HumanAfterAll

Ok, so here we go again.

As soon as I first posted here I also posted on a facebook group telling I was after swedish anvils. I forgot that post until just now...

A guy offered me this for $296. He doesn't know the weight but it's 86cm from tip to tip. I already said I want it and ask him to keep it for me. Does anyone guess the weight? the owner doesn't know.

The face seems flat and good. And sounds like a real deal, but not one of those too good to be true, like last time...

I'll be more careful this time, but the man sounds legit.

Cheers!

I do have a nearby steel store and they already let me have a lot of scrap they had no use for. Besides the table on my first forge (please don't judge my welding =P), everything else is scrap, including the brake rotor and the smaller plates I used. 

I wanted to know because now that I have a tuyere and a blower, I want to make a better firepot. I'll ask around for 12mm plates, but IDK if'll be able to cut everything with a 4 1/2" angle grinder. Might be cheaper to have them cut it for me and take some scrap along.

The plate I have made my forge from is 6mm and it bends A LOT when I heat the whole think with coke. 

Cheers!

Don, what's the thickness of the plates you used?

I was watching this video, but I'm pretty sure I won't find a plate that thick around here.

Down to what thickness you think is safe to build a firepot?

On the bright side of this history, I found out that a friend of my wife has three anvils, all three are AV (Aço Villares a Brazilian steel company that was acquired by Gerdau). One of them is about 30kg and the other two way above 150Kg. Possibly 200kg.

He invited me over today and I found that those AV anvils have a nice TING to them and have about 90% rebound (measured it with the 1" bearing I bought). Now, I might have measured it all wrong, but I'll consider having an AV anvil.

All the three anvils are quite nice and have very very flat faces and I'm pretty sure they are cast steel, as I couldn't detect any indication that there was a steel plate welded on top of the anvil.

7 hours ago, Frosty said:

Dad was famous for saying don't do. . . X then tell us how to do it. Seems the folks knew the stronger the warning the greater the temptation so Dad gave us the best shot he knew for experimenting without making B A D mistakes.

That`s actually a good tactic. Will try this out with my boy. =)

I had several meetings with people from Brazilian sites like Craiglist and have never given my address... Always met them on very public places.

IDK what happened to me this time... Anyway thanks for all advises, guys. 

Hey, guys. I'm back.

So, it seems that the anvil was a scam. The owner started having some weird behavior by not answering phone calls and my messages on Whatsapp and not being at the time and place we scheduled to meet. Then he got back again saying he was traveling to a nearby city to get some cars on an auction, and then went missing again.

Unfortunately, the one time I managed to speak to him over a phone call I gave him my home address as he offered himself to deliver the anvil that supposedly was on the back on his truck. Now, I might be a bit too afraid of people wanting to rob me, but heck, I live in Brazil, so no caution is too much caution.

I should've been suspicious of the price, but I got carried away with what seemed a good opportunity. I'm still not 100% sure that it was a scam of some sort but his erratic behavior led me to think so and I chose to get my hand off the thing...

16 hours ago, Frosty said:

By clean, get as much dirt and crud off it as is reasonable or it will inhibit the rebound of a bearing or hammer. The cleaner the better but sanding is getting carried away. 

Thanks. Will do this if any other opportunity shows up.

Cheers, all!

12 hours ago, DHarris said:

He is paid in USD, which based upon anvil prices, means he lives there for just a little higher than free. 

Was thinking about that and concluded that: stuff here and usually costly. Being paid in USD is obviously better, but the price of the anvils does not reflect our reality. 

I've been thinking a lot about the blacksmithing tradition here in Brazil and I'm most certain that basically there's none, except for knifemakers over the south, which was also colonized by Germans and had Polish come in later, besides Italians.

We're a late industrialized country and I think that most of these great anvils came to the country during the construction of railways (starting on 1832 by an British company on Rio de Janeiro) - during this time Brazil was still an empire.

So what I think happens is that most people that own a Soderfors, Kohlswa, Wilkinsons and any other good anvil, basically don't know what they have on their hands, and this makes the prices be low. The few that know, will also no try to charge the "same" as over there in the USA, as there'll be no one to buy, as anvils are unused, 'cause we're not a blacksmith rich culture.

