Anvil questions

[BobbyW.]

I have a couple of questions concerning the use of H13 steel as an anvil. I have a large piece of steel that was given to me by a friend who had considered using it as an anvil for armor making. It is a round piece 7 5/8" across and 4 1/4" thick. Fortunately it still had a partial sticker on the face. All I can make out on the sticker is H13 hot-rolled.

So. Is H13 a good steel for an anvil? Does it need to be heat-treated to be used as an anvil? Should I try to grind a couple of straight edges into it instead of leaving it round?

My plan is to make a large anvil stump with an anvil, bickern, and hardy plate.

Any advice?

[Frank Turley]

This response won't help too much. Steve Fontanini of Jackson, WY, has his 'Rathole' anvils cast in the U.S. of H13, but that would be a different animal than hot rolled H13, In any event, you can find Fontanini's website and read about his anvil offerings, Rockwell hardness, etc.

[ThomasPowers]

Yes it's a great steel for an anvil---even better for hot work tooling.  It would be improved by heat treating it.  As to how you should modify it to do what you need to do better---how the heck should we know how you plan to use it if you don't tell us the details!