Phil Dwyer Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 What do you all think about this cast steel anvil? new 500 pound anvil cast steel - eBay (item 190194706493 end time Jan-30-08 02:27:05 PST) Thanks, Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrynjr Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Hard to say quality wise, it looks similar to one that was posted recently. I think that you'd pay at least as much getting it shipped to Hawaii as it weighs, if not more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Sure doesn't look like a 500 pounder in that pic! I have a 515# and a 408# and they look much larger than that. Unknown steel, unknown heat treat, unfinished and cast the "wrong" way with the parting line down the face/horn. Personally I would go about US$100 on it max. Telling the steel alloy and heat treat would seriously up what I would be willing to risk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solvarr Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 He's about 4 miles from a 3 foundries and a drop forging plant. If you are serious it would be worth it to ask where he got it from. Not saying this is at all related , but some forums have reported that there have been some back of the foundry anvil thefts in the last year. -Solvarr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 Well we'd all recognize Jymm's historical anvil pattern pretty quick... As for size I've really liked having an anvil with a face big enough to serve a dinner for two on. Mine has a hardy hole at either end so I can have multiple tools in play too. OTOH it's a Fisher and so when I need a thin heel to work on I move over to a smaller anvil nearby---I should build a bridge hardy tool for the big one; but as I have travel anvils handy... When I extend the shop for the coal forge I'll move the 408# anvil over to it and keep the 515# Fisher by the gasser! I don't collect anvils, every one I own is mounted on a stump and used---save for my Wall of Shame where anvils that have been abused into complete wreckage are lined up as *bad* examples---impresses students more when I tell them "if you do *this* to one of my anvils I'm going to skin you alive with it's horn dipped in kerosene!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Martin Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 ((( I don't collect anvils, every one I own is mounted on a stump and used---save for my Wall of Shame where anvils that have been abused into complete wreckage are lined up as *bad* examples---impresses students more when I tell them "if you do *this* to one of my anvils I'm going to skin you alive with it's horn dipped in kerosene!" ))) That's hilarious. I don't know what to say though for the anvil. I think I'd listen to TP and GB on this one. Also, solvarr has a good point, find out where he got it from. It looks nice except for the way it was cast and doesn't look hard-faced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdwarner Posted January 30, 2008 Share Posted January 30, 2008 it is i who is selling the anvils, they are not STOLEN . I bought them , they are old stock that were in a steel and metal liquidators wharehouse there used to be more , 100"s and 150"s but gone now they are not as bad as some portrey them they are steel and they ring well i liken them to the harbor freight anvils they have a 1 inch hardy i have a hay budden myself and a mouse hole these anvils are certainly not as good these but for less than a dollar a pound i think pretty good value the heat treater gave me a price on heat treating for a 100 dollars i soild one to one guy that works at a foundry and he is going to give me an analisys on the steel they are made from. a knifemaker from maryland bougfht one and happy to have it because the long horn . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WRH51 Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 hdwarner, Just curious about your anvils. Did the heat treat company know generally what the steel was in the anvil so it could be heat treated properly or was that just a general quote pending the analysis? Also were they able to give you an approximate hardness they would obtain by heat treatment. It sounds like the anvil is somewhat hardened already if it rings and has good rebound. I thought "ring" and the rebound was related the the hardness of the anvil or am I way off on this assumption? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdwarner Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 i just got the spectrometer report back the anvil has 98 percent iron .16 percent carbon .85 percent mangenese probally equivilent to about a36 steel so carburizing is definatly in the picture . i know rebound is definatly related to hardness of anvil i have a hay budden and the rebound on this anvil doesn't compare, it is good but not that good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt87 Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 I've used a couple cast steel anvils. Some ring, some don't. I think the quality/clarity and volume of the ring depend upon many factors including the type of steel, and the exact design of the anvil. (My rail iron anvil rings if I don't dampen it. Not sure what steel it is, but I suspect it's a fairly high carbon though annealed.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 31, 2008 Share Posted January 31, 2008 Carburizing is just a surface treatment and is great for wear; but won't do much for impact where the force goes beyond the surface. To deal with that you would have to do a nice thick hardfacing on it and would probably end up costing more than buying a high C anvil to start with. They would be a decent beginner's "I can't find an anvil" starter anvil though and *much* better than a cast iron anvil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Funk Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 I feel that a cast steel anvil is essentially equal to wrought iron/steel faced anvils if they are appropriately shaped, high carbon steel and properly heat treated. The Haberman anvils are cast steel. With these anvils having only a 0.18 carbon content they would need to hardfaced. If one could get one cheap enough I feel that they would be worth hard facing if you have the skills and tools to do it. Thanks for disclosing the steel composition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shane Stegmeier Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Ring has a lot to do with the shape of the anvil... a wasp waisted late pattern Hay Budden will ring like a tuning fork and is hard to