PaulKrzysz Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 I have a 55lb cast iron anvil my father is letting me use. I want to know if i could source a good steel plate could attach it to the top? I would also want to fix some mass on the bottom to increase the weight and stability. I was thinking, since it has a extended face shelf, I could weld angle iron to my steel plate and slide it on. I also have a arc welder. I have this anvil (the one at the top):http://www.anvilfire...zly_and_ASO.php Could this be done or am I wasting my time? Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wd&mlteach Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 IMHO that is why they are called ASO, becasue they are not anvils. In my neck of the woods I would spend the time and energy searching CL or local auctions for a real anvil. I would not bother trying to plate an ASO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 Here's what I did. I found a leaf spring from a coal hauling trailer. They were the right width for the anvil. Cut off the excess length off. Preheat the anvil and run a stringer bead focused mainly on the anvil with a nickel 99 rod. Follow that with either a 7018 or 309 stainless rod focusing the bead twards the steel plate. Use short beads of 1 1/2" move 6" around and keep going until finished. This worked but the anvil was still dead. I ended up cutting the plate off and am now in the process of surfacing it with the 309 stainless rod wich suprisingly enough bonded to the cast. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulKrzysz Posted November 12, 2012 Author Share Posted November 12, 2012 By dead do you mean no ring or bounce? I really just want something that wont fall apart after a little bit of beating not really and instrument! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 Lets just say, I've been suffering from a bad case of tennis elbow for over a year because of that anvil. I had to strike so hard to do a little. I'm using a piece of RR track flipped upside down and boxed in. It works so much better. Get some 309 stainless and surface the anvil. It will make for a more lively face. Just preheat and don't run beads next to each other consecutively to keep heat buildup to a minimum. Once you get a good layer built up you can run them together. The plate worked better than nothing but I wouldn't do it that way again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieforge Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 For the amount of time and materials you're going to spend welding on a plate or resurfacing, it would be easier and cheaper to just get a real anvil. Based on what I have seen and read, these sorts of anvil repair projects tend to only make sense if one or more of these is true: - your time has no value - you have the tools and materials for repair available at no cost to you - a real anvil is prohibitively expensive in your area - a real anvil is unavailable in your area - you really enjoy anvil repair If I were in your shoes, I would just use the cast iron anvil as-is for now, and save my time and money for a real one. They are out there. Just my 2 cents. Markus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieforge Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 P.S. I just noticed you're in Mississauga, and a fellow Canadian! I searched for "anvil" on Kijiji for Toronto area. This came up:http://toronto.kijij...QAdIdZ428202456 It wouldn't hurt to visit the seller, and try to offer around $200 ($2/lb) for it. You might get lucky. Markus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulKrzysz Posted November 12, 2012 Author Share Posted November 12, 2012 I am really looking out for a decent anvil believe me. Over here all the Kijiji anvils are Over $5 a pound if you can believe it, and no they don't sell. I have a larger large anvil but am trying to get a mix of cash/trade for a smaller one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulKrzysz Posted November 12, 2012 Author Share Posted November 12, 2012 Oh, that guy was asking $500 for it before it changed to 'please contact'. And unfortunetly it is a farriers anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newbieforge Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Yikes. I didn't realize the prices were so bad down south! Markus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricko13 Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Just got a good one in the Montreal region... I would maybe open up your search on Kijiji to Quebec and see what you find. :) P.S.: Try the following key words for french: "Forgeron" = Blacksmith and "Enclume" for Anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNewman Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Get a heavy chunk of mild steel. It will work better than the CI anvil Look up Brazeal anvil on here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironwolfforgeca Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 other option would be find a LG Heavy chunk of steel then weld a tool steel plate to that :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironwolfforgeca Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 other option would be find a LG Heavy chunk of steel then weld a tool steel plate to that :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironwolfforgeca Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 other option would be find a LG Heavy chunk of steel then weld a tool steel plate to that :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironwolfforgeca Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 sorry bad post button Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swedefiddle Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Good Morning, IMHO, I would use what you have until you get another anvil. A rock is better than nothing. Trying to rework the cast iron anvil is like trying to make Honey out of old Dog droppings. There is nothing wrong with a Farrier anvil, they work fine for most applications. If you are going to beat on it with a 10-12 lbs. Sledge hammer, make sure you are working over the waist. I would offer the person $250-300.00 and leave him your contact number. If nobody else calls, he will call you back. If he doesn't call you back, you have lost nothing. Finding an Anvil is a 'Patience Game'. If you have patience, you will find the anvil. Maybe not for $200.00, but for a reasonable figure. Look at all the old farms, old second hand stores, put an want-ad in the newspaper or your area om-line system (Usedtorontoarea.com or Kijiji). There will be one with your name on it. Neil Gustafson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulKrzysz Posted November 13, 2012 Author Share Posted November 13, 2012 Thanks for the advice. I will be going with my Dad next time he visits the scrap yard. For the record, although many people ask for $5 a pound or more, they never do get it. I was looking at the Quebec Kijiji as well and I saw a nice anvil north of Montreal for $400, looked to be around 200 pounds. Quebec is little far though.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swedefiddle Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Good Morning, Quebec is not far!!! Trucks go there everyday!!! Canadian Freightway is the most reasonable price that I have found. Don't be in a hurry, when the truck gets there, it gets there. Sometimes they won't ship to a residence, figure out a business they can send it to (your Dad's work?, a corner garage/service station that your dad deals with). Neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 https://www.speedymetals.com/pc-1168-8321-3-4140-hot-rolled-as-rolled-plate.aspx Anvil. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Stand it on edge, build a base, use it. No I don't know what shipping is, and that is the only reason I don't have one of these. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Hale Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 Just so you know: wot you have is not good for wot you wish to do....It is a garden ornament or a door stop in windy areas...keep; looking...has to be one with your name on it somewhere,,,, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhettbarnhart Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 how come a hf anvil with a tool steel face would be different then a fisher? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNewman Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 As long as you are working hot steel with a hand hammer a plain mild steel block will stand up pretty well. If you cannot find a decent block for a good price True Cut steel in Hamilton will cut you a piece from plate for a pretty good price. I often find I can get a piece cut to what I want from them for the same or less than I can find a piece of secondary steel at a steel yard. You could ask them to cut from the edge of a piece of plate so you get one clean face. If they cannot they cut so clean you should be able to flatten the face in an hour or so with an angle grinder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 The key to the Fisher anvil is the bond between the steel face and the cast iron body. They did this as part of the casting using a patented process that they spent a lot of time and effort developing. Trying to replicate it would probably be slightly more expensive than buying a truckload of high grade anvils new. Now if you are doing a full penetration weld of a tool steel top onto a cast iron anvil you *might* get a suitable bond and it would probably only cost slightly more than buying a good anvil in time and consumables. Or you can just go to the scrapyard and pick up a big hunk of steel and have an anvil *better* than that used for most of the past 2000 years and muck like the japanese use for swordsmithing. At the scrapyard Saturday I got 90# of steel for US$10. Now folks let's review some basics on finding an anvil cheap---do you really expect that people who are *trying* to make money off of selling an anvil to be selling it cheap? It's sort of like complaining about the cost of buying a diamond ring but the only place you are looking is Tiffany. If you want an inexpensive anvil *YOU* have to go looking for it---and sitting around on the internet doesn't count! Find all those anvil hiding in gardens, sheds, garages, etc---where the owner would be tickled pink to get *some* cash for it but is not expecting to get top prices as seen on the internet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HWHII Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 My first anvil was a 200lb cast iron from Mexico. I used it for two years before I found a good one. It worked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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