BIGGUNDOCTOR

They are not fully hardened, the inner core is softer than the face. If it was in an industrial setting a big radial drill would have made short work of that. It may even be threaded into place.

Put the word out that you are looking for a scuba diver. Have them put some chains around them for pulling them out. How deep are they? A chain with a loop on one end will choke the trunk as it is pulled.

I may have to remove the redwoods from my folk/s estate. Dad planted them in 1970, and the biggest ones has a real burled up base, and is around 4' in diameter now. No mills are interested in buying them, so I would like to do something with them as opposed to just dumping them.

I have a 4.5" and a 9" grinder. The 7" just seemed not enough for me.

Phats, all I would do is smooth up some of the edges with a grinder to the smallest radius that fits the chipping. May even toss a 45 degree chamfer on the big ones, as that could come in handy.

In today's market you did pretty good. The anvil alone would run what you paid in some areas. Nice to see someone still getting into the hobby without going broke. Nice to hear the seller is willing to help you out. Pick that brain of his, and take notes.

Many old anvils were made from multiple pieces and the forge welds can fail. Usually you will see delaminating faces, but heels and horns have been broken off. Modern cast anvils are good quality. One of mine is a 125# JHM Journeyman that I got from a retired farrier. Nice anvil, that I would recommend without hesitation. A list of modern anvils was just started, go check it out along with the improvised anvil thread. For beginners I would lean towards an improvised, as they can be picked up for free or just a few dollars.

Greenskpr, I would go with a rotary converter myself, as you can run multiple pieces off of one unit. Mine will start up to a 15hp motor and run a combined 60hp. Yeah its a large one that I got to run my machine shop equipment and one 3ph MIG welder.

Nice clean forging in the end. I suck at forge welding, and really need to practice more.

My Dad didn't wear his wedding ring until he retired. Being an aircraft mechanic in the Air Force, and a civil service machinist at a Navy yard meant it was a work hazard.

Why do you need a VFD for the grinder?

The forge looks like one I picked up a few years ago. The tee shaped items are sheet metal stakes, and should be used with a stake plate, not put into the hardy hole of the anvil. Everything appears to be in good shape, just dirty. Always curious what kind of a deal people get a package like this. I hit a similar sale a few years ago, and picked up two forges with blowers, a 170# Hay Budden anvil that looks hardly used, a bucket of tongs, bucket of top and bottom tools, a 1/4 drum of coal, a 14" Hobart "Buffalo chopper" with a rolling stainless cart and meat grinder attachment along with some other items for $880. The Hobart can go upwards of $1,000. The swage block can come in handy if you do work that requires one. As mentioned, some end up as door stops, and cool items to look at. My Dad made some out of 2" thick plate at the college during night classes. Over all you did excellent. One suggestion would be to make the gentleman who sold you all of this something as a gift. You might also hit him up for some lessons if he is willing to teach you. Having someone there with experience coaching you can really accelerate your learning.

I see a lot of PW anvils with sway, and my 138# PW has a divot in the face near the horn. I suspect it is due to the soft wrought iron bodies. I have others say they can be hit or miss on the quality.

JHM is a nice anvil. Holland anvils are cast H13. Rhino anvils. I heard that Kohlswa anvils are no longer being made.

Very nice job, looks good on the box