Emyrnes Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 Here is the beginning of an anvil I started building today. I put it together from what I had on hand, because I figured although I'm no expert, and never made an anvil before, anything would be better than the HF ASO I've been dealing with for a year. I'm sure this picture will make somebody cringe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 Can we have a side picture? Solid Mass is what you are going for *not* trying to make something look like a london pattern anvil. Did someone try to weld a steel plate to a cast iron anvil in that other picture? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emyrnes Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 Here is a side picture the top portion is Two pieces of 4 1/2 x 2, and the bottom is 4 pieces of 1 3/4 square bars with some milling. With the solid mass, do you think it would be better to lose the lower bit and just use the larger top pieces? I wondered about that but figured more overall weight would be good, I'd love to get some input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 I'd mount it vertically to have the most solid mass under the hammer---unless you did a full penetration weld between all the pieces! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emyrnes Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 When I was starting this I considered vertical too, but I gave in to the idea of a big face to work on. I put aside a length of the thicker stock to drop into a stump as a backup option Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 Emyrnes, how big is the face of your hammer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 30, 2022 Share Posted May 30, 2022 Ditto vertical mount. You want effective and you can't strike more than the hammer's face per blow. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 30, 2022 Share Posted May 30, 2022 It can be handy to have a large flat plate for truing up items; but that is usually just tapping and adjusting and so a heavier piece is not required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Shed Forge Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 Hey folks, Been a while! Almost a year, sheesh. I just had to jump on here to brag about my recent acquisition An M&H Armitage Mouse Hole 1.1.5 (145lbs) If what I'm reading is correct from the folks with AIA, that puts it around 1820-1835 production..? I bought it for $500 US from Joe, a friend of my wife's late grandfather Cotton. He's posted up on KY 68, 2 minutes west of me, for the annual 400 Mile Yard Sale going on this week. He got it at an Amish auction; I forgot to ask which county. Maybe a little high on his asking price, but he wouldn't budge and I had to have it. I know nothing about the 2 stamps at its front base, but if anyone has a guess I would be happy to hear it. It rings nicely and a ball peen hammer rebounds well, though I do not have a ball bearing at the moment. I did not do any doctoring in excess of a wire wheel brushing and some oil, although Joe admitted to me that the tip of the horn was in poor shape when he bought it and so, to my dismay, he took a grinder wheel to it and rounded it off a bit. All in all I am very happy with it and as soon as I get the forge back up and running, it shall be fed some hot steel. Thanks for checking it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 I can see why you just had to have it. A very nice Mouse Hole indeed. The very minor edge wear and horn are nothing to worry about IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 Nice condition, great anvils I'd put her to work as is. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richie B. Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 (edited) Very nice. You mention KY 68 400 mile sale. I live in East Tennessee. We try to do the 127 Hwy yard sale that runs from Michigan to Alabama. It is the 1st of part of August. We also try to go to the Nashville Flea Market a couple of times a year. I am always looking for Blacksmithing tools so it becomes a great treasure hunt. Edited June 3, 2022 by Richie B. added content. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 8 hours ago, Red Shed Forge said: around 1820-1835 production..? Mousehole (aka The Undisputed King of Anvils) started adding pritchel holes in about 1830, so that narrows it down even further to 1830-1835, the same as mine. Who knows; they might have even been in the factory at the same time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Shed Forge Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 JHCC, Cool, thanks for that tidbit. It would be pretty neat if they were made at the same time! 10 hours ago, Richie B. said: 127 Hwy yard sale that runs from Michigan to Alabama. I'll have to check that out one day, I'm always looking for some smithing tools too. Thanks for your thoughts, everyone. I can't wait to work with her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wandering_R0gue Posted July 29, 2022 Share Posted July 29, 2022 This is mine. Paid 1.00/lb for it from some old guy's barn. 90lbs, but I don't know the maker. There are traces of a maker stamp on the side, but it is too rusted to be legible. Could be in better condition, but for the price, it does the job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rojo Pedro Posted July 29, 2022 Share Posted July 29, 2022 Nice score WR. looks in good shape Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wandering_R0gue Posted July 29, 2022 Share Posted July 29, 2022 It is in fairly good shape. Shoulders are a bit rounded, and there is a cut in the tip of the horn, but otherwise, it is workable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 30, 2022 Share Posted July 30, 2022 Looks good to me from here. Putting hammer to hot steel on her will shine up and smooth her face nicely. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatLiner Posted July 30, 2022 Share Posted July 30, 2022 Those edges don't look to rounded to me. In the book Practical Blacksmith by M.T. Richardson on pg. 92 a blacksmith from about the turn of the century wrote. "For my own part, I am satisfied not only that the sharp edges are useless, but that they are also destructive of good work. I cannot account for their existence except as a relic of a time when the principles of forging were but little under stood. I want both edges of my anvil rounded, not simply for a part of their length, but for their whole length. To my mind the ideal anvil of 130 pounds is one having its edges (from the table to about 2/3 the length) rounded to a curve of three-eighths of an inch radius (from about 2/3 to the heal) rounded to a curve of three-sixteenths or one-quarter of an inch radius. The (edge of the heal) can be sharp to satisfy the unconverted.-By X." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rojo Pedro Posted July 31, 2022 Share Posted July 31, 2022 Here is my garden anvil. 7kg new world anvil I bought a couple years ago and a stake anvil I made from 4140. I like to tap on some copper do-dads and stuff when we sit out and drink coffee on the weekends. nice little anvil that I will move to a jewelers bench when that time comes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daswulf Posted July 31, 2022 Share Posted July 31, 2022 That's is a beauty of an anvil Rojo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davor Posted August 3, 2022 Share Posted August 3, 2022 That is a beautifull anvil and lovely picture. You have a good eye for pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natkova Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 This is austrian anvil. With stairs on them and church doors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shainarue Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 Thanks to some wonderful advice on this forum, I'm on my way to a functional anvil. I still want to add a piece of square tubing to hold hardy tools, especially the hold-down tool because this hammering surface is tiny to try to hold something steady in that spot while holding the other end/tongs between my legs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 When you say “possible swage”, are you thinking of cutting grooves across the web, or rounding the web over as fuller? For what it’s worth, I haven’t used the fuller I ground into the web of my own rail anvil, but your mileage may vary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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