Recommendation for Anvil

Mark Barone

Mark Barone

Well-Known Member
As many of you know I just do stock knife making. Due to injuries And surgery on my shoulder, forging will not be something I could get into. However, I do want do some hammer finishes or sometimes straighten out stock and would like to get a 25 -60 lb or so Anvil. I was just going to get a HF one but hear they are too soft. What reasonably Proceed anvil should I get that will allow me to have a work area to do what I need to do?
 
A piece of railroad rail might work for what you want to do. it's cheap if you can find a piece, if you were local I'd give you a piece to try, I have a couple 2' pieces laying around.
 
bladegrinder said:
A piece of railroad rail might work for what you want to do. it's cheap if you can find a piece, if you were local I'd give you a piece to try, I have a couple 2' pieces laying around.
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Heikki said:
I'd check out Atlas Knife and Tool. He has a 65 lbs one designed for knife makers.

atlas-anvil-65-lbs-4150-steel-w-hot-cut-hardy

They have a bigger one too, the Graham at 117 lbs. I've read good things about both.
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I like that shape. I only need the flat surface. I was hoping to find something less than 150, but that’s probably not doable.
 
Mark Barone said:
As many of you know I just do stock knife making. Due to injuries And surgery on my shoulder, forging will not be something I could get into. However, I do want do some hammer finishes or sometimes straighten out stock and would like to get a 25 -60 lb or so Anvil. I was just going to get a HF one but hear they are too soft. What reasonably Proceed anvil should I get that will allow me to have a work area to do what I need to do?
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Stock Removal...... OK. Injuries/shoulder surgery..... OK. Anvil ..... Good.

Air Hammer, and a press...... PRICELESS! ;)

Seriously.....IMO, an anvil less than 125lbs, for anything more then a decoration, and you might as well just get a big chunk if mild steel from a scrap pile. The smallest anvil I ever owned was 85lbs..... and it caused more problems then it solved, and made me work harder they I should have had to. I didn't learn that until I graduated to a 125lb Kolishwa, night and day difference.
 
Mark Barone said:
I like that shape. I only need the flat surface. I was hoping to find something less than 150, but that’s probably not doable.
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The only thing I think you will get in that range is a really torn up old anvil or a piece of fork lift tine or other big piece of scrap. Any of that will do what you want so long as you can mount it reasonably solid. Rail road track will work too but remember it is radiused on top so you may need to dress it down some.

You could try to do a search on a "striking anvil" I have seen smith's sell these from time to time and typically the are big square or rectangle blocks of steel used to hit with really big hammers. That way the main anvil is not damaged. They are normally mild steel or lower carbon steel so it is safer to work very heavy on them. I mean like 10-12 pound sledge heavy. I currently use a piece of rail track as a striking anvil but I have seen very nice ones for sale at blacksmithing festivals for around $150.
 
EdCaffreyMS said:
Stock Removal...... OK. Injuries/shoulder surgery..... OK. Anvil ..... Good.

Air Hammer, and a press...... PRICELESS! ;)

Seriously.....IMO, an anvil less than 125lbs, for anything more then a decoration, and you might as well just get a big chunk if mild steel from a scrap pile. The smallest anvil I ever owned was 85lbs..... and it caused more problems then it solved, and made me work harder they I should have had to. I didn't learn that until I graduated to a 125lb Kolishwa, night and day difference.
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I get it. Right now I’m hammering on the anvil part of a vice mounted on a wooden cabinet on an uneven floor. So I can just imagine how nice it would be to have something solid.
 
Chris Railey said:
The only thing I think you will get in that range is a really torn up old anvil or a piece of fork lift tine or other big piece of scrap. Any of that will do what you want so long as you can mount it reasonably solid. Rail road track will work too but remember it is radiused on top so you may need to dress it down some.

You could try to do a search on a "striking anvil" I have seen smith's sell these from time to time and typically the are big square or rectangle blocks of steel used to hit with really big hammers. That way the main anvil is not damaged. They are normally mild steel or lower carbon steel so it is safer to work very heavy on them. I mean like 10-12 pound sledge heavy. I currently use a piece of rail track as a striking anvil but I have seen very nice ones for sale at blacksmithing festivals for around $150.
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hmmm I live really close to a metal scrap yard, thats right by some old railroad tracks. I should check there for something. It’s not really the money. I could get something decent tomorrow, but I don’t really know if I will use it enough.
 
Go for a striking anvil first. If you use it enough to justify a “real anvil” then go for it. If not, then the striking anvil will be enough. I bet you can find a chunk of forklift tine at the scrap yard.
 
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