MarvinB Posted December 5, 2016 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Figured I'd share i built myself a striking anvil and successfully heat treated it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Latticino Posted December 5, 2016 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Cool legs, and congrats on the successful heat treat. What size is the anvil and how did you accomplish your quench? Just curious why you didn't bore a hardy and pritchel hole in it before hardening. Most of the striking anvils I've seen, including the one I've been working on for myself, have them. Also, it looks like you have welded multiple layers of 1/4" thick steel plate together around the perimeter. If this is the case I'd be interested in how it holds up to heavy striking without full penetration welds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C-1ToolSteel Posted December 5, 2016 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Nice. What kind of steel did you use? The few striking anvils that I've seen were mild steel. Next thing for you to do is make a really sturdy base, something set into the ground and welded to your anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 5, 2016 Author Share Posted December 5, 2016 This was a peace off a coal conveyor I got from the power house I was working at the legs on the avil where originally on each end of the plate which was about 30" long and 3/4 thick I cut it in half added a peace of 1/2 in to the center I drew this out hopefully easier to understand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C-1ToolSteel Posted December 5, 2016 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Is it high-carbon? If not, that would make heat treating unessisary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 5, 2016 Author Share Posted December 5, 2016 2 minutes ago, C-1ToolSteel said: Is it high-carbon? If not, that would make heat treating unessisary. It wasn't high carbon I'm not sure what it was exactly for what it was being used for before I assumed it was good carbon of some kind before I treated it i could hit it with my rounding hammer and dent it so I treated it and it's harder than my hammers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted December 5, 2016 Share Posted December 5, 2016 Might have been AR plate for use in a coal conveyor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C-1ToolSteel Posted December 5, 2016 Share Posted December 5, 2016 12 minutes ago, MarvinB said: It wasn't high carbon I'm not sure what it was exactly for what it was being used for before I assumed it was good carbon of some kind before I treated it i could hit it with my rounding hammer and dent it so I treated it and it's harder than my hammers World's longest sentence? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 5, 2016 Author Share Posted December 5, 2016 30 minutes ago, C-1ToolSteel said: World's longest sentence? Lol no time for punctuation 40 minutes ago, ThomasPowers said: Might have been AR plate for use in a coal conveyor. Nah it's not AR plate I looked it up it came from Germany Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 7, 2016 Author Share Posted December 7, 2016 On Monday, December 05, 2016 at 1:23 PM, Latticino said: Cool legs, and congrats on the successful heat treat. What size is the anvil and how did you accomplish your quench? Just curious why you didn't bore a hardy and pritchel hole in it before hardening. Most of the striking anvils I've seen, including the one I've been working on for myself, have them. Also, it looks like you have welded multiple layers of 1/4" thick steel plate together around the perimeter. If this is the case I'd be interested in how it holds up to heavy striking without full penetration welds. Realized I didn't answer ya about the hardy hole I have a mouse hole anvil with a hardy so didn't really need one in this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 19 minutes ago, MarvinB said: Realized I didn't answer ya about the hardy hole I have a mouse hole anvil with a hardy so didn't really need one in this The hardy hole in a striking anvil isn't just to hold the various hardy tools, but also for making them. If you need to upset a piece of steel to make a fuller or a swage, it's better to use a striking anvil: it's lower and therefore at a better height for sledgehammering, and it's less likely to lose its heel to a missed blow. I have a Mouse Hole anvil as well, but I still made myself a portable hole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 7, 2016 Author Share Posted December 7, 2016 (edited) 3 hours ago, JHCC said: The hardy hole in a striking anvil isn't just to hold the various hardy tools, but also for making them. If you need to upset a piece of steel to make a fuller or a swage, it's better to use a striking anvil: it's lower and therefore at a better height for sledgehammering, and it's less likely to lose its heel to a missed blow. I have a Mouse Hole anvil as well, but I still made myself a portable hole. I didn't think about that but if I ever need one I guess I'll just have to build one but as of right now I don't see any major sledge hammer