October 31, 20169 yr Hello, I have an old 160lb Mouse Hole Anvil that I bought with a fairly deep belly that is becoming a little counterproductive to some of my forging. I'd like to fill it and surface it with some Stoody 2110 and 1105. Does anyone out there have some I can buy or can point me to a source that will sell it in lower quantities or point me to an equivalent? I think I need about 5LB of each, but I can't find it in less than a 10lb pack. Thanks, Nick
October 31, 20169 yr If you are not willing to pay for international shipping from the antipodes it would behoove you to list your location.
October 31, 20169 yr That's about the same amount of sway as I have in my own Mousehole, and I've found it easy enough to work around. What kind of work are you doing where you find it counterproductive? On the other hand, that paint job is a travesty and should have a wire brush taken to it as soon as possible.
October 31, 20169 yr Author Mostly bladesmithing. It was caked in rust when I bought it. It took half a bottle of Loctite rust removal and 2 wire wheels to clean it up. The paint is there to protect it.
October 31, 20169 yr Smooth is good, flat not needed as much. Work across the width and when you need an absolute flat piece use a chunk of RR Rail
October 31, 20169 yr Author I appreciate the opinions, but I'm still interested in getting some 2110 and 1105 or advice on equivalents. That gap is about 1/4 inch and looks like it's about 10 degrees slope to the dip. That's enough to fubar a knife bevel or pit a twist in the blade. I've worked on other anvils that were flat, and I can notice the difference. If I'm not dead center of that dip it will tend to put a little twist into whatever I'm working. Seems to be a pretty common theme with Mouseholes. I'm convinced some of them were built this way. There's another Mousehole locally that looks to have an identical dip, and it looks like it was never used. I understand it's not that big if a deal, and of course I can work around it like I have been, but if I can fix it for a reasonable price I will.
October 31, 20169 yr you can make a rectangular steel block to be fixed in the hardy hole, as your heel is short and very sturdy you will have enough efficiency forging on a hardy tool. you can make a long shank (?) to fix the block in the hardy hole, long enough to pass to the other side, so you can cut a slot or make it from a bent over flat steel so you could pass a wedge through it under the heel, so the tool will not bounce/move, instead will be tightly fixed to the anvil. or you can use a bolt, etc. I hope you understand what I mean. for the money and all the fuss to doubtfully "improve" your anvil you can find a flatter one. use this to make several knives, sell them and soon enough you have the money for a "good one". personally I could forge blades very well on that anvil. as I can see In the pictures the "depression" in the face is right to left not back to front so there's no problem for forging blades. they twist even on the flattest anvil, it's a problem of hammering technique. actually I use slightly dished surfaces to dress the bevels and the entire blade. an easy way to dress the blades is to dress them with a wooden hammer with a wide face and good heft - heat evenly to a red heat and proceed.
October 31, 20169 yr Do yourself a favour and practice your technique, if you are getting twist or bends in your blades it's you not the anvil. Some of the finest blades (including swords) in history were forged on anvils barely bigger than the hammer, and very rarely would they have been flat and level. Attempting to repair an anvil could well lead to it's distruction if you are inexperienced, and if you need help to find the rods you intend to use I assume you are a novice. There is little wrong with that anvil, most of us use lesser examples without problems. That slight dip is in fact a bonus feature when you are attempting to forge something straight, it's just what you need to take the bend out of a blade!
November 1, 20169 yr just check some videos of professional bladesmiths and you'll find that you have a luxury anvil https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR7E6cx5C6s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqQBf00lBjg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_cGr_BD3kk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8vryQ_68mQ and here a special bladesmithing anvil as used in Europe by "industrial" bladesmiths: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpeyhC-UIFg
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