Nigiel

Thanks for the advice, I'll use it as is. I just don't want any future chipping so that this tool will last as long as possible.

I just bought a 110lb Columbian anvil. When I went to purchase it there was a lot of rust obscuring the face, and other than some chips on the edge didn't look that bad. After bringing it home and some wire-brushing it appears that there might be a small crack coming from some of the chipping on the edge and extends about 1/2" towards the center of the face.

I've never chipped an edge on an anvil before but this crack concerns me. Should this be repaired before use? If so, what would be the correct way to repair it?  Or, should I just use it and if it eventually breaks repair it then?

Also quite strange, it appears that a piece of iron pipe made its way into the anvil during the casting process and can be seen as the crescent shaped spot on the face in the photos.

Yeah i think i'm going to turn him down, he's asking 185 and for something that has a replacement screw thats way too much just the other day someone offered a 4 inch with nothing wrong and for a lot less.

thanks for the advice

haven't been lucky as to find a vise at the scrapyard, ill ask the guy selling it to respond with pictures of the screw and the screw box, ill post them here if the guy selling ever gets back to me about it.

As I wrote the last message the seller responded to my previous message with more photos some have a closer view of the screw 

Was contacted today about this vise and it looks pretty big and the jaws look really nice, I don't know much about these types of vises but I thought there was knob like thing supposed to be above where it mounts. Can any one bring light to this situation and tell me if you think something's wrong with it. 

Thanks for the advice.

So if i have access to both wood chunks(rough size 3-4 long and 1-2 inch in diameter) and wood chips, would the wood chunks perform better? 

Has anyone tried using untreated wood mulch/ wood chips for fuel. If the right size they pile up in a mound pretty well, but I would like to ask around  to see if anyone else has tried it first before I do it myself.. 

I had already tried what i had at my disposal which was a low temp soldering iron and it did not hold very well, came off after spinning right away. After some time thinking about what I should do i decided just to clean up the internals of the blower and keep it as it was, missing a blade. And with little effort i could get the blower to force quite a bit of air through the forge. None of the blades were hitting the walls due to an imbalance. 

Unfortunately Thomas I am located in san antonio (should probably add that to specify because Texas is really big) and El Paso is quite the drive. I haven't really lived here for a long time either so I don't know anybody who has gear for welding/brazing and am not very experienced at welding or brazing either. 

When i'm not making knifes i'll use it so that the work will polish the face. Thanks for the advice.

I have a champion 145-18 forge (the round little guy) and the fan inside of the blower has a "blade" broken off. I have the broken piece but don't see a way to repair it. Does anyone know where i can get a replacement or something else that will do the job? 

Now what should i use it for???

Ok thanks for the reply.

I thought it was a Vulcan at first but there were no marking on either side of the anvil or evidence of one ever being there. .I got this anvil the other day for free, i was picking up a forge and the guy was going to give it to the scrapyard if not to me. It feels cast, it does have a ring to it, there are no seams or lines but there does seem to be some pitting from casting,. The guy who gave it to me said it was about 50 lbs but after lifting it I can tell you it weighs more than that, also when set next to my #4 badger you can see that just under 80b (because of the missing anvil) would be a reasonable weight. If I tap the hammer on the face of the anvil the hammer does bounce and the anvil does ring as well, i would like to say it is cast steel but I am hesitant as I feel  it might still be  be cast iron. (My badger is cast iron but i hear no such ring)

So the question is do you people have any idea what it is? There are some marking under the heel (or where it used to be) (Looks like "I & BC," to me) and the number 8 under the horn which probably refers to the weight.

.The other question is what should i do with it? Is there any chance that i could actually use this? or is it just a good doorstop, something to stub my toe on? or a chisel plate so that I don't mess up my main anvil?

(The photo with the anvil on top is my 40lb badger for comparison)

Any help and input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Nigiel

I mainly do blade smithing, however nothing too big. I will look into getting a bigger stump, ill also get someone to take a look and see if it moves around while i'm using it. Though I haven't heard or felt it, after I get some more money I will definitely look into getting a bigger anvil however i'll still keep the badger for light work.

As for striking anvils, is there any way to get one of these for a fairly inexpensive price, and can you do blade smithing with them. The ones that I have seen seem to be fairly low to the ground.

Thanks for the replies,

-Nigiel

After having my new 40 pound anvil for a couple months i've now noticed it's not as efficient as larger anvils. I used a big peter wright for two years at my school and as these are expensive the badger was all I could afford . The badger is number 4 and it weighs in at just over 40 pounds.  The current stand I have is a decent size stump that weighs significantly more than the anvil and the anvil is secured so that it does not move.

It just feels more difficult to pound stuff into shape and just doesn't feel as solid when I am using it.

Could this be a difference in quality or construction? Or is it just a difference in weight?

I have no one around here to ask and I really like badger I just want to know if anyone has experience with getting the most out of a small anvil.

Any suggestions, answers and input would be appriciated.

-Nigiel

Looked at some pictures of similar badgers and I believe you are right. At first I thought it was an early fisher too haven't heard of badger till now. The anvil still holds up fine and has great rebound.

Picked up this 40lb anvil the only markings that i could find on it was the number four underneath the horn.  

See pictures for reffrence.