You can see big differences on anvil prices when looking for anvils over the three south states (but mostly Rio Grande do Sul) when compared with anvils from São Paulo and other states above the south (want to say "northerner states" but São Paulo is technically on the central-west, so...). They're way higher over the south, because there's people to use them.

9 hours ago, Latticino said:

I wouldn't wait till the weekend.  Go get it!

Going today. Still trying to make a time work.

5 hours ago, Glenn said:

None of the forges I have built were welded together before being used for a while.  Changes were easily made until I got what I wanted.  Only then did they get finalized.

How do you keep the pieces together?

2 hours ago, Frosty said:

Drop the bearing on a cleaned off anvil face and estimate how close to the starting height it returns.

This might sound stupid, but when you say "cleaned off" you mean that I should (hand) wire brush/sand it a little?

2 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

BTW using a ruler marked in inches and dropping from the 10" mark gives you the rebound reading in percentage! 8" rebound = 80%;  7" rebound= 70%, etc. Metric you have to do the math because you don't want to drop it from 1 meter!

Will look for a imperial ruler. Should the result be the same at any height? Should I be testing from several different heights?

2 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

Loose anvils should have a clear ring to them when tapped: TING.  Anvils fastened down may not have it.  Now the exception is for Fisher and Vulcan anvils that will not ring; but are still usable anvils---the Fisher is a good anvil and the Vulcan is an ok anvil---in my opinion. An anvil that should ring and doesn't may have a hidden crack in it; perhaps the faceplate delaminating---if it's loose as fastening an anvil down properly can kill the ring too.

Is this video a good example?

2 hours ago, DHarris said:

What is the exchange rate?  I have a gamer friend who lives in São Paulo.  He is a pilot, so he could live anyplace he chose to. I am beginning to understand why he chooses to live there. He is paid in USD, which based upon anvil prices, means he lives there for just a little higher than free. 

Yeah, if he's paid in USD he's taking a really great deal of Brazilian economic crisis right now. Can't say he lives for near nothing, but he sure lives a comfortable life. The current rate is 1 USD to 5.4 BRL. I'm still being paid in BRL - but now that I'm working at an USA company, I'm working hard to change that on the future! 

2 hours ago, DHarris said:

Any Mouseholes?  They are the undisputed King of All the Anvils, but for some reason the prices don’t seem to reflect that. 

Not so far. Only came across Soderfors, Kohlswa and a Wilkinson, besides the Brazilians (AV, Somar, Correauto) and some unnamed ones.

2 hours ago, DHarris said:

Just saw your $47 post. You are being a bit cruel now. 

I can't say that I feel bad... hahaha

4 minutes ago, Chris C said:

All I can say is if it's 90kg and has more than a 90% rebound I wouldn't be able to get the money out of my wallet fast enough.

Let's hope this happens!! hahaha

Are there any guides here on how to measure the rebound rate?

Ok, so I found this. No brands or any identification marks. Looks good, but I don't understand a lot... Guy told me it weights around 90Kg and he purchased it on a city nearby that is know for it's train and railway history (Paranápiacaba). Don't think he knows what it's made of...

He's basically giving it away for $47 (yes, forty-seven).

I'm coming over to "test" it tomorrow or by the weekend (but I want to go ASAP as I don't want let this slip).

Now, the two bearings arrived today (1" and 1/2"). What should I bring with me? The ball bearings and a hammer? What should I be looking at? Is the fact that it has no pritchel hole a no go?

Cheers!

Hey, DHarris. Nice design. I'm looking into making one for myself too but am concerned with the air flow. How do you control yours?

Also, this might be a stupid question for all you more seasoned on the craft, but why did your pot depth is 5" and not 3" as suggested on Bam's design. Why and what's the difference?

Been thinking about making a new firepot, since the forge is that large. I have my old hand-made forge that I can take apart to make a firepot that fit's this new structure and tuyere. 

I don't have enough knowledge to state what design I'm after, so what would you guys suggest me?

Fair enough

50 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said:

Boiled Linseed Oil usually contains driers to make it polymerize much faster;  sometimes including solvents.

Thanks, that's what I thought, since pure linseed oil is way harder to find over here, at least.

39 minutes ago, Frosty said:

I have Trewax finished, forged plant hangers that have been outside in Alaskan weather since the mid 90s without showing weathering.

