BIGGUNDOCTOR

I see the nib as a useful feature, kind of like a clip horn on a farrier pattern anvil. I would just smooth up the edges.

I wonder if they could be converted to operate like a big solenoid and use electromagnetism to move the ram...and then how much juice would it take to run it.

They are like rabbits, they breed....

When I toured the Ford Steel mill in 79 they were the third largest steel supplier. I was touring the rolling mill plant where they were rolling ingots that were 10" thick down to .010" and these got rolled into the large rolls that you see on semi trailers. The centers were still a dull red when they were done rolling them up.

Congratulations! Like Frosty mentioned, I still thought of you as the 15 year old smith on here. Time flies.

MARCUSB, do you know what it was originally used for? If so that can help others find similar anvils.

At the community college I learned smithing at they used some as the top surface on some home built anvils that were being made. We had a steady supply of scrap 1.5"-2" thick plates from Kaiser Steel that they sold for ten cents a pound. They had an anvil pattern set up in the torch and when all of the parts were cut, you just stacked and welded with the big innershield welder.

Most of the old wheel weights had antimony to begin with, they were not pure lead. A friend of mine who probably cast a ton of bullets over his lifetime would add wheel weights to pure lead to get the hardness up. Today a lot of wheel weights are zinc due to environmental issues with lead, and the ones my friend has in his motorcycle shop are coated steel.

Table salt melts at 1,474F (801C), and boils at 2,575F (1,413C) Borax melts at 1,369F (743C) and boils at 2,867F (1,575C)

Chip it off with a needle scaler and toss it in the trash. We used needle scalers to remove multiple layers of paint off of winery bottling equipment. But that teeny little bit you have could probably be knocked off with a hammer, chisel, or a stiff scraper.

A faster way to cut them down to size would be with a torch or plasma cutter.

Beautiful gate.I always liked the flowing lines of Art Nouveau metalwork. What was the total time spent, and what is the weight? My only design question is to the decision to just wrap the collars as opposed to welding the seam.

Don't hang it on a wall, you can still use it for splitting small firewood by using a mallet on the backside. Mower blades are hit and miss because some are a boron based steel that takes a special heat treating to get the best out of it.

Las Vegas is fun depending on what you like to do. It is not like it is represented in the movies though, so some are quite disappointed when they find that out.. Most locals tend to avoid the STRIP, and leave it for the tourists. I like to go down there every once in awhile to just people watch, and check out the displays at the Bellagio. Besides the casinos there are a lot of other things to do around the area-Red Rock Recreation Area, Lake Mead, Hoover Dam, Lost City Museum, Mt. Charleston, Valley of Fire, and just up the road in Utah is Zion National Park, or California is Death Valley. Then there are the various festivals, concerts, and other entertainment options. It is 109F (42.77C) here today and it doesn't really start cooling off until the end of October. If you ever want to head this way, give me plenty of heads up and I can help you plan it out.

I believe one of the rock crusher hammers was actually from a metal shredder that shreds cars.