Show me your anvil stands

[Anthony Mans]

Mr. Powers you are an inspiration regarding the corners! I think I have just the thing. 

I maybe should have clarified but the gaps between the pieces are only there because the boards aren't attached to anything yet, I stood them up on end just to take the picture. Once it's finished all the bends and bows will be straight and it will have kind of a butchers block look to it. 

[Lou L]

Okay, I was going to post a work in progress thread on my anvil stand....

....and then I finished it in one day.  I started taking pictures in progress so I can still show my basic strategy but I'm completely beyond the point where your advice can help me move forward.  I, of course, still want input and critiques of the most vigorous nature because nothing is ever really "done".

So I picked up parts that fit a general concept in my head yesterday.  

The anvils were drops from signs they made saying "Welder parking only" and "Blacksmith parking only" for the makers' night last week at Logan Steel.

I welded the angle iron in this configuration as feet to improve stability.  I can also bolt it down at some point when I feel change in my shop is not imminent.  I was aware that I completely ignored Thomas and Charles' excellent advice against broad bases like this because they are trouble on uneven floors (which is all floors). 

I welded and then ground the underside as well to ensure strength.  My welder is nearly as terrible as my welding skills.  However, I did improve a lot during this project.  I got my arc length down by the end and was stick welding like a boss...until about 11:30 pm when I just wanted it to end...

I welded the base onto the...well..."anvil bowl".  Terrible welds but this is about where i started to get a feel for arc length.  I had been holding the stick too close and was causing inclusions.  This stand is held together by inclusions that are loosely connected by weld bead.

Indragged it off the table (hurting my back a little in the process) and measured it up against the old Frankenstand.  I intended to get a little more height out it as I find myself bending too much when working at the anvil.

So I welded the sides on the anvil mount, filled it with sand, and gave the anvil its new home.  The sand, by the way, is the biggest part of this experiment.  So far the anvil seems to be a bit more ringy than before.  I'm going to give it a go for a while to see if I like it.  

There will be no more grinding or cleaning of this stand.  Paint is out of the question.

 

Thanks for reading,

Lou

 

 

[Al Stephens]

Looks good Lou. If you ever wear it out, let us know. Al

[JHCC]

Is that just the pan on top that's filled with sand, or the whole thing?

[Lou L]

1 hour ago, JHCC said:

Is that just the pan on top that's filled with sand, or the whole thing?

Just the pan.  I considered filling the whole thing with sand but, because my shop is nowhere near equilibrium, I didn't want to create that immobile monster.  It is definitely a serious consideration for later.

2 hours ago, PVF Al said:

Looks good Lou. If you ever wear it out, let us know. Al

Thanks!

[JHCC]

9 minutes ago, Lou L said:

Just the pan.  I considered filling the whole thing with sand but, because my shop is nowhere near equilibrium, I didn't want to create that immobile monster.  It is definitely a serious consideration for later.

Drill and tap for two oil pan drain plugs: one at the top of the one side of the tube, and one near the bottom. You can adjust the weight of the stand by adding sand through the top hole (with a funnel, probably) and removing it from the bottom hole as needed.

Greater overall mass will help your anvil and stand resist any hammering forces that aren't straight down, and lowering the center of gravity will make the whole thing less tippy.

[Lou L]

That's a nifty idea.  I'm going to keep my eyes out for an even larger plug...because bigger is better.

[JHCC]

Weld on 2"-3" floor flanges and screw in matching drain plugs?

[jlpservicesinc]

11 hours ago, Lou L said:

Okay, I was going to post a work in progress thread on my anvil stand....

Dragged it off the table (hurting my back a little in the process) and measured it up against the old Frankenstand.  I intended to get a little more height out it as I find myself bending too much when working at the anvil.

Lou I like it..  How big is the section of tube?

Little bummed it wasn't filled with sand but it's my bad..  I get moving stuff around..

[Lou L]

The tube is 10" square with 1/4" walls.  The base is about 19" wide total.  The stand, without the 3" layer of sand in it, is about 115#.  I believe I will end up filling it with sand at some point but I want to see how it performs without first.  I was also considering different materials in the top pan (wood, rubber, silicone, etc...) but I had to try this first.  I had the materials and wanted to copy what I saw at Morrel Metalsmiths during last Fall's NEB meet.  Though, the stand there may have been sand throughout.

