Recomendations from the experienced please.

[Binesman]

My son and i have recently started smithing together.  We are currently using a 3" cube of steel for an anvil.  I have not been able to find a decent real anvil in my area and will be buying a chunk of steal from a local waterjet company instead.  I have several questions in this regard.  

1.  What is the minimum/maximum i want in height/width/length?  I was thinking a 12 Long by 6 wide by 4 high would be suitable.   (side note i will be buying a36 steel to help protect against flying sparks from mistriking on hardened steel)

 

2.  My plan is to have it be 2" longer on the top and have that be only 1" thick to have them cut a hardy pritchet hole.  Will that be solid enough to handle drifting or should i have that piece thicker?

 

3.  Mounting it.  My current plan is to set and cure a block of concrete then set the steel on top of it and pour another 2" of cement so the metal would be 1/2 in and 1/2 out of cement.  Will this work?  Is there a better method?

[Ferrous Beuler]

Welcome to IFI Binesman! 

I highly recommend that you and your son find your local ABANA affiliate group and attend. You will have a thousand questions answered for you at your first meeting. Want to learn smithing? Surround yourself with blacksmiths and you will. Look here to find a group near you~

Without your location displayed in your header that's the best I can do for you since I don't know where you are but that's pretty much it, find your local and join.

 

Cheers!

*Edit, if that link isn't working go to abana dot org and click on "affiliates" for the list and the map.

[Binesman]

Sorry forgot to put my area im in greeley colorado

[Charles R. Stevens]

Most steels come in the annealed state, so are no more a chip risk than A36  (a structural specification and not a steel grade). Their is no real I seal anvil weight or shape, but the more mass directly under the hammer the beter. Both my farrier anvils have 4" faces about a foot long. A 4x4 post anvil is great, a 6x6 is much heavier. But don't blow off a good drop because you want something fancy. A 2" solid drawbar with or with out multi balls make a service le anvil, as do broken train car couplers, rock crusher teeth and such. As long as the anvil is bigger than the hammer face your good. Any thick drop will work, be it a shaft or large bar or ideally a drop from cuting 2-4' circles. As to a hardy hole, with mild you can just weld on a heavy 1" Inside piece of heavy square tubing and then reinforce with 1/2 bar. Or make a portable hole.  

[horse]

Check out rockymountsinsmiths.org.  I am not a member but live quite near you and there are a bunch of smiths in our area. Loveland has a hammer in every summer and there is a gentleman in Berthoud that does an open forge very regularly. No shortage of opportunities to start hitting some steel with some assistance in our neck of the woods. Stay patient learn some real basics before you start asking about advanced things I.E. Sword making knife making, Damascus and so forth. Check out the site I indicated. 

[Ferrous Beuler]

These are the folks in your region~

http://www.rockymountainsmiths.org/index.html

[Glenn]

You may want to check out the following:

September 23	Workshop	Jodie Bliss	Scrap sculpture	Limit to 10	Jodie Bliss  Monument, Colorado	Scrap Sculpture
October 14	Demonstration	John Switzer	Draw Knife	No Limit	John Switzer's shop  Beulah, Colorado	Draw Knife
November 11	Demonstration	Randy Calhoon	Welding for Blacksmiths	No Limit	Dan Nibbelink Shop Berthoud, CO	Welding For Blacksmiths
December 2	Holiday Party	Grant Mellenbruch	RMS Holiday Party	No Limit	Grant Mellenbruch's  Lakewood, Colorado	RMS Holiday Party

 

A sledge hammer head or other object can be used. The size only needs to be larger than your hammer face. Anything with a mass of 70-100 pounds or more is nice. Do not worry about what it was called before you got it, just use it.  Also look for inside and outside curves to use as a swedge. Do a site search for TPAAAT to assist you in finding an anvil.

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

As far as mounting it in concrete, I wouldn't do that. If you have anyone near you that cuts firewood have them save you a nice big stump before they split it. Mount the steel to it with welded tabs bolted down or build a metal stand.

Here are some ideas.

 

[Frosty]

I'd stand that piece of steel on end, a 4" x 6" face is plenty and having 12" depth of rebound makes for a darned efficient use of the steel. Contrary to your intuition you don't need a large flat face for the most part you only need a little more than the size of the hammer face. There's no rule against flattening, plannishing, etc. vertically against the side. Once you start developing surface textures and features, say twists you'll want to straighten and true things up with a wood mallet on a block of wood so it doesn't damage the surface features you've worked so hard putting there. 

No, setting it in concrete is another bit of intuition that's wrong, concrete tends to pulverize under anvils, even heavy ones. If you build a stand by screwing lumber together on end you can make a simple cradle on one side that holds it securely on end and use the large flat wooden surface to mount other tools, straighten work with the mallet or tip your anvil onto if you really do need it on its side or edge. Hmmmm?

Frosty The Lucky.

[Binesman]

Wood stand got it.  Thats easier then concrete for me any day.  Is there anything i should do to treat the wood to prevent fires?  Im sure forge temperature material is going to be dropped on it.

[JHCC]

Theoretically, soaking the wood in a borax solution makes it more fire resistant, but it's time, trouble, and expense invested with no meaningful return. Anything hot that falls on it will not be there long enough to start a fire, and a few scorch marks here or there won't make a difference.

That said (and this is a bit off-topic, but bear with me), it is very much worth your while to prevent hot things dropping or flying through the air.  Scorch marks on you or your son are much more a problem than they are on an anvil stand. Investing in some basic quality tongs is probably one of the best things you can do right now: they will allow you to hold your workpieces securely, comfortably, and (most importantly) safely.

[Binesman]

Tongs atwnt an issue both my uncle and i worked many years for a tillage tool company as furnace men.  We had to build shape and maintain our own tongs.  The tongs in the image whete ones my son made himself with supervision and assistance.  And they work great for flat stock.  Its more thomgs will fall while he learns to handle tongs.

[JHCC]

Sounds good.

[ThomasPowers]

Now it being a bit drier where you are than JHCC, your stump may flame up, especially if it's softwood.  Having a dipper can in a slack tub will take care of is easily.  After a while the stump may get an armoured "char" surface and not need as much babying.   Or you could do the Borax Soak on it easily enough---but that will wash off with rain if you leave it outdoors.  I'm in a dry climate too and never had any issues that a handful of water didn't deal well with. (only about 15 years out here and 15 years in Ohio previously and 6 years in OK and AR before that...)

[Binesman]

Good to know ty all for the advice

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

My anvil stumps have a good coating of scale on them, no problem with flare ups from hot metal dropping on them, which isn't left there long.

[ThomasPowers]

I collect my scale as ore for a bloomery...