I was reading a blacksmithing book and they mentioned having a cutting plate you can lay over your anvil to protect it anytime there is a possibility that you may damage the anvil surface with a hammer. They mentioned 1/4 copper.

Is "cutting plate" the correct term and does one use coppor or steel? I've dinged some ASO's by getting to close to the edge of the part I was forging but on my real anvil I want to have this never happen. Any thoughts or suggestions on how to build one?

All of the cutting plates I have seen people use have been a piece of steel, either a simple plate sitting upon the anvil, or a stem that fits in the hardy hole, or edges that wrap around the two sides of the anvil.

when i find some ill be using 1/4" copper plate till then i use 1"8 anealled mild steel plate bent to fit over my anvil.i would prefer copper as it is much softer and wont wear out my chisel as fast.

Copper, Steel, Aluminium all work OK, be careful with the aluminium and copper as they retain the heat very well

Copper, Steel, Aluminium all work OK, be careful with the aluminium and copper as they retain the heat very well

not 'alf !

I use 1/4" aluminium in the workshop, but when I'm demonstrating I've got a bit of old copper pipe flattened and folded across teh anvil. It's not thick but it does the job

I had a few thin plates of aluminum that I left at the blacksmith shop at the state fairgrounds. I have a piece of very soft mild steel straddles the anvil

ive used copper and steel ... anything that is softer than your chizel ! good luck

Or you might just try using the step on the anvil, cutting and chisel work is what it was designed for

Or you might just try using the step on the anvil, cutting and chisel work is what it was designed for

I don't get it, won't that area just get screwed up?

When hammering the sides of something where the hammer might hit the anvil face is that when a cutting place is also used? Or do people tend to use a stake for hitting on the edge of something?

Some good advice, I will make a plate to cover my anvil when cutting
Pipeliner32

I use 1/4" mild steel..If you can fit it so that it will drap over your anvil on both sides like a tablecloth..You wont regret it..

You can use the step if you wish but it will damage it.

If you have an anvil with a face of good steel properly hardened and tempered, unusual anymore, it will simply flatten a chisel or ding a hammer. Most modern anvils are not heat treated to this degree of hardness as it's entirely possible to knock chips off the edges with potentially serious injuries.

The crack/snap you hear when a piece of hard steel breaks is the chip breaking the sound barrier. Oh sure, it'll only stay supersonic for a few feet but your femoral artery is usually only about 1 1/2' +/- away.

Anyway, a chisel or cutting plate is a really good idea to preserve not only the edges of your chisels, hot sets, etc. it's a good way to prevent damage to softer faced anvils. Al, Cu or mild steel all are fine, I use mild steel.

Radiusing the edges of the face are a good way to diminish the danger of chipping them. You can make and use a nice sharp edged square steel block welded to a hardy hole sized shank for those times you need a good sharp square corner.

A leather apron will usually be more than enough to protect your legs and the jewels.

Hammers are easy to dress if damaged, I don't worry about them.

Frosty

I don't get it, won't that area just get screwed up?

When hammering the sides of something where the hammer might hit the anvil face is that when a cutting place is also used? Or do people tend to use a stake for hitting on the edge of something?

The step of the anvil is the flat spot right in front of the face at the base of the horn. Yes it will get chewed up eventually but that is what it is made for, a cutting surface. It can be cleaned up easily with a belt sander if you must have a pristine surface.

Well I use the step some times like when I am trying to dish something and I prefer to have it stay nice and clean. Any chisel marks on it can be transferred to the piece your working. Easier to just use a steal plate and save yourself the effort of having to clean up the step later on.

In a load of "stuff" I picked up at a fabricator friends shop was a block of mild steel 8" long and the exact width of my anvil with a 4" piece of 2" wide angle iron welded on each side. It's 2" thick and fits perfect on the anvil. It don't walk around like the lighter--bent over the anvil piece does when I'm cutting. I can even forge small pieces on it when I need a kinda sharp edge my anvil doesn't have.

Edited November 30, 200817 yr by JerryCarroll
forgot somthin :(

I have a small 2" plate about 4 " long with a hardy attachment, the cool thing about this plate is, it has a groove running down the center, like a valley, that assists the chisel in cutting, it is a stable system, and it is small and easy to move about, I figure the plate does not have to be a whole lot bigger then the area you are cutting. I have heard it said that Francis Whittaker was dead set against using the step for a cutting plate, he supposedly used it for a negative space bending area, and was very adamant about it, any of his students want to confirm this?

I use a 1/4 plate with a 1 inch tube welded for the hardy and angle iron on the under side to help keep it in place...i've weded up the cuts and ground it back flush after a bit of hard use[why make another]

I've seen all kinds. I made a mild plate for the historical outfit in town. Good luck finding .25 copper nowadays, I'm sure it can be done though. My only adversion to it is that it might produce toxic fumes if the iron is on it for too long while hot enough. I may be paranoid.

I have a 55# ASO with a 3/4" thick plate welded fast to the top complete with pritchel and hardy hole. I had a large fabrication shop customize the ASO. I specified I wanted a hard tool steel top plate. However, it came back with about the same hardness as the original top. So, since I have a decent Hay Budden, the ASO is now my chopping block. It works pretty well. Otherwise that it just sat in a corner collecting dust.

cut marks on a cut plate or the step of the anvils are a sign of a SLOPPY blacksmith.

I have a 1/4" plate of mild steel welded to a hardy shank for my shop anvil. for demo's I use the step. as far as cuts/marks on either I guess I'm sloppy.

John

Yes that area gets damaged but that is the only area that does.

I have a 1/4" plate of mild steel welded to a hardy shank for my shop anvil. for demo's I use the step. as far as cuts/marks on either I guess I'm sloppy.

John

John I was just kidding:D

In George Dixon's book, A Blacksmith's Craft,The Legacy of Francis Whitaker,, It states, on pg. 5, "that thee face of the step is not for cutting. Chisel cuts chew it up and dressing it is not practical. A cutting -saddle, made of mild steel flat stock, is placed on the anvil's face when chisel cutting is done. I have seen to many anvil steps messed up by chisel cuts that could have prevented in the first place

I have a few vintage anvils, P Wright and H Budden. Both are well over 100 years old and they show some wear comensurate with service and a few misguided dings. The face surfaces tell their own tales, i.e. the smiths took good care of their equipment. We would be well advised to do the same. As an alternative to cutting on the anvil, try cutting on a piece of scrap plate or an old I beam section. You can pound away with abandon an not worrry about damaging the working surface of your anvil.