 

1 hour ago, JHCC said:

Weld on 2"-3" floor flanges and screw in matching drain plugs?

I may find something like that in the random junk section at Logan Steel.  Good idea.

[Lou L]

Okay, another idea.  I was thinking it might be fun to experiment with a harmonic damper option as well.  My first thought was to attach a few springs of different thicknesses stretched between the inside walls of the base.  It might be fun to experiment with the outside of the base as well.  Heck, creatively designed tool rests could also act as dampers.  

The main question is this:  How much do people believe the sand in the base will improve the performance of the anvil?  I know we've talked about the benefit of more mass and structure under the anvil, but can sand provide the rigidity that would be necessary to actually impart energy back into the anvil!  The more I think about it, if the sand in the base is just for added stability and to reduce the ring then there may be easier options that can add function to the stand.

[Frosty]

I like the creative sound damper idea, how about spring mounted googly eyes?

Sand won't return more energy to the anvil, it's a damper and should reduce the rebound by some. Probably not significantly but the noise is energy rebounding. If you weld on bolt points so you can attach tool holders or make clip on holders for the rim on the top plate they should help damp the ring.

I think weld floor flanges and plugs are good ideas, you can find out how much sand improves or hinders performance. I'm no fan of adding oil and not sure what it's supposed to do. 

Frosty The Lucky.

[JHCC]

16 minutes ago, Frosty said:

Sand won't return more energy to the anvil, it's a damper and should reduce the rebound by some. Probably not significantly but the noise is energy rebounding. If you weld on bolt points so you can attach tool holders or make clip on holders for the rim on the top plate they should help damp the ring.

All good points.

18 minutes ago, Frosty said:

I'm no fan of adding oil and not sure what it's supposed to do. 

Same here.

18 minutes ago, Frosty said:

how about spring mounted googly eyes?

Don't give him ideas!

[jlpservicesinc]

Love the googley eyes as long as you can see them..     The extra mass or weight the sand will add is always welcome in my book.. As for anvil ring and the sound of the stand.. If you bolt the 2 together solidly they will usually discharge the sound more quickly as the anvil and stand will vibrate at a different rate.. The key here is they really need to be bolted solidly together.. 

I found with the anvil mounts I made back in the 90s when bolted to the stump it did quite the anvil some but not nearly as much as when I moved to a fabricated stand and bolted the stand and anvil together..  Even the new Peddy has just the faintest ring but with it mounted loosely on a stump I'm sure my ears would die.. 

 

[jlpservicesinc]

LOL.. be a real shocker when the bee gees start playing.

[JHCC]

Oh, you can tell by the way I swing my sledge,
I'm a smithin' man -- no need to hedge.
Fire's hot and flames are fast,
Each nail is better than the last.
But it's all right, it's okay,
I'll do it @ThomasPowers's way.
I can try to understand,
How to rewire a blower fan.

Whether you're a blacksmith or whether you're a bladesmith,
You're smithin' all night, smithin' all nigh.
Hear the anvil ringing and see the LG swinging,
You're smithin' all night, smithin' all night.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang! 
Bang!
Smithin' all night, smithin' all night!
Bang!
Bang!
Bang! 
Bang!
Smithin' all night, smithin' all night!

 

[John McPherson]

JHCC is channeling the Weird Al Yankovic vibe! Waiting on the video!

(Scary, I am actually old enough to remember when MTV played music videos.)

[JHCC]

1 hour ago, John McPherson said:

Waiting on the video!

Sorry, my hair is no longer sufficiently fabulous.

[Frosty]

We don't care John, we want the video! Okay, googly eyes have an OK, wiring up to the sound system is a GO so how about plugging into a computer and laser light show? Suddenly our stands become large flat white cylinders with . . . . dancing baby blacksmiths and . . . <GAAAH!! I can't believe I wrote that I need Mental Floss BAD! 

I'd like to spare you guys the mental imagery but they keep saying . . . S U B M I T . . .  R E P L Y. I can usually ignore the voices if I have to but these have hammers!

