Hi, this my first post. Thank you in advance for any help.

I am trying to put together my own forge "area" and I am not working on the anvil. I cannot spend hundreds on a good anvil but I was watching a video (purgatoryironworks on youtube) and he mentioned a piece of steel on a stump. I figured I could do that.

Today I went to a steel place and found 01 and A2 steel. It was not big enough I don't think 4x2 1/2" $22 and another one was round with a diameter of about 3 - 3.5 inches, 3/4", $17.

My question is will that work? Can I just get steel like this and fasten it to a stump with screws of nails (not through it just on the side to keep it from sliding. I read something on anvilfire that said the japanese, india, and the ancient greeks put a piece of steel on the ground and do/did not use a western style anvil at all.

I am trying build a railroad spike knife before I move on to better, more costly steel.

OK. If you are making knives it would work. Not as well as a heavier piece of metal, its the mass you really need but any bit will work. Make sure your stump is solid and well dug in so its a fixture and try to fix your piece of metal as securely to the stump as possible(that will be the hard bit). It will then become a large mass with a metal top for you to bang on and would work. Once you get that working keep an eye out for a bit of 4x4 or 4" round about a foot or so long and embed this in some concrete as in the Lively method.

Difficult question to answer. You could forge on a flat rock, but I would not recommend it if you have access to anything better. Same for a small block of steel, you could forge on it, but you will be limited to what the block will do. For use as small anvils, you might wish to consider going to a few flea markets and looking for old large sledgehammer heads, the bigger the better. Also consider trying a few scrap yards to see if you can find a discarded fork from a fork lift, or a large block of steel. These items should cost you less and at the same time be more functional as anvils.

O1 and A2 are both tools steels which are very expensive. You don't need tool steel for an anvil. You would be far better off to buy the biggest piece of mild steel you can afford.
Yes something harder than mild would be better but having some mass is much more important. It will take a lot of forging to wear a heavy piece of mild steel and while you may mark it up with missed hammer blows you can grind or file those out or just flip it over and use the other side.

And shoot for something around 100 pounds. At least 70.

O1 and A2 are both tools steels which are very expensive. You don't need tool steel for an anvil. You would be far better off to buy the biggest piece of mild steel you can afford.
Yes something harder than mild would be better but having some mass is much more important. It will take a lot of forging to wear a heavy piece of mild steel and while you may mark it up with missed hammer blows you can grind or file those out or just flip it over and use the other side.

Thanks (everyone). There were a lot more choices at the steel place for mild steel (A36 I think). A lot thicker pieces too. I'm not so worried about scuffing it up if it will work. I just don't want to spend $30 and then mess it up so bad that I cannot use it any more. I have no idea what I'm talking about but I guess if it dents in too much I can't get a flat place on the anvil.

One day I plan on getting a real anvil, so I'm thinking this would be okay for the short while (one year of less.) Not sure how much it costs yet so I have to look at that. I'm not sure where a scrap yard in the Atlanta area but I'll search. I found recycling places but they said they don't sell it.

On the mild steel thing. Is A36 harder than the ASOs I see at Northern Tool and the like?

A36 is a good quality mild steel, if loosely specified (its carbon content and other chemistry allow for a lot of variation) It will be more durable than a cast iron ASO, and have better surface hardness and rebound. If you are lucky you will get a piece on the high side of the carbon allowance.

Look for a piece of plate 3-4 inches x 6-8 inches x 6-12 inches You will stand it on, and work on the small sides normally. You might not need to buy an anvil for a long time.

Phil
ps: if density of mild steel is .283 lb/in^3 then 4x8x12 is about 108 lb

Edited October 22, 200916 yr by pkrankow

A36 is a good quality mild steel, if loosely specified (its carbon content and other chemistry allow for a lot of variation) It will be more durable than a cast iron ASO, and have better surface hardness and rebound. If you are lucky you will get a piece on the high side of the carbon allowance.

Look for a piece of plate 3-4 inches x 6-8 inches x 6-12 inches You will stand it on, and work on the small sides normally. You might not need to buy an anvil for a long time.

Phil

I do not mean to be dumb but is that LxWxD (thickness)?

Edited October 22, 200916 yr by LearningToForge

Learning to, Check your PM.
Ken

I do not mean to be dumb but is that LxWxD (thickness)?

Length by Width by Depth

Do you think that A36 will absorb too much of the hammer blows? Sorry. I just heard someone say it so I had to ask.

edit: can A36 be harded in a coal forge and quenched with water or oil to make it harder?

Do you think that A36 will absorb too much of the hammer blows? Sorry. I just heard someone say it so I had to ask.

It will work just fine so long as you don't hammer the material when it's cold.

edit: can A36 be harded in a coal forge and quenched with water or oil to make it harder?

Theoretically yes, in practice not any appreciable amount. You're better of using that fuel for smithing! :)

I would not worry about that. Yes you will lose a little efficiency but not nearly as much as you would by not having enough weight, your best use of minimal funds is to get the most weight you can. Don't wory about specific dimensions. When you get the block of steel make sure you round the sharp corners (leave a small area with a crisp corner) using the radiused corner of the anvil to draw out will make a big difference.

If you're willing to spend around $100 (US) *and* you want to build something that will last and function very well, look into 4140 at some of the "hobby" metal suppliers (I occasionally use Speedymetals, as they'll cut any length of any material they supply in 1 inch increments and charge by the inch). I have a 4 1/2" X 2 1/4" X 10" piece that I've been using for the last several months (after I heat treated it--look into the proper heat treating of the material before attempting--this is oil hardening steel--I use ATF) and it's been working great. Just remember to not have your head in-line with your hammer swing as it can develop excellent rebound! (I've never missed my work piece and had the hammer travel instantaneously to my forehead, and I'll never do it again!)

-Chris

Edited October 22, 200916 yr by chrisfrick
added info

any old train yards around... apiece of rail works good too and you can usually obtain with a little snooping around junk yards and steel plants....thats good steel for an anvil

Now repeat after me "A LARGE HUNK OF STEEL IS A *REAL* ANVIL*!" and looks a lot like the anvils that japanese swords are still forged on to this day!

A36 is probably the cheapest steel you can find. If you are worried about denting it get it an inch longer and grind out the dents once a year...

A36---especially in large sections will not harden a lot by heating and quenching.

If you really have an issue using mild steel ask at a fork lift sales/repair place about getting a trashed tine. I have one that I found free that weighs 180 pounds.

When orienting a chunk of steel anvil to forge on orient it so the most mass is under the hammer is a 4" sq x 2' long piece would be oriended vertically with the 4" square being the face.

Far better than a chunk of RR rail is the broken knuckle off a RR car coupler, has a flat side and a curved side weighs around 80 pounds and can be found free sometimes.

STOP Overthinking it and get to hammering. When you have some experience you will know what you want in your *next* anvil!

grizzly.com has anvils for low costs. i seriously doubt that they are any good but they looked like a mousehole. bout 25 dollars for a small one. take the gamble if you want.