dampen. A nice thick bodied German double horn anvil won't ring like that even if it was as hard as the Hay Budden (which it likely isn't... ;-) (It's like comparing a Barbie Doll to an X East German shotputter ;-) The harder the anvil the higher the tone of the ring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 And once you have the ring the next step is quietting it down so you don't lose your hearing---I love my big Fisher-nice thick hard steel face and *quiet*! I do use a "ringing anvil for demos/shows as the sound will bring people in from a distance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imagedude Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Here's a photo of my large anvil, the face is 8 inches wide x 29 inches long. The small anvil on the left is 4 hundredweight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 They're getting rusty! Better send them over to me; they will be safe over here we have lots of days with single digit humidities and months with no rain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdwarner Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 what can anyone tell me about hardfacing i have the low carbon anvils , i am a machinist so i can mill down the top if i need to i have a mig welder and an acwelder do i need any other tools to do job what rod do i need , please be specific on brand name and flavor please i may want to play with this process just for the sake of doing so one more question , i have a 300 pound haybudden with about a 1/8 dip in center form usage , how far can i machine down to eliminate this or is hardfacing an option or should i just forget all this nonsense and buy one of those rat hole forge anvils i have been eying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Funk Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 HD Warner, Why do you want a perfect anvil? The 1/8" belly is not that severe and adds personailty to the anvil. Plus you can do things on a worn anvil that you can not with a perfectly flat anvil. If the edges are good I leave it alone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 what can anyone tell me about hardfacing i have the low carbon anvils , i am a machinist so i can mill down the top if i need to i have a mig welder and an acwelder do i need any other tools to do job what rod do i need , please be specific on brand name and flavor please i may want to play with this process just for the sake of doing so one more question , i have a 300 pound haybudden with about a 1/8 dip in center form usage , how far can i machine down to eliminate this or is hardfacing an option or should i just forget all this nonsense and buy one of those rat hole forge anvils i have been eying Hardfacing an anvil is a huge amount of work for moderate gain. Something I've been wanting to try for a few years but haven't had the time is this. I want to grind the face off a cast iron ASO, match a piece of HC plate to it and silver solder them together. 1/8" sway isn't anything to try to "repair." It isn't enough to effect your work. Trying to hardface a 300lb HB will put it at risk for little if any gain. Buying a new anvil is always a good idea; I'd do it weekly if I could afford it. Frosty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yesteryearforge Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 its generally easier to straighten something on an anvil with a little swayback to it as oftentimes you have to go past straight in order for it to spring back. just like you have to do in a press with the material cold. Mike Tanner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrick Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 There is a very good tutorial on making an anvil from steel plate and hardfacing it on the metalwebnews site. Perhaps someone can post a link. I think that would be an excellent method to put a hard face on the subject anvils. As for machining or welding up a swayed anvil, there are some significant risks. The steel used for facing anvils does not harden vary deeply so agressive machining could result in a somewhat softer face. The face could be removed if it already thin, or reduced in thickness to the point of making it more likely to break with continued use. The risk to buiding up a face that is forge welded is that it could cause a seperation of the face from the body. Also, if not done properly, the face itself could develop cracks. I can definitly appreciate the desire for a flat anvil, as that is my personal preference. I'd rather the anvil be flat and then make a hardy tool as needed for specific straightening and bending applications. I had a 300# Hay-Budden that was swayed much as you describ. I ended up trading it for a 390# Peter Wright that had less sway, but had been badly abused by a cutting torch. Someone had notched the face of the anvil at regular intervals down both edges and had cut about 3" from the horn. The torch damage had been well repaired by the man I got the anvil from and I have been happy with it. He had intened to use it as a student anvil rather than his personal forging anvil so he was pretty willing to trade. If you really want a flat anvil, you may look for a trading opportunity as I did, or sell it and put the money towards an anvil that suits your needs better than the one you have now. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Here is the link you asked about: ANVIL MAKING good article for manufacturing or repairs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FoundryFiend Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Hi. im the guy who bought one of these anvils. The actual spectrometer results are 99.58 iron, 0.41 manganeze . The Leco carbon determinator test came out to be 0.228 carbon. These results were double checked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agsolder Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Frosty-- I, too, have a 300-pound Hay-Budden with an 1/8-inch or so declivity amidships. I'd leave it alone if I were you. The smith I bought mine from said he liked it , used it daily, found it especially useful for straightening and I feel that way, too. I would not mill or grind down the top of any anvil to level. Also, gotta say, I have seen renowned Santa Fe smithing teacher Frank Turley's Rat Hole anvil and it is really a beauty and he has told me he loves it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Funk Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Foundry Fiend What are your plans for 500# Anvil? Use as is, hardface, etc. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now