Justin Cole Joslin Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 (edited) While saving money for a "real" anvil...almost there....I picked this up from a family friend who owns a machine shop. 3 1/2" thick x 7 1/2" x 21 1/2". Weight by Dimension calculator for steel shows 160#. No idea what kind of steel it is. I thought I would get more rebound with it standing the way it is in the pic but it seems my hammer rebounds more with it laying flat. With the 7 1/2" side facing the sky. Any reason this would be? Would the type of steel matter? I was in awe at the "scrap" I was able to pick from. Edited May 6, 2015 by Justin Cole Joslin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Cole Joslin Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Not sure why pic uploaded sideways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 Steep hillside you have there! Is the surface the same in both locales? I can see some saw lines I think on the end. If the side is smooth and the end has faint lines then the end will absorb some energy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Cole Joslin Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Yes the ends look to have been cut and Im sure they were. The side facing you in the pic is smooth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the iron dwarf Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 there are many smiths round the world making great things on much less of an anvil, historically and regionally few anvils are 'London Pattern' most were just a block and some were just rocks. work on it and it IS a real anvilno doubt Mr Powers will tell you more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 I believe I have said similar a time or two before.....Frosty stop laughing---you will do yourself an injury!Funny thing though I know a couple of people who got so used to their "improvised" anvils that they kept on using them even after finding a London Pattern one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JME1149 Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 A possible answer to the rebound on the face vs edge question could be that the edges were flame cut, thus affecting the heat treatment / hardness of the end surfaces. Of course this all depends upon the type of steel you have. Take a grinder or flap wheel and smooth the end face and one edge down and use whichever surface is more suited to the task at hand. While you're at it, round over some of the corners a bit for good working edges. Looks like a fine piece of steel to start with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSW Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 I think you have a great anvil and one I'd be more than happy to add to my collection. In fact I'm looking for several very similar to that to let the scouts use. As mentioned I'd round over the edges some, probably on several sides. I might even slap it on my mill and true up a rough side if need be. If not, a good grinder and some care will smooth it out some if it's got a flame cut edge. I'd almost be tempted to make a stand for it similar to that used for a number of large swage blocks that allow you to rotate the block and use it in different orientations as needed. Stood on end as you have it, or turned either on edge or flat as the project requires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty the Lucky Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 But I can't stop laughing Thomas, I just got my Iforge snafu straightened out! I'm surprised I can type at all doing this happy dance! The difference in rebound is the difference between the incidence of rebound of the steel itself and the spring-like flex of it's shape. For example a leaf spring flat has a significant archer's bow-like rebound while on end it's rebound is almost imperceptible.I'd put that baby to work Justin, weld a safe base under it for sure and maybe dress the edges to different radii but that's about all. That is just a primo anvil.Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 DSW has a good idea, not only would I round over 3 of the top edges to different radie (bottom fuller) then i woundent be afraid to carve bottom swages in the edge at need if you went that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lawman Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 (edited) Frosty's a Newbie??????????Wow. Over 14000 well written posts and ya get demoted.O well.Hey Frosty If you put your location under your name you might be suppressed ......aw heck..... what am I saying.... Forgot who I was talkin too.....you know the drill.Welcome back!!!! Edited May 6, 2015 by lawman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 Me I'm waiting to see what kind of overflow their counter does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lawman Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 Me I'm waiting to see what kind of overflow their counter does.HaHa........ya I guess so.Thought maybe the post counter was what blew Frosty out of the water....but seeing your numbers.....I guess that probably wasn't it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSW Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 DSW has a good idea, not only would I round over 3 of the top edges to different radie (bottom fuller) then i woundent be afraid to carve bottom swages in the edge at need if you went that way. I hadn't thought about grinding in shapes as swages. I'll have to keep that in mind for some of the anvil blocks I get for the kids. I've got some nice heavy bar stock that's a bit small for anvils right now as is, but they'd make really nice swage blocks. If I cut two identical blocks I could match them side by side and drill the 1/2 rounds easily. V groves might be more of a challenge with my small mill, but maybe I could get the use of a friends bigger bridgeport for a day and crank over the head to 45 deg. Thanks this gives me new ideas to play with! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty the Lucky Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 I didn't think the location was necessary seeing as there's a moose in my Avatar pic but O-K-A-Y.Yeah, Glenn set me up with completely new account to see if we could get my disfunctional acct working. I ended it taking it to Average Joe who went through my comp software, etc. etc. and got it straightened out.Maybe Glenn will send back to the old me or maybe I'll just start over. Heck, maybe I'll just change every couple hundred posts?Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1forgeur Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 WHEN YOU GET YOUR "REAL" ANVIL YOU COULD CUT THAT BLOCK IN HALF AND MAKE 2 STRIKING ANVILS. KEEP ONE AN SELL ONE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSW Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 I didn't think the location was necessary seeing as there's a moose in my Avatar pic but O-K-A-Y.Wait, You moved to Maine?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Cole Joslin Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Would it be better to mount it upright or just flat to give me more workspace? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 More workspace is overrated unless you are making large scrolls. I would realy think about DSW's idea. Small end up, then long side up and then flat side up, but small end up is the mane working serface Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSW Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 You only really use the anvil that's under the hammer. It can be nice to have a larger surface for some things, so I'd rig it so it can be mounted in several ways. If you look at thes swage block stand, it's set up so the swage block can be used as shown vertical, or used laying flat. On swages that aren't square, I've even seen them rigged so they can be used one way upright, and if you turn them 90 deg in the stand, they will stand vertical in the other dimension. I'm betting you can make a stand that allows you to use your block in what ever orientation you want to give you the most options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Cole Joslin Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Gotcha. Thanks for the photo example that helps alot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty the Lucky Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Wait, You moved to Maine?! Wasn't Maine sunk in Cuba?Frosty The Stealthy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DSW Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 (edited) Hey you remembered! Edited May 7, 2015 by DSW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Wasnt there a Jerry Frost on the crew manifest?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 7, 2015 Share Posted May 7, 2015 Uh, nope, nobody on the Frost side of the family on board. http://www.spanamwar.com/mainecrw.htmDon't you just LOVE the internet? Darned if that didn't mess up the little family story I was going to tell but it occurred to me someone might Google it and sure enough . . . Ta DAA! No Frost on the USS Maine in Havana Harbor that night.Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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