Will stick to my ol' Brazilian carnaúba... hahaha

On 5/25/2020 at 1:46 PM, Frosty said:

A 1/2" bearing is more than large enough though a 1" bearing  might not be as likely to bounce at an angle as smaller.

Found out that ball bearings are not something that easy to find around here. Found whole new bearings, though. Ordered one 1" and one 1/2" steel ball. Should arrive today.

Also, when you say, Boiled Linseed Oil, is this a pure linseed oil or does it contains solvents too?

Do you guys have any examples?

Hey guys!

Back with some news. The face mask and two brushes arrived (though I only used the cup). I understand now why all the warnings - could hear many "splinters" flying around and two or three hit my face mask. Thanks again, guys.

I found the brush extremely unbalanced - lot's of vibration going on... And I find my grinder pretty stable whenever I'm using any other tool. I wonder if the brand of the cup I bought is not that good or if that much vibration is acceptable for cup brushes.

Also, cleaned up good the large pieces. Found some writings like an "A", a "15", an "8" and some other numbers/letters that I could not identify.

I plan to clean the crank and screw tomorrow so I can start reassembling it.

Oh, Frosty, I cannot fit the large pieces on my oven to heat them up and use the carnaúba wax. Any other idea?

Will share more photos as I move forward.

Cheers all!

3 hours ago, Latticino said:

Just make sure it is cast steel, not cast iron.

28 minutes ago, Frosty said:

Looks to be in pretty good condition providing it passes a rebound test that's a good price.

I'm looking for a 1" bearing to see if I can go over there and test it. Never done it before, though... I've been reading the Beginner's Buying Guide, do you guys suggest any other material I can read/watch?

32 minutes ago, Frosty said:

With the way the Corona virus is flaring up in Brazil you might start seeing more anvils for less money before long. Finances will start tightening up soon, I hate to take advantage of other's misfortune but buying things from them is helping them where they need it. 

I understand what you're saying, but yes, it's better to buy from people when it's cheaper than not buy at all.

One piece of info that might be important to give us some tips on the material: the owner told me he removed all the paint and used some sort of anti-corrosion solution, hence the black color. IDK if this is useful information, but that's what I got up until now. 

Cheers all!

Owner said no... And it seems it's gone, unfortunately. I'm almost out of luck. 

Almost. 

Take a look at this. 50kg and $220. I'm almost sure this is a Kohlswa, but the owner told me that there's nothing written anywhere. What you think? 

I'll have more pics of the face tomorrow and I'll post it. 

Cheers! 

Hey, guys. 

Another Wilkinson showed up. What you think of this one?

70KG and about $345.

Also, have any of you ever heard of an old Brazilian anvil brand called "AV" (which stands for "Aço Villares" - Villares Steel)? It seems to be pretty well accepted here as a quality anvil. I'm trying to get a guy I know that owns one to make a rebound test video so I can share with you. They're way cheaper than any foreign anvil...

The company was founded in 1944, was controlled by Sidenor on the past and has, since 2010, been controlled by Gerdau a major Brazilian steel producer.

In case any of you want read a quick history of the company, Google can help with this.

Cheers!

I'm very mindful of other people's experience and Am always trying to "learn by osmosis". This got me very far on a lot of subjects, including my current profession as software development engineer (fancy name for "programmer"). 

All of your warnings are very welcome and I thank you all a lot for them! 

2 hours ago, ThomasPowers said:

I use the most dangerous tool I own nearly every day---it's called a car/vehicle/pickup.

'nuff said

On 5/20/2020 at 2:26 PM, mcostello said:

Even the Wife does not do that.   

Oh, I laughed. That's so true...

Think I should be sad, but it's quite funny, though...

That's good karma you got there, sir! 

And thank you for your kind words, Frosty. You take care! 

Seriously considering using only a hand wire brush now... 

So, I was re-watching "Catch me if you can" once this last week and started wondering if some of you guys has ever come across an actual anvil counterfeit.

I've looked for some topic focusing specifically on this issue but couldn't find any. If this is a repost, I'm sorry.

Can you guys share your histories?

Also, I think is good to note that by "counterfeit anvil" I mean someone who's trying to making a cheap/no brand anvil as a "famous" one.