In light of the Re-bar for forging thread, I was wondering if it would be worth picking up some railroad track. I have to talk to the guy about it, but its sitting on the edge of the woods half covered by leaves. I'm just wondering if its worth picking up considering the hassle of moving it (5 or 6, 6-8' sections) and how much I should offer for it?

I know track is a high carbon steel, so it difficult to forge.. is it too much for a beginner?

Yes, it is too much to try and forge, but it can make some nice anvils.

Here are some examples of RR rail anvils. I don't know who made them, but they are some of the best examples I've seen. You can also bury the whole length vertically in the ground and use the cross section as an anvil or stand.

Here are some examples of RR rail anvils. I don't know who made them, but they are some of the best examples I've seen. You can also bury the whole length vertically in the ground and use the cross section as an anvil or stand.

those are great anvils, I was scrounging around the local wrecking yard yesterday and found some rr track but I passed it up partly because the gap between the rail and the base was too narrow, but this guy solved that problem in a perfect way, I wonder how he did that

had some questions about track myself, I have about 8 foot, but no markings at all.
So far I have made a flatter from the lower half and a halfround hardie with the top, anyone have any thoughts on tempering? I would like to try a hammer out of it...
only thing I know about this RR track is that its pearlitic steel..

In that photo, do you think that the flat surface on the top is welded on harded steel or do you think it is just ground flat?

They all have a plate welded to the top, but you can also use the track as is or grind or cut all the main forging dies into it. Ed and I forged our first prototype of the anvil we usually use from a twelve inch piece of track.
[The main forging dies are: Flat, Fullers, and Butcher]

I have made tools from the web of railroad rail. I just cut it out with a torch and making an"S" curved piece to be straightened and forged into a tool. I made nail headers. One could make tongs. Just don't quench above the transition. The steel is medium carbon and the steel I had forged well.
Warren

So no suggestions on how much I should offer?

We are doing some work for the guy and we have done a lot of work in the past, so I'm hoping he just gives it too me in exchange for a break on the bill... Kind of wondering how much to take off the bill if he does give it to me too.

bonehead11 this guy didn't solve the the gap he used heaver gauge track the newer track out there is heaver i just lookat a side job were the guy workes for a RR contractor in north jersey and he had a pieace of new track there about 3 feet and the web had to be 8-10 inches high and 2-3 inches wide nice stuff still trying to get it out of him he said his company just sold 6-7 tons of cut offs about 3 feet for 600 bucks all new stuff that when they welded the joints with thermite it didn't pass the x-ray test .wish i had known i would have bought it and be selling them cheap

If you've got some welding skills. Laying two pieces side by side and filling in the middle with air hardening rod, makes for a pretty big anvil.

Brian, those are sweet!

This works even better. You can leave one rail long for a horn, it'll be offset but it's easy to build, weighs 3x what a single rail does for the same length and the face is HC steel.

Frosty

Frosty THAT is a GREAT idea for RR track !!

Heat treating rail: "The Complete Modern Blacksmith" Weygers; has a entire chapter on making an anvil from RR rail including a section on heat treating it.

or you can go from the basics of it's metallurgy:

From my RR steel file:
"I am citing the Arema (The American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way A
ssociation) 2007 document, Part 2 "manufacture of Rail"

Standard rail steel:
.74 to.86% Carbon,
.75 to 1.25% Manganese,
.10 to .60% Silicon
Minimum Brinell (of unhardened surface) 310 or 370 dependant of grade ordered.

Low Alloy Rail Steel
.72 to .82% Carbon,
.80 to 1.10% Manganese,
.25 to .40& Chromium,
.10 to .50% Silicon
Minimum Brinell (of unhardened surface) 310, 325, or 370 dependant of grade orde
red.
My document shows the following breakdown for grades:
SS = standard strength (brinell 310)
HH = Head Hardened (brinell 370)
LA = Low Alloy Standard Strength (brinell 310)
IH = Low Alloy Intermediate (brinell 325)
LH = Low Alloy Head Hardened (brinell 370)"