My First Anvil ?

J

JON108

Member
Looking at a Peddinghaus #5 anvil.
I like that they are forged. They have a good reputation.
I am a beginner with some experience at the forge.
I have been using rail track vertically, and I am looking to upgrade to a real anvil.
The piece of rail is about 30” long and about 100 lbs.
The anvil is 77 lbs.
Thanks for any advice given
J
 
Are you doing any general blacksmithing work or just knives?

I'm sure the Peddinghouse is fine quality, but they are plenty spendy for the size, and features that aren't great for blades as much as general blacksmithing.
 
I would suggest going bigger than the #5, at only 77lbs it's well below what I consider to be "the minimum" weight for any level of Bladesmithing/Blacksmithing.
The bare minimum I recommend is 125lb..... and even that is a bit light in my book. Why? It's about the return on your effort. Anvils all work off of the principle of rebound.... meaning that whatever energy you put into a blow, a given amount is rebounded through the anvil, making you have to exert less to achieve the same amount of work. That is.... depending on the specific anvil, and it's level of quality! Assuming that each anvil is "good", the heavier the anvil, the higher the return on your input effort.

Another thing is this..... IF you buy a 77lb anvil, you will get frustrated with it in short order, and will be looking for a larger one, and so on, and so on, until you decide to stop. As with a grinder, spend the money ONCE, get something (in this case LARGER) then what you think you'll ever need, and you'll be set. I just know from experience that when people buy small anvils, it never works out the way they'd hoped. ;)
 
Alec Steele is doing Pre-Orders for his new anvil. Its 140LB, forged in the good ole USA. Bit spendy at $1400 though! Looks like a nice piece however! And at 140 it can ship UPS.
 
tkroenlein said:
Are you doing any general blacksmithing work or just knives?

I'm sure the Peddinghouse is fine quality, but they are plenty spendy for the size, and features that aren't great for blades as much as general blacksmithing.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice,
I would like to make blades as well as General blacksmithing.
I am reading up on both.
Thanks,
J
 
EdCaffreyMS said:
I would suggest going bigger than the #5, at only 77lbs it's well below what I consider to be "the minimum" weight for any level of Bladesmithing/Blacksmithing.
The bare minimum I recommend is 125lb..... and even that is a bit light in my book. Why? It's about the return on your effort. Anvils all work off of the principle of rebound.... meaning that whatever energy you put into a blow, a given amount is rebounded through the anvil, making you have to exert less to achieve the same amount of work. That is.... depending on the specific anvil, and it's level of quality! Assuming that each anvil is "good", the heavier the anvil, the higher the return on your input effort.

Another thing is this..... IF you buy a 77lb anvil, you will get frustrated with it in short order, and will be looking for a larger one, and so on, and so on, until you decide to stop. As with a grinder, spend the money ONCE, get something (in this case LARGER) then what you think you'll ever need, and you'll be set. I just know from experience that when people buy small anvils, it never works out the way they'd hoped. ;)
Click to expand...
Thanks for your advice,
I see what you are saying, I will continue my research on larger anvils that are atleast 125lbs or more.
J
 
Gliden07 said:
Alec Steele is doing Pre-Orders for his new anvil. Its 140LB, forged in the good ole USA. Bit spendy at $1400 though! Looks like a nice piece however! And at 140 it can ship UPS.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice,
I have watched his videos and learned a lot.
I will research his anvils.
Nice to have UPS deliver, because we live in a residential area, and I do not own a forklift.
J
 
Nothing wrong with Peddinghouse anvils though they are expensive. At 77 pounds an anvil would be considered more of a farrier’s set up than a blacksmith. Take a look at the waist of the anvil you chose. Farriers anvils tend to have narrow waists like they are wearing a corset. A blacksmith will be like me thick waisted... that is to put more mass under the work area which is a good thing. Also, what is the anvil made from and how is it heat treated. In honesty though the Peddinghouse will be quality but there are bigger anvils just as quality for the same money. I would look at Holland Anvil, Kanca and Emerson but there are also others.
 
Anvils are the expensive part of becoming a blacksmith or bladesmith. Ed gives good advice. If you buy too small you will be wanting to upgrade to something bigger. So buy once, cry once. My second anvil was a 30 kilo anvil from Old World Anvils. It was better than the stake anvil that I started with but it was frustrating. My third anvil was a cheap 110 lb anvil and it was cheap with an unusable hardy hole because it was 45° off. My third anvil was a block of H13 that was 86 lbs. It was great for knife making because all it's mass was under the work but it would not have been good for general blacksmithing.

Just a side: Keep you work shop secure and possibly install security cameras to keep an eye on things. I had almost all my tools, including my anvils, stolen.

Doug
 
All the advice got me thinking , and now I want a bigger anvil, so will save and make room in my shed.
Alway keep our shed locked, and we have 3 barking dogs
 
I hear you !
Had dogs all my life, always atleast 3 .
A Dachsundt is an excellent watch dog, and German Shepherds (large boned ), and Rottweilers
are the man stoppers.
In the 80’s we had 11 big dogs, all over 100 lbs.
Yard was very secure.
3 is a nice number though.
Jon
 
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