Appologies if this is too frequently asked question. I"m just a fresh newbie...

I see in many smithy pictures that the anvil is wraped with a piece of chain. Why? Are they prone to escape? Other reasons?

The two reasons i've read people do this is to reduce the ringing noise and to prevent the anvil from walking with the extra weight. I can neither confirm nor deny either reason, but I can confirm it looks bad xxx. I've also read someone suggest that making a chain is good practice for a beginner on a number of techniques, but most especially forge welding. As your chain gets longer it serves as a visual aid of your progress getting better and better. Around an anvil would be a good place for a chain with many weak links from the learning process methinks. 

 

1 hour ago, Charcold said:

The two reasons i've read people do this is to reduce the ringing noise and to prevent the anvil from walking with the extra weight

yup, thats why. i don't advocate that method, but it works for some folks.

My 515# anvil will walk if you are enthusiastic enough with the sledge hammers, I use a handful of fence staples to keep it in place, I only need them to stick up about 1/4".  So I think killing the ring is the proper response.  There are several other ways to do that too: magnets, bedding in silicone caulk, tar paper, fastening it to the stump securely, etc.

Showing off you chain skills is another possible answer; but I use my chain as part of the crowd control system.

Scrambler; take a few punches and distress the last couple of links like they have been chewed in two and leave a 
Have You Seen My Dog poster with it...

Anvil in Chains. Wasn't that a Seattle grunge band?

They were known for their rather muted sound, especially the percussionist!  Sort of a Techno-Jazz fusion.

I think its done for the ring but its mostly for looks. I have tried it on everything from 100 pound columbian to a 500 pound hay budden. Did nothing that I could hear. Only sucess I have had was bolting it down tight or sound dampening material underneath like silicone. 

I've never understood wrapping feet of chain around an anvil.  It doesn't mute the ring because the horn and the heel are the parts that ring.  If you put a small magnet on the underside of those parts, the ring dies quickly and the anvil is bearable to be around.

Tons of chain will add weight and keep people from considering the theft of your anvil..... for a few minutes.  Said chain also gets in the way when you're bending over the edge of the anvil.  I just made three brackets for a customer and bent all three of them over the far edge.  The 4" leg going down the side of the anvil would have hit on a lot of the chain wraps I see people doing - and I've got a pretty big anvil.

Does it look good?  Honestly, I don't think so.  While I agree that it's a subjective thing, I think it's far more attractive to use finely crafted spikes, staples, fences or other methods that actually showcase your abilities.  Even if nobody but you ever sees it, you get to look at it every day and be inspired.  

Of all the ways to keep an anvil on the stump, chromed or galvanized chain, with store-bought bolts and such, is about as garish as it gets.  I understand beginners have to start somewhere, but I encourage folks to think outside the box, try new and interesting things, and dress it up to the best of your ability.  If you start with shiny chain and bolts, plan to do something better after you've got some forging time under your belt.  It's those little details that make a tremendous difference.

Well I have the garish plated harbor freight chain on my Peter Wright, which otherwise is loosely fastened to a fair sized stump.  Not sure where you are getting your info from, but there is a noticeable difference in noise level with and without the chain.  I think it looks horrible and at times interferes with dropping punches or drifts thru the hardy hole.  On the other hand, my shop is in a residential neighborhood and I have close neighbors.  Until I find a better way to reduce the ring I'll have to keep the chain. 

I'll have to try bolting it down more securely first.  I've tried the magnet trick, and it doesn't work for me.

try silicone. i used it on my soderfors and cut the ring completely. 

I have a buddy who loves using chain to quiet his anvil.  I tried it for a while with modest success.  It wasn't until I made a steel stand that bolted up tight that I finally got a quiet anvil.  Compared to folks using chain and magnets at the hammer in, there's no question that tight bolting is the most effective silencer. 

 I don't have any silicone, or noise absorbing material between the anvil and the stand.  The only dampening I have is oiled sand in the hollow tubular legs of my stand.  I did take the time to flatten the bottom of my anvil.  There was a small ridge on the parting line of the base. 

That being said, all the anvils I've seen in such situations were London pattern.  I have no idea if it's possible to get the same degree of silencing with a two horn anvil.  I've only encountered a couple in real life and they rang pretty well.

The chain wrapped around the anvil the way I remember it is this:    At night the smith could work and it would throw shadows around the forge. (IE dancing devils) It was said if the anvil wasn't chained down the devil would come around and snatch it..   

I think the story was told to keep the anvil safe from thieves and also to play on children's minds.. 

I have a bunch of chain wrapped around the base of my portable hole, which is light enough on its own that the additional weight makes a significant difference, especially after I also jammed in a whole bunch of rail anchors.

I never tried using chain to quiet the ring on my Mousehole, but attaching it to its steel base with a layer of silicone worked wonders.

I use a chain around my Trenton to quiet it down. It works fine and if it were ever in my way I can just take it off for that project. 

 

"Anvil In Chains"? IIRC I'm pretty sure I saw them live back in July '86 down at Mud Island right on the Mississippi river in Memphis Tennessee, they opened for Charlie Daniels and then ZZ Topp played too. Great show. Might still have a T-shirt back in the closet maybe.

Buy a Fisher, and one needs not worry about the ring at all .

I've met several folks who worried quite a bit that their Fisher didn't ring.  I hope I set their minds to rest.

My current anvil is a Fisher than came with my Blacker. It takes awhile to get used to the thud, but the work gets done all the same.

Dont want noise in the smithy? Use a rubber hammer.

Or move.

Frosty The Lucky.