rebicsson Posted July 21, 2019 Share Posted July 21, 2019 so I'm trying to setup my first attempt at a backyard setup I've founds ways to get a hold of hammers, coal, and an electric blower but im missing a key component "the Anvil". However i have a way to remedy that i currently work at a steel warehouse and i can get good steel at either a discount or dang near scrap prices. i just need to know what kind of steel to get and if there is anything i need to do to it. thanks in advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 21, 2019 Share Posted July 21, 2019 Welcome aboard nameless new buy, glad to have whoever you are. If you put your general location in the header you might be surprised how many members live within visiting distance. What an expedient anvil is made of isn't really so important as long as it's steel, cast iron isn't so good. If you can get steel shafting or bar stock say 4" or more across you're golden. Standing relaxed in the shoes, boots, etc. you wear working with your hands hanging relaxed at your side you want the face of your anvil about wrist high. This makes it much more natural to strike with the hammer face parallel to the anvil face and this is important. If you have a piece of shafting mount it on end, this gives you the best depth of rebound and the most effective anvil for the shaft. Laying it flat will absorb much of the hammer's impact force by flexing, this isn't any benefit. Round or square doesn't really matter though the straight sides of square is useful. Don't worry about the alloy, you'll be forging HOT steel which is darned soft, think modeling clay soft. Even if you do acquire say 4140 hardening it will be a challenge, not something for the home shop, you'll be using it as it comes. I'm a big fan of RR rail or semi axles mounted on end. Rail is high carbon steel the end is plenty large and the web and flanges can be ground into a large number of bottom tools, hardy, fuller, swage, bending forks, etc. to name a few. A semi axle mounted flange up also has a good surface for the face and the bolt holes in the flange can be used for any number of things. In either case, rail or axle they have a great depth of rebound and are effective anvils. Depth of rebound is how much steel is between the hammer and the far end of the anvil, my Soderfors has IIRC about 12" from face to the bottom of the foot. When I used a rail anvil on end it had 31" from face to base. Properly done there nothing wrong with a RR rail anvil and don't look at ones that have been ground to RESEMBLE a London pattern anvil, that's a lot of work for not much return, horns aren't as useful as folk think. Another top shelf expedient anvil is heavy plate steel on edge for the depth of rebound. 2" or thicker on edge makes a fine anvil and you have all those edges (on FOUR sides) to grind into useful bottom tools. Brian Brazeal has some excellent how to videos including at least one that features this type anvil. RR hitch knuckles are just LOADED with useful shapes and bull dozers are made of anvils. Heavy duty repair shops are good places to look, you'd be surprised how much good PR a box of doughnuts is. I don't recommend these to beginners but a nice smooth boulder makes a perfectly useful anvil. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebicsson Posted July 22, 2019 Author Share Posted July 22, 2019 thanks for all the advice and what do you thionk of s-7 as an avil we just have boxes of blocks sitting around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 If the price is right go for it, only advice is to make sure it’s not fully hardened. Anything over R65 has an inhanced risk of chipping and becoming high speed shrapnel if you miss and hit the edge. A not sharp crisp edges are not your friend unless your using it as a cut off. Rounding the edges off in various radie is useful, say 1/4”, 3/8 &1/2. The edges of my anvils are radiused 1/8” at the root of the horn to 1/2” at the heal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebicsson Posted July 22, 2019 Author Share Posted July 22, 2019 so maybe take a torch too it to soften it i only ask cause the 4140 we cary is generally to small when scrapped out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebicsson Posted July 22, 2019 Author Share Posted July 22, 2019 Edit I was thinking of h13 not s-7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 Neither S-7 nor H-13 is an alloy you'll be able to soften like low alloy steel. It's an intricate procedure on a good day but thick makes it about as expensive as buying an anvil. Just radius the edges and put it to work. Both S and H series steels are shock resistant but be careful anyway. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted July 22, 2019 Share Posted July 22, 2019 If it’s not heat treated and you can get it for scrap price it’s great. As S7 and H13 are air hardening steels with high hot hardness a torch will either make it hard or won’t temper it so don’t do that. Just check with the guys in the know if it’s hard.if it’s ment to be machined it’s probably not, if it’s ment to be ground it may well be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 You might want to review the "Improvised Anvils" thread for ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlatLiner Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 I have a swedish anvil with some pretty beat up edges but I also have a 5" x5"x 7" block of s7, a 5" x 19" (s7 or something similar)round post, and a rail road car knuckle. And to tell you the truth I use my improvised anvils just as much if not more then the old Swede. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 A boy can't have too many anvils. Anything you use to beat things on is an anvil by definition. Being the kind of guy who mentally takes everything to the ridiculous extreme I have to wonder if driving a steel stake in the ground makes Earth an anvil. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caotropheus Posted July 27, 2019 Share Posted July 27, 2019 Frosty, you're a genius! Now I only have to convince my wife of that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted July 27, 2019 Share Posted July 27, 2019 On 7/25/2019 at 2:33 PM, Frosty said: driving a steel stake in the ground makes Earth an anvil. Don't know about that but it does bring earthworms to the surface to go fishing with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 28, 2019 Share Posted July 28, 2019 WOW, this is just getting cooler and COOLER! Driving a stake in the ground will cause earthworms to crawl out of your anvil! And get THIS your anvil is almost 8,000 miles in diameter and masses 5,972,000,000,000,000,000,000 metric tons and gaining! Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 28, 2019 Share Posted July 28, 2019 My tai chi teacher used to say, "The earth is a giant fist." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrTMichaud Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 I wonder if anyone drinks chai tea while they do tai chi? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 Try saying "Tai chi teacher chugs chai tea" five times fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrTMichaud Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 You first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 Try saying it to your tai chi teacher. . . IF you're studying the martial art. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 He'd want you to say it veeeeeeerrrry slooooooooowly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted July 30, 2019 Share Posted July 30, 2019 Zen why not? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrTMichaud Posted July 31, 2019 Share Posted July 31, 2019 I personally do not like chai tea. I would consider tai chi, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 JHCC, do you study practical application and push hands as well? I practiced Tai-Chi through my whole military career. Need to get my fat out of shape self back to doing it...one of these days. (There is a whole mess of stuff that is going to get done one of these days) Chai tea, no thanks. Black, no sugar with just a touch of lemon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pnut Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 Milk-n-sugar for me and on cold winter days when I'm going to be outside for a while, tea with sugar, butter,milk, and a sprinkle of salt. I had a neighbor from Mongolia who showed me this. It really warms you up. To be authentic you use horse or camel milk but we didn't have any on hand and the local United Dairy Farmers was out. Pnut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBones Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 Hot black coffee. No sugar, no milk, nothing. Oh yeah and strong. Most people do not like my coffee. I used to do the whole grind my own beans, bought from a specialty shop, and all that jazz. To lazy now just a preground Sumatran from Kroger. Ethiopians put salt in coffee along with butter. Ethiopia also in my opinion has the best coffee. A nice earthy flavor. But hard to find in a dark roast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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