Will Brouwers Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Hello, I don't have pictures of it right now, but my Trenton anvil made in 1916 has a couple hammer marks in it. A friend and I were team striking and he hit the face a couple times and made some semi-circle marks on it. I was also trying to cold tweak a piece of (unknown to me) hardened steel that left a small dent. The anvil came with some dents and the rebound wasn't the best to begin with as well. I am wondering if this anvil just needs to be taken better care of, including not having my still-a-beginner friend striking, or if it is just a soft-faced anvil that will harden over time? I don't know the history of the anvil, if it has been in any fires or anything, but I do know that the face is nice and thick, and there are no chips out of the sides. This leads me to believe that the anvil was on the softer side to begin with. I feel terrible having these dings in the face and am hoping they will come out with time, but I am not sure what to do if my anvil face is too soft. Might be a good reason to ask my wife if I can get another anvil Will Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Will: Work around the dents with a smooth faced hammer, it will drive the high ridge back into the dent. Yes, it will work harden just don't try rushing it with a sledge hammer. There have been some good pics of guys striking using a VERY accurate stance and hammer hold. Hopefully someone will link the pics. Next time tell your friend not to get so carried away, it doesn't take that heavy a blow to do serious work with a 10lb sledge. Also, hold off on tweaking unknown steel cold on your anvil. I don't do that and a file will skate on mine, it doesn't dent. Still. . . My Trenton has dings, dents, cuts and a torch mark or two and she still works just fine. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Brouwers Posted March 8, 2022 Author Share Posted March 8, 2022 Thanks for the quick response Frosty! That all makes sense, and matches up to what I was thinking. I just wanted to make sure I was in the ballpark. I definitely did a lot of learning that time we forged!! I do have one lingering question. This anvil is 100+ years old, why has it not work hardened yet? It makes me think that the anvil could've been in the fire, in which case it can't work harden, right? Will Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frazer Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 The anvil may be 100+ years old, but if it lost it's temper at some point (who knows when) the work hardening clock goes back to zero. It can still work harden again, but it could take a while. I'll also add that the rate the anvil face work hardens will depend on how it is/was being used. If you're working your piece at forging temperatures then most of the energy is used deforming your piece and the anvil face will work harden very slowly. If you're cold forging/straightening things on your anvil all day (farriers ) then the face might sway and work harden more quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Work hardening occurs with deformation and as mentioned if the anvil face gets above the deformation climb temperature, all the previous work hardening goes away and you start over. Now if your anvil was not heavily used; or used with real wrought iron that was worked at very high temps and softness; it may not have work hardened very much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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