Home made Anvil?

S

Smurf masher

Well-Known Member
Could I make an anvil by casting some concrete with rebar sticking out the top. Getting some decent flat solid steel, say 5kg's worth and drilling holes for the rebar, welding it to the steel, then grinding it off to get a flat finish? Could add some kind of silicone between the concrete and the steel to reduce the chance of chipping the concrete and noise reduction.

Would that work as a cheap mans anvil with plenty of mass?
 

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Smurf masher said:
Could I make an anvil by casting some concrete with rebar sticking out the top. Getting some decent flat solid steel, say 5kg's worth and drilling holes for the rebar, welding it to the steel, then grinding it off to get a flat finish? Could add some kind of silicone between the concrete and the steel to reduce the chance of chipping the concrete and noise reduction.

Would that work as a cheap mans anvil with plenty of mass?
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Better Idea: Find some steel tube, round or square, that will act as the vertical support (heavier is better) for your anvil surface (thicker is better). Add concrete to the steel tube then weld it up. The concrete will provide weight and mass, stiffen the steel tube and act as a damper for vibrations. However, it would not act as the primary support for the anvil.

Personally, I would not use concrete as the primary support structure for something that's is intentionally designed to be hammer-shocked on a daily basis. Largish steel tube is available anywhere there are people. A simple 2' cutoff should be easy to find. Since the steel tube is now the primary vertical support structure, any homemade concrete mix will work since it only provides stiffness and weight; no need for high-compression load/special mix concrete. Heck, sand would work in that application .
 
FTG-05 said:
Better Idea: Find some steel tube, round or square, that will act as the vertical support (heavier is better) for your anvil surface (thicker is better). Add concrete to the steel tube then weld it up. The concrete will provide weight and mass, stiffen the steel tube and act as a damper for vibrations. However, it would not act as the primary support for the anvil.

Personally, I would not use concrete as the primary support structure for something that's is intentionally designed to be hammer-shocked on a daily basis. Largish steel tube is available anywhere there are people. A simple 2' cutoff should be easy to find. Since the steel tube is now the primary vertical support structure, any homemade concrete mix will work since it only provides stiffness and weight; no need for high-compression load/special mix concrete. Heck, sand would work in that application .
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Nice idea... sand would work well if compacted in and then welded shut. Would also reduce vibrations. If I weld some extra plat on top of the square bar to a thickness that sorts out the impacts the weight I need will be sorted by the sand. I could also add hatches so I could empty to the sand if it needs transporting. 1653062820812.png
 
Buy a cast iron anvil, THEN put a steel plate on top. Weld around the edges. Don't bother buying nickel 55 or nickel 99 electrodes. Nomacast or a similar cast iron electrode is fine. Grind a pretty hefty bevel on the face of the anvil. Preheat the cast to about 400 degrees, weld it, then burry the anvil in dry sand or wrap it in a welding blanket or whatever you can do to keep it from cooling sown to fast. If you have an air hammer with a pointed chisel, you can also go over the welds with that, peening them to help prevent cracking.

Bonus points if you forge out a steel plate to go on the anvil horn!

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52 Ford said:
Buy a cast iron anvil, THEN put a steel plate on top. Weld around the edges. Don't bother buying nickel 55 or nickel 99 electrodes. Nomacast or a similar cast iron electrode is fine. Grind a pretty hefty bevel on the face of the anvil. Preheat the cast to about 400 degrees, weld it, then burry the anvil in dry sand or wrap it in a welding blanket or whatever you can do to keep it from cooling sown to fast. If you have an air hammer with a pointed chisel, you can also go over the welds with that, peening them to help prevent cracking.

Bonus points if you forge out a steel plate to go on the anvil horn!

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So I can get a cheapo anvil. Then weld hardened steel plate on top. Nice..
 
Smurf masher said:
So I can get a cheapo anvil. Then weld hardened steel plate on top. Nice..
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I've never tried it, but I've been wanting to, just so I know it's possible.

Make sure you use a thick plate.

A better way of doing this might be to weld strips to the face of the anvil. That way you have a solid connection ON the face and don't end up with a hollow spot in the middle of the anvil face.

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52 Ford said:
I've never tried it, but I've been wanting to, just so I know it's possible.

Make sure you use a thick plate.

A better way of doing this might be to weld strips to the face of the anvil. That way you have a solid connection ON the face and don't end up with a hollow spot in the middle of the anvil face.

Sent from my Champion Forge using Tapatalk
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I was thinking to just buy an anvil, but I dont want a crap one.. I do however like messing about and spending more money than a cheap anvil would cost, to make some ungodly anvil construction footing hybrid to see if it works. (and then have to buy a decent anvil after)
 
In most places forklift forks must recertified every so often. Forks that do meet criteria are scraped. Sometimes you can get them at little or no cost. I've cut, stacked and welded them together to make decent anvils. I give them to new knife makers.
 
