Zeke25 Posted December 24, 2024 Posted December 24, 2024 Hi, I just got this anvil as an heirloom and was wanting to know a little more about it and if anyone could tell me a brand or some specs. It definitely is cast because it has a seam but I didn’t know if it was cast iron or steel leaning toward steel because it does have a ring but I know very little about anvils thank you. https://ibb.co/2hMs5q2 Quote
swedefiddle Posted December 24, 2024 Posted December 24, 2024 Good Morning Zeke, Merry almost Christmas!! What part of the world are you creating a shadow?? If you add your area, to your Avatar, If sure someone will answer. I can think of only one manufacture of Anvils that didn't have a 'Pritchell Hole' as well as a 'Hardy Hole'. Have you put it on a scale yet, to find out what it weighs? Your Baby is wanting a bunch of 'Attention'. Heat up some Iron and make something, anything. Even Scrap Metal. By using it, you will clean up it's face, with use. Enjoy the Journey!! Neil Quote
Nobody Special Posted December 25, 2024 Posted December 25, 2024 It's a bit strange - with the feet that shape and the line down the middle, it almost looks like someone made a sand casting using a Peter Wright as a pattern. Is the ring dull, more of a clink or ting, or does it keep reverberating and make your eardrums hurt after the strike, especially on the heel or horn? There were a large number of cast iron "anvils" made as decorative objects, and it's unusual to see not only a missing pritchel, but a hardy hole that's that much askew. If it does turn out to be cast iron or ductile iron, it will have very little rebound, but they can be useful for upsetting. Offhand, I'd say it belonged to some guy with the initials D.J...... Quote
Frosty Posted December 25, 2024 Posted December 25, 2024 Interesting anvil Zeke. The way the hardy hole is turned rings as familiar to me but can't say where I've seen it other than some of the Russian import "ASO"s. Though to be honest the Russian ones were better quality than the Chinese cast iron ones. If you didn't know, ASO stands for (Anvil Shape Objects.) and are frequently worth little unless you need an expensive door stop or boat anchor. Having a parting line doesn't necessarily mean it's cast, closed die forging leaves a parting line right down the center like that. You can take a wire brush on an angle grinder and de-rust it to your heart's content. Just PLEASE do NOT use a grinding disk or cup stone on it! IMPORTANT safety note here!! Powered wire brushes are one of the MOST DANGEROUS tools in your shop, not only will the lightest contact remove flesh by ripping it out wire by wire thousands of times a second, it WILL grab cloth and climb your arm, leg, belly, etc. till your clothes and flesh stalls the motor out. If you rub the sides with sidewalk chalk then lightly wipe it off any characters will stand out and maybe become readable. The heavily rounded heal is odd but perhaps a sign of a farrier's anvil, again I don't know. The foot extending farther under the horn than the heal indicates the horn is what was intended to do the most work. Another maybe feature for making horse shoes. Frosty The Lucky. Quote
Zeke25 Posted December 25, 2024 Author Posted December 25, 2024 Thanks guys for the help I added some stuff to my profile just lmk if there’s anything else as for the anvil, I did some more test today and with the ball bearing test it was rebounding around 70% (minimum 65%) in the middle of the face on the ground without being anchored down, it also weighs 57 pounds. The sound in the middle of the anvil rings but not for more than 3/4 of a second in the heel it is higher pitched and a little louder but the horn is very loud ping with that echoey effect in your ears thanks Quote
Frosty Posted December 25, 2024 Posted December 25, 2024 Merry Christmas Zeke. While not great 70% rebound takes it out of the ASO range into a useful tool. It doesn't matter if an anvil is anchored or hovering without touching anything, a bearing ball will effectively rebound the same through "elastic rebound." What the sound is really good for is letting you test for dead spots in the face. Sometimes idiots use anvils like work benches, heat or cut things on them with torches which draws the hardness (temper) out of high carbon steel. You've already noticed the different location tones in the ring. Heal and horn always rings louder and longer. If you think of the impact resonance of your anvil like that of a bell you can see how where you strike makes the difference. Interesting, the echoey sound is probably the effect of the sound reflecting from different parts of the anvil and returning to the horn at discrete times. Looking at it I can offer a WAG that the thinner foot, under the heal is the quieter and first ring while the slower, louder and deeper pitch is the heel. That is just a guess of course. If you REALLY want to know something that has no effect on the anvil's usefulness you'll need to hire a sound lab to find out. It's weight is kind of light but not bad, it won't be as effective for heavy work but you CAN do it if you wish. It'll make an excellent traveling anvil, small, easy to carry and won't overload even a compact car. A couple hammers and tongs and struck tools and you'll have a useful traveling kit. Heck when I was younger I could've packed it and basic kit into remote campsites on my pack frame. (Ah GOOD times ) Frosty The Lucky. Quote
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted December 26, 2024 Posted December 26, 2024 Here is a good thread about when the pritchel holes were first seen on London pattern anvils. Something in the back of my pea brain keeps saying your anvil may be quite old. https://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/53259-when-were-pritchel-holes-first-put-in-london-pattern-anvils/ I can't control the wind, all I can do is adjust my sail’s.~ Semper Paratus Quote
Nobody Special Posted December 27, 2024 Posted December 27, 2024 That's good to hear, pun intended. Of course, I hear ringing pretty much all the time with or without anvils. I was thinking not so much of the buzz you get with delamination in this case, as about trying to hear the kind of dull clank you get with cast iron or the ringing of a steel/wrought anvil. Until you learn the difference, hitting a big enough chunk of cast iron sounds like ringing, right up until you whack the heel of an unsecured real anvil and you get a three or four second peal at 120 decibels or so. Also, I agree with Frosty regarding rubbing chalk on the side, although instead of a solid piece of chalk, I usually tilt it a bit and use baby powder or something similar. Either way, good deal - it's always great to have a travel anvil that doesn't break you back to move. I've got a 75 lb columbian I keep for exactly that purpose. Quote
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