swinging in my future Edited December 7, 2016 by MarvinB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Ling Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 So, if you don't plan on making hardies, or making items that require a to use a hardy(s), than what are you planning on doing with that striking anvil? Most striking anvils have hardy holes, and that was almost the hole reason I'm working on mine, is just so that I don't have to worry about snapping of the heal of my London pattern anvil, and also so its at the proper height. I'll be using the hardy hole for hardies (duh) such as the bottom fuller, hot cut hardy, cupping tool, large bottom fuller, and swages. Mainly for making hammers is what mine is going to be for. The point (or at least I think) of a striking anvil, is so that it is soft. Especially for safety reasons, as I wouldn't trust my heat treating skills, or my strikers skills. With a missed blow on a hardened anvil could send a chip off flying like a bullet, and really mess somebody up. With a striking anvil all that happens is you dent it, which can be ground out or welded up. Two things that you don't want to do to a high carbon steel faced anvil, as it lessens the life of the tool. Littleblacksmith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 8, 2016 Author Share Posted December 8, 2016 12 hours ago, JHCC said: 3 hours ago, littleblacksmith said: So, if you don't plan on making hardies, or making items that require a to use a hardy(s), than what are you planning on doing with that striking anvil? Most striking anvils have hardy holes, and that was almost the hole reason I'm working on mine, is just so that I don't have to worry about snapping of the heal of my London pattern anvil, and also so its at the proper height. I'll be using the hardy hole for hardies (duh) such as the bottom fuller, hot cut hardy, cupping tool, large bottom fuller, and swages. Mainly for making hammers is what mine is going to be for. The point (or at least I think) of a striking anvil, is so that it is soft. Especially for safety reasons, as I wouldn't trust my heat treating skills, or my strikers skills. With a missed blow on a hardened anvil could send a chip off flying like a bullet, and really mess somebody up. With a striking anvil all that happens is you dent it, which can be ground out or welded up. Two things that you don't want to do to a high carbon steel faced anvil, as it lessens the life of the tool. Littleblacksmith I made it because I don't really like my anvil not enough good working area.For me it was more cost efficient to make a striking anvil it cost me time no money at all and it be better to forge damascus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted December 8, 2016 Share Posted December 8, 2016 "Most Striking anvils have hardy holes" might be a local thing as I have seen them the other way and many of them hardened too as they expected strikers to know their job 100+ years ago... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Ling Posted December 9, 2016 Share Posted December 9, 2016 Ok, maybe you are right, and I should have said "most modern striking anvils that I have seen" have hardy holes. I just know that when working with beginning strikers, that I wouldn't want a hardened striking anvil, and with experienced strikers I wouldn't want it hardened. I would rather it be soft, than have a piece go flying, and me be responsible for their injury. Even an experienced person has a missed blow, and that missed blow can have bad effects on a hardened anvil, or at least one hardened with my uncontrolled environment, and unexperienced skills with hardening that large of steel , effect that I don't want to have to deal with. Hospital bills are pricey. Notice that I put emphasis on the I, as that part is mostly opinion, so don't listen to it if ya'll don't want. It just my opinion. Littleblacksmith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarvinB Posted December 10, 2016 Author Share Posted December 10, 2016 I guess I shouldn't have called it a striking anvil that's not what it's being used for .I'm using it as my primary anvil and I don't need a hardy hole in it more than likely I want ever make any hardy tools but if I was to choose to us it as a striking anvil with large sledges I will. I'm completely comfortable doing it the entire anvil isn't hardend I'm sure it's probably a little harder than it was from the middle to the bottom the face took the heat and I watched it to make sure as it started glowing red it didn't make it past the half way point that way from the middle down through the legs wouldn’t be as hard as the face.I weld for a living and the way i welded it and the amount of weld it would take more than a few guys with sledge hammers to bust it they might give it a sway back like a ol broke down mare Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted December 10, 2016 Share Posted December 10, 2016 Good clarification; thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted December 10, 2016 Share Posted December 10, 2016 Amazing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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