close he is to you though Happy hunting, and be prepared to troll Craigslist every chance you get, even in areas that may seem a little far out of the way.

Yep, I got it It was quite a long haul to get there. Portland Oregon up into the Puget Sound area of Washington near Gig Harbor......around 170 miles. At least the weather was nice and it was at times a very scenic drive.

It's a 178# Trenton My birthday is Friday, so maybe this one is meant to be mine....... The guy wants $400, but asked if $350 is acceptable to him, no answer yet. What do you guys think about the crack in the weld between the top and bottom? Better than most I've seen around here, I really hope he goes down on the price a bit. thanks for looking Iain

Anvillian should be the Nostradamus of blacksmith tools I just found a #178 Trenton that's kinda dinged-up on the edges, but still usable. The guy selling it was nice enough to tap it with a hammer so I could hear it ring over the phone....sounded like a bell. My wife thought that the anvil search would be over after I got the little 70 lb Vulcan, so she *really* doesn't like the idea of me getting another. She doesn't understand that the difference between the two is like the difference between a Vespa and a Harley Davidson. The little Vulcan anvil DOES have a ring to it, and some rebound. It should make a nice travel anvil if I decide to keep it.

I drove out to Molalla last night and picked up that little 70 lb Vulcan in pretty dinged up shape. Paid too much for it, but at least it's something with a hardy and pritchel. Funny thing is that it does seem to have some rebound and ring. I was expecting a dull thud and my hammer laying dead on the anvil face. I've emailed the Ashland people twice with no response

Hey all After seriously combing through the weeds for a good anvil to buy, I've gotten rather frustrated with the results. Thanks to all of you who have helped with advice and/or offered to sell me their extra anvils, but shipping from back east is too expensive. I've been going through past threads on here looking at cheap, and easy to build home made anvil designs and have come up with many ideas. I haven't decided exactly what style I want to make, but it will have to be unique if I am to spend so much time and energy putting it together. A lot of this depends on the size/shape steel I can find for the body I'm thinking that a piece of mild steel (which I have been told has similar qualities as wrought iron) with a tool steel face welded on as a striking surface should serve quite well. I was thinking about using a section of forklift fork, but that might prove to be tricky to find around here. The MetalSupermarkets around here has a wide selection of tool steel on their website I was wondering as to what would be the best choice of steel to use as an anvil face They have A2, A6, D2, H13, M2, NAK55, 01, P20, S5 I know that tool steel can be tough stuff to work with, so material that isn't crazy difficult to weld or grind on is preferred. Any hints, tips, suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Iain

This thread is going to be helpful for me since I am thinking about shipping an anvil cross country. I will look into UPS freight........all the FEDEX online quotes are looking to be more expensive than the anvil itself!

Hey All I went to Metro Metals NW and was told by the gate attendant that people aren't allowed outside of their vehicles while in the yard, but if I saw something I liked that I could tell him and he would grab it. That arrangement is hardly ideal for a scrounger, but could be considered an option if there's nothing else. Are there any good scrap yards in Portland that let you stroll the grounds and dig around for the good stuff? thanks Iain

Darn, if you lived around here, I have more than a few brake drums laying around that I would donate to a new blacksmith acquaintance

Thingmaker Are you talking about that rather large Viking fellow in Oak Grove?

The person wrote me back and they still have it. They are moving and haven't had the time to take pictures........ I was hoping to possibly pick it up this weekend......

Here's who I think is the most adorable blacksmith ever Unfortunately I had to bribe her with a Popsicle in order to pose for this picture, but I think it's well worth it. If nothing else, I hope that the things I teach her will cause any potential boyfriends to think twice about being less than ungentlemanly towards her in the future :-)

Recently I visited the shop of a local blacksmith who's work I had been admiring for quite a while. While he doesn't have enough work to keep an apprentice busy, He was generous enough to talk to me about where to go to get experience. It turns out that the first place where I stopped coming back from his place, I spoke with the owner of a metal gate/railing fabricator and explained to him my difficulties getting my foot in the door. Luckily he agreed to take me on a part-time basis, so for a week I have been cleaning his shop, doing some grinding and doing an occasional weld. I initially offered to work for no pay, but be compensated with training, a good resume reference and a chance to use his equipment from time to time. He insisted that I accept "a couple hundred bucks a week" because he doesn't want anybody working for nothing. I graciously accepted, and have been working my tail off trying to clean up his rather disorganized shop :-) Take it from me, show a hungry enthusiasm, willingness to do the grunt work and show up when they ask you to, and you might find a business owner willing to take you on.

You can use a 15 lb section of RR track, a large sledge hammer head mounted in a stump, a 4"x4" block of mild steel etc etc For blade smithing, you will do fine with something 10-20 lbs, mounted securely into a stump. Saw maker's anvils are typically just a block of good steel, The Neo Tribal bladesmiths like a 4"x4" piece of mild plate secured in a bucket of concrete Of course if you plan on forging swords or battle axes, something larger and wider will do better.

Ya know what? I totally agree. I really wish that I could afford a new anvil. Nimba comes to mind because they are a Northwest company and from what I've heard, produce a quality product. The truth is, until I start making money with blacksmith work, I simply would no be able to afford spending $1,000+ for an anvil. I only have $300 allotted for an anvil, and I'm already taking that purchase quite seriously.

http://medford.craigslist.org/tls/1244042161.html Is it this one? Ashland is towards the bottom of Oregon and I am at the very top. I punched it up on mapquest, and figured that it would be about 10 hrs driving time, and the fuel cost would be about $55 It is quite nice :-) It is a bit far. There is a 140 pounder of unknown make that is about 2 hrs from me which I don't know if it has been sold yet, because they person hasn't written me back for a few days and hasn't sent any photos. I might wait and see what becomes of that opportunity, but will write the Hay Budden guy to see what he says. Thanks for the tip!