This seems almost too simple to mention but I thought I’d share how I use small shank hardies in my large 1 ½ inch hardie holed anvil. I was, as I’ve seen elsewhere, going to make short sleeves, cut down at the corners several inches and fold down the four sides so that they rest on the anvil’s top. When I noticed that the square tubing I intended to use could rest on the wood base for my anvil it seemed far easier and in some ways preferable to use simple straight pieces of square tubing as sleeves. With this method the hardie rests on the anvil’s surface rather than the sleeve’s sides. Some of the sleeve’s walls have been forged thinner at the end to accommodate hardies which did not fit well in the tubing as it was. I also have a Peter Wright anvil with a one inch hardie hole which I hope to make sleeves for to accommodate ¾ inch shank hardies. The Peter Wright’s hardie hole seems quite tapered and rather irregular so sleeving will not be as easy.

You can also use angle iron to shim the hardie hole down to size. The hardie post will hold the pieces of angle iron against the walls of the hardie hole.

Good idea and easier to forge the angle iron to a thinner cross section if need be. It would still be advantageous to use a piece  long enough to rest on my anvil stand – no chance of it going anywhere.

Greetings Ben,

 

What worked for me and my Trenton with a 1 3/8 hardie is a 4 in square plate with a 3/4 square hole and the correct size stem for the hardie.   just weld it up and grind..  It gives a better surface for the smaller tools with a 3/4 footprint...  Less wobble...

 

Happy grinding...  Jim

Thanks Jim.

 

I like your idea as well and will give it a try on my Peter Wright with its irregular hardie hole.

I prefer to have my hardies rest on the tabs of the shim rather than wear or dent the face around the hardy hole.  I do have one nested sq tubing shim where the outside one has the tabs and the inside one is a shrink fit and so I don't have stacked tabs.