Leather Bill Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 For things that are moved around often I like 3 legs but to make it less prone to tip over,3 legs often extend out farthar than 4 causing toes on big feet to be stubbed. For an anvil stand that will remain in place I prefer one piece top and bottom like a wood stump(Bois d Arc as mentioned in another thread). This 4x4 stand is handled the same way. After top and bottom are made parallel,footprint of anvil is inlet into top. Any place where heavy mechines are sold,they offer powder to be mixed with furnished liquid or water as well as resins and epoxies. I normally add 15% by volume Type II Portland to bagged sand-mix concrete then use latex additive in addition to or in place of water. The wet mixture is placed 3/4" deep on WET concrete floor then WET stump bedded into mix. If time alow's,I wait 1 week or longer. If I'm unable to wait at least 1 week,I proceed immediatedly. Top of stump is covered with cling wrap,cling wrap pushed into recess and half filled with concrete mix. Wet mix covered with cling wrap then anvil set in place. Wetting floor and stump avoid's moisture being wicked out of mix resulting in inferior strength and duriability. Cling wrap will do the same plus make stump and floor much easier to clean should anvil need to be lowered or moved later. If going with cling wrap on floor,trim excess and alow squeeze out to set up to help prevent stump being knocked out of place. I always use cling wrap on top to keep it clean and neat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 Leather Bill.. Are you actually saying you cement your anvil into your stump? Or you are putting down the cement mixture on the floor and putting the stump on top? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I think he's saying *both*! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I thought so too... But.... when I was forging all the time I can count hundreds of times where I moved the anvil around to be in a better position.. I don't think even now that i would lock my anvil and stand into a position.. If I had 2 forge areas maybe.. But with only 1 anvil/stand Moving it closer to the forge for small work and away for larger work did the trick.. I would wiggle the anvil around until I found the perfect spot.. (no rock). Wood base, hollowed some with only about a 1" lip round the outside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I move my anvil all the time, close for small farther for large, check, sometimes I work the horn with it to my hammer hand but usually with the heal to my hammer hand. It all depends on what I'm doing most at the time. I've tried working all around the anvil and it's okay if the work doesn't want to be inconvenient to the forge. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leather Bill Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 17 hours ago, jlpservicesinc said: Leather Bill.. Are you actually saying you cement your anvil into your stump? Or you are putting down the cement mixture on the floor and putting the stump on top? I suppose it might depend on how drunk I was on the day I set it up but according to what I said the plan is. " For things that are moved around often I like 3 legs" " For an anvil stand that will remain in place I prefer one piece top and bottom like a wood stump(Bois d Arc as mentioned in another thread). " I have anvils that are occasionally moved about or taken to other shops. The behemoth perched on the stump has been moved only a few times since coming to granddad's shop over 100 years ago. Last time was with assistance of an engine crane. To prevent gluing anvil to stump I "Wet mix covered with cling wrap then anvil set in place." I did fail to mention laying thick paper or thin cardboard such as tar paper between anvil and cling wrap is a good idea to prevent excessivly tight grip. As for not making it a permanate arrangement,THIS " Cling wrap will do the same plus make stump and floor much easier to clean should anvil need to be lowered or moved later." I often omit long draw out instructions covering minor details since I'm only trying create food for thought rather than expecting readers to follow my exact footsteps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I've found both tar paper and lead sheets under old anvils before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I"ve found leather.. Thanks LeatherBill.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 As common as lead was back in the day I'm surprised I haven't found one with a lead cap poured on the base to deal with a tilt or unevenness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 I've found coyote fur. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 25, 2021 Share Posted February 25, 2021 The anvil was an ACME, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanglediver Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 I squeezed in some shop time at work today, and repurposed a couple of scrap 3" axle tubes. The base plate I bought on the way in to work from my local steel supplier. I still need a clamp mechanism, which I started here at home afterward. Still have some design to work through. This one may find itself left at work for the time being once it's workable. This does not mean that I trust anyone at work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 My most recent (and satisfactory) attachment was to drill and tap the top plate of the stand and bolt a couple of brackets on with those: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 1 hour ago, tanglediver said: The base plate I bought on the way in to work You might want to round those corners a little with a grinder, BEFORE you find out why. Nice looking stand. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 tanglediver that will work.. Nice build.. JHCC.. is there still a little gap for further tightening or did you set it for zero gap? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 Zero gap, if memory serves, which I know is not ideal. However, this is actually backup to the main attachment, which is a nice layer of silicone caulk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 Just curious.. What benefit did or does it offer with the extra hold downs vs the calk alone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 This may be specific to my situation. Remember that I have the nodding donkey (my treadle hammer) mounted over my anvil. Even though the combined weight of anvil and stand is about 300 lbs, there’s a lot of force exerted on the system by the hammer blows themselves and especially by the recoil from the arm hitting its limit of travel on the upstroke*. The whole setup has even been known to vibrate a couple of feet across the floor over the course of some heavy forging sessions. I’ve found that just the caulk alone does a great job for deadening the ring and resisting hand hammer blows, but the bounce caused by the nodding donkey eventually pulled the silicone apart. In other words, silicone is better under compression than it is under tension. My system places tensile forces on the silicone joint beyond what it can stand without degrading over time. The two brackets therefore compress the silicone, eliminating that particular problem. * Side note: I’m giving a lot of thought to how I can add some kind of shock absorber to the upward limit of the arm’s travel, but that’s a separate issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted February 28, 2021 Share Posted February 28, 2021 That makes a lot of sense.. Thanks for the explanation.. As a side note having a compressive spring for the upstroke before full limit can help both with the next successive blow and to help with recoil.. I am still in process on the shop so never started the foot hammer for the trailer.. But it's still in the works.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew C Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 Here is my stand and HF freebie. It is a 70+ year old wrought iron stand from the creamery on my family's farm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waddy Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 Tanglediver: That is a great looking solid stand. The plate you picked up looks nice and thick, how much did that cost you? Will you need to attach the stand to the floor or is it fine as is? I would like to make one like that but I need to be able to move it around when not in use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlpservicesinc Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 On 3/1/2021 at 12:18 AM, Andrew C said: Here is my stand and HF freebie. It is a 70+ year old wrought iron stand from the creamery on my family's farm. I would be careful about using it to aggressively.. Looks like cast iron to me and fairly thin in the bottom where the pressure (spreading effect) will have a tendency to snap them off. If bolted down it would help the spreading but I'd still be leery.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 I agree most likely cast iron in that sort of old stand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWISTEDWILLOW Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 My vote is also cast iron I’ve got an old cream separator out in my junk pile with a stand similar to that one and i believe mine is cast iron. Neat old stand I just haven’t figured out what to use mine for yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 Quite agree with Jennifer, Thomas, and TW: cast iron, and probably not best for an anvil. It would be great for a low-impact application, like the base for a grinder or something other kind of machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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