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I Forge Iron

fabricated anvil


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You probably want a much thinner heel.  It sort of looks like you built it without understanding the "why" an anvil is shaped the way it is.  So many home built anvils have no heel as it isn't needed for the users tasks; or it is thinner so it can be used.

I have a 500#+ Fisher with a massive heel that is pretty much useless so right beside it I have a 93# A&H with a long thin heel so I can use it when I need a heel

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You probably want a much thinner heel.  It sort of looks like you built it without understanding the "why" an anvil is shaped the way it is.  So many home built anvils have no heel as it isn't needed for the users tasks; or it is thinner so it can be used.

I have a 500#+ Fisher with a massive heel that is pretty much useless so right beside it I have a 93# A&H with a long thin heel so I can use it when I need a heel

A thin heel on an anvil made from 1018 would likely bend/sag fairly quickly. IMHO I think the OP did a fine job keeping in mind the material used. I do however agree that not bothering to shape the heel may have been beneficial for what it is.

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The heel will be longer as well as thinner. That will be determined by the thickness of the top plate when its added. The reason I didn't mill the hardy yet is that the top plate will be 100% when welded later. The whole projects has just been plan as I go cause I had a little down time. Everything is just drop that I had at work but I'll refine everything later.

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The heel will be longer as well as thinner. That will be determined by the thickness of the top plate when its added. The reason I didn't mill the hardy yet is that the top plate will be 100% when welded later. The whole projects has just been plan as I go cause I had a little down time. Everything is just drop that I had at work but I'll refine everything later.

Hi TJ what I do for my hadie hole is to fabricate it from plate to form the square hole, then machine the outside of it to suit a drill size that I use to drill through the anvil so it is a hammer in fit, prep & weld top & bottom. I have fabricated all of my anvils & they are great even if I say so my self.

 

Peter

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Rail is nominally 1085 low alloy steel. The trick will be getting a full penetration weld without deforming it. If it works right it'll make a sweet anvil face but it will have a tendency to ship if not drawn down probably into the purple, almost blue.

 

Frosty The Lucky.

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Ivan you are right in that a heel too thick to do much forging on won't get hammered down much; but why go to the trouble of making one if you don't want to use it?  My A&H is made from very soft wrought iron with a quite thin steel plate on it and doesn't show any sagging after 100+ years of use---I think he can get away with a thinner heel out of 1018.

 

The taper on the rail base would help with the full penetration weld.  I am partial to forklift tine myself though it will be a tad thick!

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TJ is a special process welder and fabricator for the oil and gas industry. I've been impressed as .... With his skill and tenacity. I think wheel have to scrounge up some 250 gallon totes for the quench. When he gets that far. I'm trying to talk him in to double horsing hid project... But alas he is hardheaded.
He aut to fit in here just fine

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Even a lake won't make for a good quench as you need high pressure water stream to get through the steam jacket that forms when that much hot steel is dumped into water.  Charles McRaven mentions as using the high pressure hose from the local volunteer fire department as the water source directed against the face.  Traditionally anvil makers used an elevated tank and flume system to quench and the larger the anvil the softer the face tended to be.

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Frosty the only way I have thought of to keep the face flat after welding is to heat and form the face to a concave shape before hand, then milling the face to a perfect flat. Yes Charles I am still thinking about the double horn :D. that's probably what ill do.

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  • 6 months later...

I need some help gentleman I'm debating about what steel to top this monster with. I'm thinking about an air hardening type but thought I would get some advise before deciding.I'm trying to find a way around the quench process of heavy gauge rail.

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Air hardening just doesn't "quench" fast enough in air with a couple of hundred pounds of mass. A quench plate might do it but that gets very R&D O1 quenches in water in larger sections.
How about a trash pump and a pond? I bet we can rig a scaffolding to get the water high enough for a bit of gravity assist.

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The rail will do fine, and may prove less problematic than actual tool steels that can crack when water hardened.

See if your local FD, or volunteers can spray it down for you. They can use it for training.

Another option would be to use a pressure washer.

Remember, you want the face TOUGH, not hard since hard chips easily.

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  • 2 weeks later...

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