I, recently, bought a striking anvil (13 1/2" long, 4 7/8" wide, and 1 7/8" thick with a 1" by 1" tool hole) and am trying to come up with an idea for a base upon which to mount the anvil face.  I contacted a local steel company and told them I was looking for a 16" long, 7" wide, and 4" thick piece of steel.  They must have misunderstood my material wants.  They gave me a price of $580.08.  Anybody have any ideas?  I can arrange for a 1" by 1"  hole to be put in the base.  I'm looking for something sturdy, something I can weld the top piece to the base, and can weld on some legs.  Suggestions sought.

 

well for the plate underneath the striking anvil, you could just torch out a rough hole, it doesn't need to be perfect, as the hardy tools will only be making contact with the actual striking anvil. I thought the same thing at first, that it needs to be I nice square hole, until someone mentioned to me that it doesn't need to be perfect, and then thought, aaaaaaaahhhhh, aren't you smart! or maybe I just was kinda dumb...

                                                                                                                          Littleblacksmith

Just weld the legs to it. My striking anvil is made from S7 and the legs are plain ol mild steel. Not a weld for a beginner to attempt with the alloys I used,but you never specified what your striking anvil alloy is.

I've heard that you should fill the legs with a mixture of sand and oil to quite it, did you do that Ivan? How loud is it?

                                                                                                                        Littleblacksmith

I didn't put anything in the legs of my tripod anvil stands and it's quiet enough as is. It took the ring right out of a Soderfors and a Trenton, they just clank now.

Frosty The Lucky.

7 hours ago, littleblacksmith said:

I've heard that you should fill the legs with a mixture of sand and oil to quite it, did you do that Ivan? How loud is it?

                                                                                                                        Littleblacksmith

I didn't put anything in the legs of mine. It's quiet without the chain still because it's a part of the floor, but I just like how the chain looks lol. A striking anvil should be secured to the shop floor since they are top heavy by design and will walk around under a heavy hammer. That takes alot of the vibration out of the legs which is what produces the ringing sounds.