Anvil with a fake faceplate ?

[BartW]

Hello All;

 

at my wife's work (large hospital) they are organizing a fair for a whole weekend in the summer, and the topic this year is old crafts. As such, she assigned me to do the blacksmithing stand. Something I have never done before, and wasn't really planning on doing either due to lack of free time. Naturally I resisted a little bit, and I said that I have no "moveable" blacksmithing gear. My twin anvils are over 300 pounds each, my forging table is over 200 pounds .... She told she figured I was going to say that (she's a doctor, and smarter than me), so she asked around for mobile blacksmithing gear, and lo and behold one of her colleagues had an anvil lying around in his garage which I just had to collect. She also told me that she had seen a coal forge in pieces in my garage, that could be made mobile.

So now I'm doing a blacksmithing stand for a weekend this summer ...

But this is about the anvil. I fetch it at her colleagues and it strikes me as "odd". First, I had never heard of the brand before, marked VM and a 4 on the other side (and I've seen quite some anvils). Second, it's construction is ... puzzeling. I don't know the weight (yet) but I can walk short distances with it, and I'm a fairly big guy; so it has to be over 50 kg or 110 pounds.

First off, it has casting marks (the split lines from the parts of the mold). The "face plate" seems to cover only the middle part of the top; and is obviously milled - it extends 3 to 4 mm wider than the body. but it stops in the square horn ... all the anvils I've seen in european style with a face plate had the plate running all the way through the square horn.  If I fetch my hardness files; it becomes even weirder. Other than the obvious line on the side of the faceplate, I can find any edge of the faceplate. even the body below the faceplate is equally hard. On the sides of the square horn you can see chips missing just like there were on the side of the faceplate. also both horns are equally hard. Granted; they are not HRC 60 + like the skoda anvils; but they are above HRC 55. foot to top. Which begs the question; what's the fake faceplate doing there ? It seems to me to be a perfectly usable solid cast steel anvil; why go through the effort of "simulating" a face plate ?

Anyone know this brand by any chance ?

movie with anvil sound & rebound : https://drive.google.com/open?id=1hgnjp-JjAMshZvcHYNq5Lcu3RDeMd42a

[Glenn]

Is this a live fire demo or just show and tell?

Either way put your shop name and contact information out there. Who knows what type of work it may generate.

[Irondragon Forge ClayWorks]

That anvil looks like a good traveling one. I found one listed as a VM brand of anvil on an on line auction site, but it didn't give much info and it sold for 175 Euros.

[Frosty]

Cast anvils virtually all have a false face plate or line indicating one. When casting steel got good enough to make good anvils blacksmiths still demanded a face plate so manufacturers gave them one. 

At R55 throughout I'd be thinking about all the different shapes available to use. I Really like it, SWEET looking traveling anvil.

Tell me Bart, how does a fellow who's never done any blacksmithing come to have so many anvils? Not that it's any of my business but please don't say they look good in the garden!

Frosty The Lucky.

[BartW]

It'll probably be a live fire demo - let the kids hammer a hook - kinda thing. And there will be some PR, you can be sure of that.

Well I'm looking into making a mild steel tripod stand; and some brackets to bolt it down.

Frosty, you are right, I haven't done any real blacksmithing yet, but I kinda rolled into it from bladesmithing. And xxxx no, these aren't going to be garden ornaments, I'd rather ship them to Alaska where they can be put to good use  .

My workshop is kinda the strange place you go to when you need something fixed, but don't want to go the official way. Weld something to a tractor; make a reduction rind for tool X ... But also for bladesmithing courses, or simply having your kitchen knives sharpened .

 

Edited February 27, 2019 by Mod34
Edited for inappropriate language

[TechnicusJoe]

The reason for the "fake face plate" is not to imitate a face plate that doesn't exist. That's a waste of valuable time. 

The reason they do this, is in order to be able to save the anvil, should there be any air bubbles in the casting,
or any other deformation from the mold. It gives the foundry some leeway that can be ground or milled out and they will still have an anvil 
that can be sold. Casting flaws simply happen, and in the anvil face and/or edges is a vital spot. 

Not all manufacturers remove this overhang. And not all manufactures put this overhang on the entire length of the edges.
 Should an edge chip, then the smith can still remove the overhang, left from the foundry. 
I personally dislike the look of an overhang.

[BartW]

Hello;

 

Well the overhang is already gone in this one  I don't like the look of it either.

Do you happen to know this brand ? i've never heard of it. Yet it seems a good portable anvil.

mvg; Bart

 

[JHCC]

21 hours ago, TechnicusJoe said:

 

Welcome back, Joe. Good to see you again.