Finally got my version of the "Dial-A-Hole" completed

[Black Frog]

Been meaning to do this for quite some time, make a spinning bolster plate for my anvil.

Problem was that I kept switching anvils every so often, and those plates are particular to the anvil they are made to fit.

 

But I've settled on my favorite anvil for some time now, and finally was motivated to make a nice Dial-A-Hole for it.

1/2" plate, with both round and sqaure holes.  Here it is with the center spindle before I welded it in:

 

The layout of the square holes may look odd, but there is a specific reason I made it like this. 

If you make the square holes line up axially to the center of the plate, when you lay hot steel on the plate you can be guessing at the orientation of the square hole below.

 

I made my plate so that no matter what square hole I choose, when it is over the hardy hole my square plate hole will be lined up square to the anvil face.  Just orient your workpiece so that it lines up with the anvil (either along or across the anvil face) and you're good to go.  No more guessing at the square hole orientation.  Here it is with the center spindle welded in place.  I did this so there is a nice flat work space on top of the plate with nothing sticking up in the way.   Here, the second square hole is over the hardy, and that square hole nicely lines up with the anvil face.

 

I slightly oversized the round holes a bit (.015") for a nice fit using typical round stock.  I was thinking about heating the entire plate and drifting the square holes, but in the end decided against it.  I drilled them and then a lot of filing and elbow grease got me to my goal.  I spent many hours on this, but figured it will be a life-long tool for this anvil and thought it would be worth spending the extra effort to do it right.

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[Anachronist58]

Vise Whisperer?? I think your tools are whispering back to you!

 

Suitable for framing, but too functional to only be admired!  Brilliant.

 

Many wonderful works have been executed by the Venerable File, in the hands of the Skilled Workman.

 

So, what kind of steel have you made this in?

 

Robert Taylor

Edited May 7, 2014 by Anachronist58

[Jim Coke]

Greetings Frog Man,

 

Now that's slick...  You put a lot of time and thought in that one.  I love creative tool making and that's over the top..  Let me know when I can pick up mine. The check is in the mail.. 

 

Forge on and make beautiful things

Jim

[ThomasPowers]

That's worth of being made from 4140 and heat treated for long life!  I too have the too many anvils in use issues; but a couple are pretty much the same I hope (2 165#ish PWs) so I may get one done anyway.

[Black Frog]

Thanks!
Actually this was made from 01 tool steel, which is oil hardening I believe...... ;)

Part of the fun was figuring out the layout of the holes so that there was roughly the same amount of open space between each differently sized hole.


I first saw this type of spinning plate with round holes from Brian Brazeal.
Maybe not his origination, but that's where I got the basic idea. I just took it a step further.... :)

[Aaron J. Cergol]

Nice work as per your usual Sir. now just make me up one up for some of my German anvils now...it'd only have to be 2' in diameter. :) 

 

Next time you make one, swing by, I have a die filer you can use.

 

Aaron

[Black Frog]

Funny you mentioned that Aaron, I was thinking about how to do something like this with German style anvil, since I'm always throwing around the idea of getting one.

You could lightly tack weld a small piece of tube on the side of the anvil, just below the anvil face.  That tube would be the rotation receptacle for the center pin of your plate.

 

I guess you'd have to figure out a spot where it wouldn't be in the way, or think about the benefits of having a spinning bolster plate vs having a tube possibly in the way on the side of the anvil now and then?

[78sharpshooter]

I thought it is called dial-a-ho? :)

[Frosty]

SWEET tool Froggy! That's so much handier than having my swage block close enough to be handy.

 

I don't know about welding an axle socket to the anvil but it'd be up to the user. It does have me thinking about how to set it up as a quick change female part of a punch set. Hmmmm, let's see, needs an index and lock with a C frame and tool holder.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

[Charles R. Stevens]

I think for the german style anvil, or for the "i have no hardy hole" croude, a peoce of 4" strucual tube with a 1 or 2" plate and hardy like some of the guys in hear have built, ad a hole in the side at the bottom, with a raamp for the slugs, and a peice of squedual 80 for a pivot on the side or drill a pritchel hole at one corner and youd be in fat city!

[dntfxr]

Very slick tool! I'm thinking for the Euro folks we can put a long round socket/pipe in the base or stand next to the anvil for the pivot.

[mike-hr]

When I first started making these, I was using 2 london pattern anvils. Then came along the euro pattern peddinhaus. I made a block out of a chunk of 1 inch thick stock, cut wider than the biggest hole in the dial-a-hole. Drill a pritchell sized hole in the center of the block, and put it in the leg vise, so that the holes are still supported by the vise jaws. I do lots of slit and drifted holes this way, and also use it for clouting hand made rivets, and re-heading hex bolts into square bolts with a clouted head. It works great in the vise.