Interesting anvil comparison

[KentuckyFisherman]

I don't forge, so I know squat about anvils, hammers and such. Nonetheless, when I ran across this short on YouTube, I immediately thought that the forgers on this forum would find it interesting. My assumption is that you want an anvil that produces the least bounce, which means the simple disk of metal in this video might be the most useful. Is that correct? Why or why not?

 

[Doug Lester]

You actually want an anvil that has a good bounce. If it doesn't rebound the hammer well then it absorbs the energy instead of reflecting it bact into the work.

Doug

 

[Edwardshandmadeknives]

You definitely want the higher rebound.

 

[Gliden07]

More rebound is better for sure. The big German anvil in the video would be the best choice then the first one and lastly the round piece of steel. The thing is any of them will work! If your starting to forge spending a lot of money for an anvil is a waste. You have no likes dislikes or preferences. If your making knives you don't need a monster anvil either. The new 66lb cast steel anvil at Harbor Frieght is a great starter anvil ($140 ish), some of the cast steel anvils on Vevor are also good beginner choices too.

 

[Chris Railey]

When I buy another anvil, it will be this one. The price is right, and you can do a ton of work on it. Plus, it is super easy to secure to a BA Stump. I almost pulled the trigger on it at the beginning of last year but my stupid heater broke and I had to pay for that.
https://www.hollandanvil.com/product-page/64sawyer

 

[Edwardshandmadeknives]

More rebound is better for sure. The big German anvil in the video would be the best choice then the first one and lastly the round piece of steel. The thing is any of them will work! If your starting to forge spending a lot of money for an anvil is a waste. You have no likes dislikes or preferences. If your making knives you don't need a monster anvil either. The new 66lb cast steel anvil at Harbor Frieght is a great starter anvil ($140 ish), some of the cast steel anvils on Vevor are also good beginner choices too.

Right on. A crappy anvil is still better than no anvil at all. My first was a plate of 1/2” mild steel held onto a stump with bent over nails, and forge was a hole in the ground filled with charcoal blown with a shop vac. I’ve upgraded a little over the years lol

 

[Chris Railey]

Many years ago, I cut the top out of an old Freon bottle and welded a skillet wok in the hole. Then I drilled holes in the bottom of the skillet wok and forced air through a ball valve into the Freon tank. BAM, a forge, was born. I used a piece of rail track as an anvil. Man, that seems like so long ago.