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I Forge Iron

Friendly machinist engineer FTW! (Makeshift anvil)


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I have a friend who is an engineer for a machinist shop that designs equipment for other manufacturers. So he has access to some fun stuff. For example, he is helping me CNC water cut a belt sander assembly to bolt on an an electric motor i salvaged. I realized i could ask him to check for scrap that i could use as a makeshift starter anvil. A few minutes later he sends me a pic of this (So you get an idea of dimentions, its about 5" thick)

post-26372-0-43163400-1343940283_thumb.j

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Haha, best part, his shop foreman said "if it just disappears, I won't notice"
Now...to try and fit it into the trunk of my honda accord on my way home from work...

Getting it in the trunk will be the easy part, I bet getting it back out will be a lot more difficult LOL. Probably 250# + I have a piece 2"x10"x18", 106#
Good find!
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Got a come-along or chainfall at home, and a stout place to hook it up to?

When they load it make sure it is on some blocking. 2x4's. Several, the width of your trunk, spaced so you can fit strap or cable in this is to save your trunk and allow for unloading. It would really suck if this thing caved in your spare tire well never to be removed again!

If they can drill and tap for a lifting eye or two in the side even better.

That there even LOOKS like an anvil!

Phil

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Thanks for the recommendation phil, i didnt think about that. I was going to pick it up today but something came up. I will try again on monday, but i will make sure to put some wood down to protect the trunk. I will make sure to post on it once i get it home too.

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I have a piece of 1/8" aluminum plate under the carpet in the back of my Chevy Trailblazer, plus I put down plywood for big anvils. And I secure it with nylon strapping to the hooks in the floor, and sometimes to the trailer hitch. You do not want to become "one with the anvil or steel" if you have a panic stop.

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I have a piece of 1/8" aluminum plate under the carpet in the back of my Chevy Trailblazer, plus I put down plywood for big anvils. And I secure it with nylon strapping to the hooks in the floor, and sometimes to the trailer hitch. You do not want to become "one with the anvil or steel" if you have a panic stop.

He speaks right seeing he has traveled cross country with very large anvils before.

Phil
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Isn't it strange that we get so excited over these discarded drops?... Everyone I've spoken with in regards to looking for a huge "chunk-o-steel", looks at me like I'm a retarded nutzo... They usually crook their head to one side like a inquisitive puppy...


Great score man, and one helluva good friend!!!!

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Man, o, man, could I have fun with a chunk of steel that big. I'd ask them if they could drill a 1" hole in that heel section for a "lifting point" that I could later turn into a hardy hole.

That drop is absolutely perfectly shaped for an anvil! With a 5" wide face, and that small heel section, you'll have an anvil to make other smiths jealous.

While you're waiting to pick it up, build up your trunk like the guys before me have suggested. Optimally, you want to be able to slide the anvil right out and not have to lift it up over the edge. If it's as heavy as we're thinking, lifting without a tractor or engine hoist is going to be a nightmare. Oh, and remember to use a lot of straps. Just because the rating on the strap sounds strong enough doesn't mean that you can trust the thing. If two "will do", four MIGHT be safe if you have to stop or turn suddenly.

Can't wait to see her in her new home.

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On August 3, 2012 at 9:04 PM, njanvilman said:

I have a piece of 1/8" aluminum plate under the carpet in the back of my Chevy Trailblazer, plus I put down plywood for big anvils. And I secure it with nylon strapping to the hooks in the floor, and sometimes to the trailer hitch. You do not want to become "one with the anvil or steel" if you have a panic stop.

Xxxx! Thats one hell of an anvil you moved!

He was able to weigh it in under 200lbs. I was going to attach some car nylon straps on it rated for over 1 ton on top of some boards ive lined the trunk with. He is not sure exactly what kind of steel it is, but is leaning towards that its 1018 steel. Do you guys think i will have to worry about hardening it? If it helps i will make a little video with it to make a better judgement on that. If you wanted to see the belt sander he is helping me make, you can find it here: http://bbs.homeshopmachinist.net/threads/23230-Belt-sanders-we-built?highlight=2x42+sander The CNC plans are on page 3 if any of you wanted to make one for yourself. Hehe, i cant wait, it feels like christmas!

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Under 200lbs is a good size. It will be easy enough to move around, but still have plenty of mass to work well.

Your straps should be fine. Remember that 200lbs standing still becomes significantly more when it drops or slides due to a turn or sudden stop. That chunk of steel is going to be traveling as fast as your car, so when you come to a sudden stop, you're going to want enough strapping and wood to stop a 200lb hunk of metal traveling at 60mph, for example. Going from 60 to 0 in thirty feet puts a bit of stress on the strapping, to say the least. Be sure to put some cardboard or carpet scraps between the straps and the metal so the corners of the steel don't slice through the nylon.

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Nope you won't be able to harden it. You may be able to hard face it using buildup rod (unlimited pass, work hardening) but the cost may be prohibitive. If you can get some good hardenable plate (old forklift tines?) and do a full weld using rod, and a spacer slug that gets welded in you might have good success.

Keep an eye out for a wedge or cone that you can weld on for a horn. You might want to put feet of some type on too.

If you have good hammer control you won't have problems. If you have poor hammer control, you will want to grind the face down some after learning hammer control, as the hardened hammer will leave dimples. Hot iron won't leave marks, and cold soft iron shouldn't either, but might. (many times rivets can be set cold)

Phil

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Nope you won't be able to harden it. You may be able to hard face it using buildup rod (unlimited pass, work hardening) but the cost may be prohibitive. If you can get some good hardenable plate (old forklift tines?) and do a full weld using rod, and a spacer slug that gets welded in you might have good success.

Keep an eye out for a wedge or cone that you can weld on for a horn. You might want to put feet of some type on too.

If you have good hammer control you won't have problems. If you have poor hammer control, you will want to grind the face down some after learning hammer control, as the hardened hammer will leave dimples. Hot iron won't leave marks, and cold soft iron shouldn't either, but might. (many times rivets can be set cold)

Phil


My plan is to weld some feet on and to take an old axe head and fix it up like in this vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oN2Xqf6uxCk&feature=related
At least, once i get my hands on a welder or if my friend can help me as he would know how. Not a bad idea to weld plate to it too...But i can think about that down the line too.
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