Malleus

I'm a firm believer in using 2 hands. Whether it's mig or stick, 2 hands will give you much better control. For stick, if the rod is long enough, I use one hand for the stinger, and use the other hand to hold the rod. Sometimes I don't hold it, but merely support it with my fingers.

TWISTEDWILLOW, that's a nice looking vise. That thing sure opens up wide. Does it lock in at that point?

I've never used a PW, but I see them all the time. Most of them seem to have lots of edge chipping. Maybe that's because they tend to be harder? If that's true, I would assume people like them because they have good rebound.

More often than not, anvil patterns will follow right along with the country from which they were manufactured. This is especially true for German, French, Italian, and British anvils. No worries at all, yt12. However, you would probably be more likely to get more exposure on it, if it had it's own thread.

Thanks! It was something I had been dreaming of for a long time. It was originally going to be smaller, but a good friend of mine urged me to build it as large as I could. So I did, and I'm grateful for his advice. I ended up building it in 3 stages (floor, walls, roof), and paid as I went. The last thing I wanted, was to take the enjoyment out of it by having to make payments on a loan. There are definitely a few changes I would make if I were to do it again. However, I'm very pleased with it overall, and it has served me well so far. Hoping to start that lean-to this year, maybe.

Glad you both walked away happy, but if it was a small vise, I would say you got the better end of the deal.

I built this 10 or so years back. The dimensions are 20x30. It doubles as storage for tools, equipment, ect... as well as a place to do home shop type stuff. I'm hoping to set up a forging operation here also. I have some plans to do a lean-to type building off the side in the near future.

If you're correct, then maybe a decent welder could rebuild the horn.

Hate that the old feller could no longer work, but glad you got a good deal and the vise went to a good home.

I'm not sure of the best way to affix it to the original part of the horn, but I think welding it would take the temper out of the steel. Tool steel needs to be heated before it's welded, and then has to be re-tempered if necessary. It could probably be welded by an experienced stick welder with the right rod. For instance, cast iron welding requires a rod with a high nickel content, such as a 7018. Before I went the welding route, I would explore other options like maybe an interference fit of some sort, or possibly pinning it.

Thanks, yt12! I would just use it "as is". One other possible solution, would be to drill a hole in the end of the horn, then add a piece of tool steel shaped however you like. However, it depends on the composition of that part of the anvil, as to whether it can be drilled or not.

Hill and Wilkinson, both made in Birmingham, England. I haven't had the opportunity to use either. It's my understanding that Birmingham was the old English equivalent of Pittsburg. I seriously doubt you'll find many topics here that haven't been repeated. I thought it was a good thing to stimulate conversation. However, if it's something that goes against forum rules, or it bothers you otherwise, delete it.

I was speaking in terms of general blacksmithing. All aspects considered. Rebound, structural integrity of the anvil material, how well the shape lends itself to general blacksmithing, etc... This isn't necessarily a comparison of anvils. This is more of an opinion oriented thing, and can be based on many things, including user specific details. People tend to have their favorites for one reason or another. This is just a chance to share those favorites, and the reasons.

Doesn't have to be current production. What country do you think made the finest anvils? I've heard some say that Swedish anvils are among the best. I know Germany also had some of the finest anvils made. I hear a lot about English made anvils, especially Peter Wright's. Personally, I've been wanting to add a John Brooks to my inventory, since I don't have any that are English made.

Hardly a day goes by at work where I don't have to do some kind of welding. That being said, I do save by boot laces. I keep spares at home where I put my boots on in the morning, and I keep a spare set in my glovebox, and a set at work. I only use them in case of breakage. lol Now, I do have a drawer in my shop where there is a crap ton of string, wire, small rope, and similar products. Large rope, wire, and cable hangs in the trusses. Every time I have to go to the metal dumpster, I keep my eyes peeled for anything useful. Occasionally, I find hardened steel that's good for knife making material. Every once in a while, I find other stuff that is worth keeping. Probably the 2 best things I've found were the 2 vises that I posted here on the forum. I also found a railroad jack once.

Thanks! would you believe it was headed for the metal dumpster?! It had a broken foot on the swivel base, so I just cut out a half inch steel plate and mounted it directly to it. I think you may be right about editing. I think I've seen that on other forums.

I guess there's no edit feature, so I'll just add this pic here...

The one I currently use the most, is my 8" Wilton Torpedo Bench Vise. Man, I love that thing.

Vice

I agree.

Glad you guys like it. I'm certainly looking forward to using it, especially since it belonged to my dad. I'm most certain he would be happy to see me getting some use out of it. Eventually, I'll have to make some kind of stand or holder for it.

I occasionally have a pretty good source for U bolts from large trucks. I usually save them if they're not too greasy. Any idea what kind of steel these are usually made from? I have drawers and bins completely full of hardware and scrap bits I have collected over the years. I get a lot of it from estate sales. People that come in my home shop are amazed by what I have amassed over the years.

Yeah, I like the narrow tips. Almost like the horn of an anvil.

My dad worked in the mining industry, and he brought this H&L Tooth adapter home somewhere around 25 years ago. It's for very large excavating machinery. I'm sure he brought it home to use for forging and blacksmithing purposes, but he never got around to using it. I decided to bring it home with me this weekend. I haven't weighed it, but it feels like it weighs around 60 pounds, and it's forged.

Speaking of regrets... about 2 years ago, a fairly good sized machine shop, which was local to me, permanently closed up shop. One day I was working at a facility next to it, and I noticed they were throwing lots of stuff in a large dumpster out back. I had to walk over to the machine shop to have something made, and as I was walking back, I took a look in the dumpster. It was full of all kind of tool steel, as well as machine parts, and parts to anything you would find in a machine shop. I wanted to do some major dumpster diving, but my co-worker was in a hurry to get our job done. I think about that a lot, and really regret letting him get in the way of me retrieving some potentially very cool stuff. What a shame.