Sean Jones said:
I don't know where you are located, but here's a possible source for Railroad anvils. https://akrailroadmaterials.com/anvil-new-rail/
I'm in Salt Lake City, so they are local for me. However they have eight locations around the country.
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Sadly I'm based in the UK soon to be in Tonbridge. Getting custom knife tools has been tricky, especially heat treating ovens, any kind of power press, hammer, rolling mill. The mecca for knife making seems to be the good old USA. (although I've gotten some great kit from the nordics)
 
Smurf masher said:
Sadly I'm based in the UK soon to be in Tonbridge. Getting custom knife tools has been tricky, especially heat treating ovens, any kind of power press, hammer, rolling mill. The mecca for knife making seems to be the good old USA. (although I've gotten some great kit from the nordics)
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www.ebay.co.uk

Large heavy duty blacksmiths Anvil with stand | eBay

<p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Large heavy duty blacksmiths Anvil with stand</p> <br> <p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Still has a beautiful ring</p> <br> <p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Approximate dimensions with stand:</p> <br> <p...
www.ebay.co.uk

That is a REAL anvil. It was actually forge welded together. Notice the square holes in the waist. Those were for the blacksmiths to manipulate the anvil in and out of the forge when they were making it. The horn, heel, and feet where forge welded to the main body. The handling hole on the face was filled by forge welding a plug in.

It's in Bedford, UK

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52 Ford said:
www.ebay.co.uk

Large heavy duty blacksmiths Anvil with stand | eBay

<p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Large heavy duty blacksmiths Anvil with stand</p> <br> <p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Still has a beautiful ring</p> <br> <p dir="ltr" style="margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0;">Approximate dimensions with stand:</p> <br> <p...
www.ebay.co.uk

That is a REAL anvil. It was actually forge welded together. Notice the square holes in the waist. Those were for the blacksmiths to manipulate the anvil in and out of the forge when they were making it. The horn, heel, and feet where forge welded to the main body. The handling hole on the face was filled by forge welding a plug in.

It's in Bedford, UK

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Click to expand...

This is a cast iron turd. DO NOT confuse this with a real anvil. It is not an antique, either. It's a modern production iron door stop. (Unless you plate the face with steel, then it might be good.)

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This is a wrought iron anvil that has seen a fair bit of use. Notice the "sway" in the face.

I find it very interesting that the damage is on the side that faces away from most right handed smiths. Generally, the horn is on the left, heel on the right.

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https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134084236085?hash=item1f380b1335:g:3PIAAOSwotRiVfHl here's an interesting rail anvil. The price seems very good. HOWEVER... if you but this anvil, I suggest welding in some gussets to stiffen it up.

The person that made it did a nice job cutting in the Hardie and Pritchell holes and made a very long taper on the horn (could be quite handy)..... the issue is that they removed a lot of the support from the heel and horn. If you can weld and can get some 3/8" or thicker steel plate or know someone that can, this could be a good project. Edit; and it most certainly is NOT cast iron. It's steel.

Sent from my Champion Forge using Tapatalk
 
52 Ford said:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134084236085?hash=item1f380b1335:g:3PIAAOSwotRiVfHl here's an interesting rail anvil. The price seems very good. HOWEVER... if you but this anvil, I suggest welding in some gussets to stiffen it up.

The person that made it did a nice job cutting in the Hardie and Pritchell holes and made a very long taper on the horn (could be quite handy)..... the issue is that they removed a lot of the support from the heel and horn. If you can weld and can get some 3/8" or thicker steel plate or know someone that can, this could be a good project. Edit; and it most certainly is NOT cast iron. It's steel.

Sent from my Champion Forge using Tapatalk
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Thank you! You helped a lot. My issue was that the modern anvils available are all Chinese soft metal crap, the good stuff is most antique and 2nd hand, which results in trying to figure out from an eBay picture if it is any good or not. At least buying new you have some idea what you are getting, but the good options seem very limited.

Thanks!!
 
The other issue is collecting a d storing the darn thing till I move house. The wife has put up with some crazy items being forced into our cupboards so far.... But....
 
Smurf masher said:
Thank you! You helped a lot. My issue was that the modern anvils available are all Chinese soft metal crap, the good stuff is most antique and 2nd hand, which results in trying to figure out from an eBay picture if it is any good or not. At least buying new you have some idea what you are getting, but the good options seem very limited.

Thanks!!
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If you find an anvil that looks decent, feel free to private message me and I'll give my opinion. I'm FAR from an expert, but I have pretty good turnaround time replying to PMs :D

I did a fair amount of research trying to figure out what my anvil way and I'm more than happy to pass on everything that I've learned (what little that is :) )

Again - I'm NOT AN EXPERT - I will do my best to help you out, though. If I feel I'm in over my head - I'll be sure to let you know. (Instead of giving you "iffy" advice)

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52 Ford said:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134084236085?hash=item1f380b1335:g:3PIAAOSwotRiVfHl here's an interesting rail anvil. The price seems very good. HOWEVER... if you but this anvil, I suggest welding in some gussets to stiffen it up.

The person that made it did a nice job cutting in the Hardie and Pritchell holes and made a very long taper on the horn (could be quite handy)..... the issue is that they removed a lot of the support from the heel and horn. If you can weld and can get some 3/8" or thicker steel plate or know someone that can, this could be a good project. Edit; and it most certainly is NOT cast iron. It's steel.

Sent from my Champion Forge using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I was thinking to drill large bore holes into the top of a crap one, then cast steel into the holes, flatten with a grinder, then plane with a mill (that I don't have yet) then tig weld a I inch hardened steel plate on top. But... People want 400 plus quid for crap large anvils as well as large good anvils.
 
Smurf masher said:
I was thinking to drill large bore holes into the top of a crap one, then cast steel into the holes, flatten with a grinder, then plane with a mill (that I don't have yet) then tig weld a I inch hardened steel plate on top. But... People want 400 plus quid for crap large anvils as well as large good anvils.
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Or... Could I make a casting mould around the top of the anvil, after I drill the holes. Then pour the steel, into the holes, with an inch extra for the flat, qwench it, then reheat and normalise with a blowtorch, Then mill the top flat.
 
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