anagram Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 I've got hold of a 1.5 cwt Brooks anvil on a cast iron stand so I'm kind-of happy. It has a nice flat face, good edges and a pleasing ring and bounce. I'm only "kind-of happy" because a previous owner has machined a 3-inch slot in its face. What was this for? I can only guess. It's still 77 kg or inertial mass and I can bash away on the rest of the face, but what do people think about this modification? Is it the shape of things to come, with great opportunities for punching, cutting and upsetting, or a wanton bit of vandalism that has trashed a classic? My own view is something between the two, but I'm only a learner and I'm trying to look on the bright side! Pics athttps://picasaweb.go...feat=directlink Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurlyGeorge Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 Anagram, I'm not sure what that slot is/was for. But I wouldn't do anything to try to repair it. I can see where it would come in handy for several things. Like you said, you still have a lot of clear area to work on. Other than the slot, it looks like it's in great shape. My 2 cents. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anagram Posted November 27, 2011 Author Share Posted November 27, 2011 Thanks George. I did toy with the idea of repairing it (the machining was very crude, so I did tidy it up a bit with a flap disk), but I couldn't see a reason to, other than aesthetics. The slot cuts through an older strike point that's quite pitted, so I don't think I'd favour that end of the face anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakedanvil - Grant Sarver Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 It ain't "vandalism" if it was his anvil. I'd bet he didn't do it without good reason. "Back in the day" they didn't worship their anvil as a shrine, they used them and often modified them for the work they were doing. An anvil is just a block of iron with a bunch of useful "features". I've added "features" to the face of my anvil before, usually made money with said feature too, often many time the value of the anvil. Why not just make some sort of hardy block? Well, that's OK up to a point, but there's nothing like pounding on a solid anvil especially when you got a lot of work to do. Rarely seen a feature added that rendered the anvil useless for general work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marksnagel Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 Good point Grant. I may assume that at one time or other we have all modified some tool to meet our particular needs. I see a lot of potential uses for that slot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wesley Chambers Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I have seen this done on a number of farrier used anvils. Mostly the slot will run across the face not along the middle of it, but added to make it easier to pritchel nail holes in shoes with one or more clips drawn that can prevent you from aligning with the pritchel hole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timothy Miller Posted November 28, 2011 Share Posted November 28, 2011 I would have to disagree. Wile it makes one activity easier it makes many others much less efficient. If you did one thing all the time perhaps and only that one thing. To me it looks like the work of someone who is unschooled, unimaginative and has a narrow view of what can be accomplished at the forge. Perhaps they didn't even have a forge. I think the slot was put in to do bending or straightening cold. There are a whole lot of other ways to do that effectively without cutting a slot in the face of a very expensive anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anagram Posted November 28, 2011 Author Share Posted November 28, 2011 Thanks everyone for your expert views. Compared to what I was previously using this is a definite upgrade, but as a newbie I'm unsure which jobs would have been easier without the slot there. I guess what you've never had you don't miss. The idea of a repair is not completely dead in my mind, but I think it will be once I fully realise the damage I could do! I'll take Grant's advice and think of it as a feature, not a bug. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borntoolate Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 Brian Brazeal has a very different anvil. It only has about a 3"x3" flat area on it. The rest is a few different shapes and edges. This got me thinking. For a hammer blow you really don't need more space than this. In fact 3x3 is probably way more flat space than necessary. If you can hit reasonably accurate. So I'm thinking you have flat space in abundance and the gash in the top will be useful for something. You sort of have an anvil / Swage block combo... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WayneCoeArtistBlacksmith Posted December 18, 2011 Share Posted December 18, 2011 I suspect that the smith made a lot of folded leaves. Forge the leaf shape, place the leaf over the "swedge" and drive the center of the leaf down with a fuller. Like said before I just made the tool by welding two pieces of 1/2" square on a piece of 3/8 X 1 1/2 bar stock about 4" long. I welded a hardy tang made from 1/4 X 1 bar stock folded into a "U" long enough to reach thru the anvil and drive a wedge in. This makes the swedge part of the anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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