Pirateforlife

Yeah the hydrant is plenty solid so I'm not truly worried about cracking. If it happened anywhere it would where the bolt hole are I suppose. By the way, both the top and bottom of the hydrant are 11.25" diameter. Perfectly matches the diagonal of my anvil. Definitely want to secure it to the floor somehow or at least stabilize it somehow just in case. I was also thinking about just removing the fittings for the outlets instead of putting the caps back on. That gives me another 1.5" clearance where they are. For me, they don't really seem to be in the way near the floor or the other way around. I've been fake smithing around it for about 15min brainstorming and haven't had any incidents. All in all it will be an interesting project I think. Appreciate the feedback and the help. Keep it coming.

I 100% was thinking about filling it with sand and putting a plate under the anvil. Glad you said that. And yes I was going to go the angle iron route to attach. I suppose I'll play around with it and see which way the outlets work best. As for the height, from the floor to anvil face is 28" which is a tad too short for me. I put a 2x4 on the anvil, hit it with a hammer and the forward part of the depression was deeper than the back.

Just looking for opinions and insights on turning this thing into an anvil stand. It's about 100lbs and the anvil is 130lbs. The hydrant is 20x11.25. The anvil is 9.25x6.5 at the base and 8" tall. It sits on top without overhanging. It sits about 2" too short for me as it is but nothing some blocks under it wouldn't fix. Long story short, I have a couple different ideas and a couple different directions I was thinking about going on making this a functional stand but I wanted to see if anybody had any ideas or opinions on it. Or any better ideas to use it for, other than a fountain/yard ornament. Thanks in advance. Also I read an article here somewhere that the shafts for these things are normally monel. But this one looks rusted so I doubt it.

Alright thanks guys. The listing says coated with rigidizer and propane hose so we will see. Just got a message back and apparently will be shipped monday. I'll let everybody know.

Ok sorry to bring this up again but I ordered a forge before I joined this forum and now fear I made a mistake. The same seller that's discussed here. I've yet to receive the item so I havent tested anything. And me being new to this I don't know that I'd see anything wrong with it. But I have some pictures and hopefully someone can let me know if it's safe to use i.e. the hoses burners and insulation. Sorry I couldn't post a link. Ordered a month ago and havent gotten it yet.

So was that everybodies final opinion on the hay budden I found? For the price I offered not he listed. Just want to know before I head out this weekend searching. I have a couple hits in PA but it's a 12hr drive.

Also I found the TPAAAT method and applied yesterday around 5pm. I've had 1 person already come up with 3 anvils in Harrisburg PA where I have good friends living. So anybody that's new to this like me looking for really any type of tool: Tell EVERYBODY you know what youre looking for. Someone WILL come up with something. I was following what I read on the Beginner buyer's guide. I assumed that the edges didnt have to be perfect angles and to me it doesn't look like it has a bad sway. That being said I wouldn't pay anywhere near that for it. Like I said I offered 2.50 to 3$US. Not 7.47$.

So I'm talking to a person about this right now. Days they have somebody looking to buy at 650$US. Per what I've read here I told them it's not worth it and I'd give them 2.50 to 3$ per pound and they said they'd call me back. Deal or no deal? Before I commit. And I didnt mean to start anything but anything I can learn anywhere from anyone is reason enough for me to read. Many thanks. Hey Budden 87#

Any further info on this as of now? I know that GA is planning on opening back up soon. Any info on any gatherings would would be welcome. In retrospect I should've started getting into this 2yrs ago when I really saw it. Now COVID19 making things difficult.

I feel like I'm going to learn a lot more than smithing from this forum. Thanks for the heads up. I didnt know it was illegal just to walk down it. Used to do it all the time in Missouri but that was before 9-11.

Well i suppose I'll have to start making friends with them as well if I want access to material. I've heard it's a good place to get brass and other material cheap as well. But until I get to know what I'm doing I'll just keep walking down the railroad in search of spikes. Saw somebody on here found a plate.

Thats amazing. Yeah I wish there were more groups near Atlanta and our scrap yards generally dont have naval ship pieces just laying around haha. Just got back from one about 20min away and they wouldn't let me walk through but said I could check the hoppers. No luck mostly just push mowers and tubing. But I looked up some machine shops some of which repair tractors, backhoes etc. So well see what's happening. Iron dragon something like that would be all I need to do what I want. Looks awesome. Gotta be honest when I started looking into this I didnt think finding an anvil would be so hard but there was a lot I didnt know about them. So thanks for all the info guys and I'll definitely post when i get it so i can show my victory.

Ill make the guy an offer on and see what he says. Planning on running around to some shops and scrap yards hopefully this weekend. Really want to find something decent to get me started until a good deal comes along. And that dozer plate looks awesome. Square and round holes all in one piece. Thanks for the help guys. The search continues. Stay safe.

All of the track pieces I'm finding online are around 20lbs and 60$ plus shipping. I'm planning a trip to a couple scrapyards this weekend. Just wanted to know if this was a viable option as an anvil. The weight size and shape. Hopefully the Gov opens stuff back up and I can go rooting around.

Any thoughts on this? Between this and a piece of rr. I thought this might do a bit better according to what Frosty said. Unless I misread. 8 in x 6 in x 4-1/2 in. 49 pounds $40.00

Many thanks for the reply. Sorry. I've read enough on here to know that and I did it anyways. Location: lithia springs ga. So the channel either horizontal or vertical is a bad choice? I have a lead on some RR planned on looking at but it's a ways away. Just trying to use what I have. But I've heard of people using sledges as anvils but havent really understood the surface area needed to start working. That being said the main thing I'm trying to do is make specialty tools and knives. I've made plenty of tools by welding and cutting but some thing are only achievable by forging. And yes I have looked through and googled many things. I just cant find anything near me besides the RR that people have used. I've been culturing around repurposed material sites and cant find much. Not trying to be spoofed just looking for a nudge in the right direction. Thanks for the help and info guys.

This is what I was planning on using as my anvil as I do NOT have the money right now to buy one. What do you think and how would you make it work for you? My file wont upload unfortunately so I'll describe it. c beam 12" wide x 3 1/2 tall x 31 length. Middle of c is 3/8 thick top and bottom of c is 5/8 thick. 4 x 1" holes already drilled in middle of c beam Didnt want my first post to be super long but I found this chunk of steel and figured I could mount it as an anvil. Maybe on a 4x4 in the ground. I have some ideas just looking for more experience.