Frosty The Lucky.

[JHCC]

Jerry, it's time to put down the coffee and back slowly away from the keyboard....

[Lou L]

Somehow we went from quieting my stand to turning it into a float at Madrid Gras...

......with dancing babies in long leather bibs and wielding hammer rattles.

 

I guess I'll just wrap a chain around it...or just turn up the classic rock blasting on the radio when I work at the forge.  For some reason it seems that "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" always plays when I'm out there.  Maybe Frosty is really on to something.

[Frosty]

Or maybe he's really ON something? My Howard Leight Sync headphones keep my environment quiet enough to listen to the radio or an audio book on low setting and my closest neighbors are a couple hundred feet away through the woods. I think I'd have to blow something up to get noticed.

The dancing baby blacksmiths you see are wearing long leather bibs? That's just creepy Lou!

Frosty The Lucky.

[jlpservicesinc]

Frosty I imagine you did a bunch of research before you bought the head phones.. Is there a partcular reason why you chose those (Howard Leight sync) vs others..  There are a lot of different makers and brands.. 

[Jspool]

Heres my anvil on the roller stand it came on.  Its balanced so that its quite easy to tilt up and roll wherever I want it.

It doesn't seem to have a negative effect on its rebound or noise.

[Frosty]

1 hour ago, jlpservicesinc said:

Frosty I imagine you did a bunch of research before you bought the head phones.. Is there a partcular reason why you chose those (Howard Leight sync) vs others..  There are a lot of different makers and brands.. 

Yes, I looked into brands and models discussed here and on theforge.list. electronic noise cancellation phones are attractive but too expensive. I've tried Deb's Bose noise cancellation headphones and they work well but are WAY expensive.

Ear plugs don't work for me, the TBI and nerve damage to my left ear caused a 87% reduction in hearing in my left ear. So in the healing process nerves and brain compensated with "Audio Recruitment" on the left. This is a process where the brain "recruits" different parts of the brain and nerve paths to compensate. Depending on frequency my left ear is now more acute but some frequencies I can't hear worth beans. 

How all that applies to plugs not being effective is what my brain recruited. Most of the hearing on my left side is now bone conduction. I hear through my jaw more than my ear drum, loud metallic noise comes right through plugs in my left ear. I listen to buds if it's quiet enough but white noise screws them up. If we were talking in a cafe during lunch rush I'd be wearing a plug in my left ear or I couldn't filter the noise. Or I can stroke my jaw, like a picture of Freud thinking to damp my jaw. Sounds weird but lots of ear buds are bone conduction.  The Howard Leights cover and squeeze your jaw joint effectively damping sound conduction. they don't eliminate it but it's damped to acceptable volume.

I've done a BUNCH of reading about brain and nerve damage, the above is based on lay knowledge, observation and experimentation.

The Howard Leight syncs have a high NRR, Am Fm and cable, best they were on sale on Amazon and we're Prime members. They were also very favorably reviewed here and on theforge.list. I looked at the plethora of similar products and their marketing puffery looks darned good. Reading the reviews on the other hand made most look like cheap knock offs, some had minimal life expectancies others lousy sound reproduction, some lousy ear protection. The Howard Leights had excellent reviews on all counts, a high NRRand were 1/2 price. Oh, they're designed to protect your head from impact.

When it came down to it, it was product reviews by people I know, on Amazon and folk across the web in other venues that decided it for me. The common complaints about this model are the weight and how hard they clamp to your head. Those are my only complaints as well but without the squeeze they wouldn't stay on and be a constant distraction. They're heavy, so what, they are so effective I can listen to lousy radio reception with the volume turned way down AND still hear what's going on outside well enough to know when my band saw has finished a cut before it trips the switch. Tell how my disk grinder is loading while grinding, when a piece of steel is colling off, etc. I have to go out back and do a little shooting to see how they work on the range.

Known product, good reviews and China is mass producing knock offs to try and shirt tail. Says winner to me and it was a good choice.

I'd go on but I think I've repeated myself already. I love them, they're winners across the board. wish they were a little lighter and less squeezy though it's not an issue where it counts.

Frosty The Lucky.