My son and I took a 5 hour blacksmithing Class this past weekend and it was a lot of fun. We each made a knife from a 6"X1"X.25" piece of .7% oil hardened steel. I do a lot of forging so that part was familiar other than the size of the hammer and work needed to move the metal. Steel works very different from silver and gold and I had to adjust my time in the forge to make sure that the piece was hot enough before I tried to forge it. I do make steel chasing tools, but they are a lot smaller and don’t take the time that this knife took. 5 hours later I had a knife. If you ever get the chance, give it a try. When I got home, I decided to duplicate the design in silver. Following is a link to a picture of my two knives…Rob
It’s interesting that you brought blacksmithing up Rob, because I’ve been thinking about this anvil/vise from Centaur Forge all week. Part of me really wants to get it because I need a heavier vise. It’s 37.5 pounds and is a cross between an anvil and a vise. With little bit of work you could polish up the flat part and horn. It’s on sale this week, with $10 shipping.
I don’t know if I’ll get it, but it’s been really interesting to think about.
Congrats on both knives! They look great!! Blacksmithing is fun isn’t it!
Nice! The fact that it is forged steel makes a difference. A lot of inexpensive anvils are cast iron. I need to get a bigger general purpose bench vise. I have a small one on my soldering/fabrication bench that I have used since I started making jewelry. I also have a very old cast iron carpenters bench vise that I use all the time to stretch and form rough wire circles into shapes that I can use as bracelet bases. It also supports my draw bench at a height where I am not bending over to use it. Yes, blacksmithing is fun…Rob
i found a 70lb anvil on Ebay…70 is the max weight limit for USPS…the mail carrier got it “almost” to the door…
my porch has 2 steps…which is where i found it…it looked like it fell out of their hold…crashed down onto the steps…1/4” thick wooden box (stapled) broke open in the fall…the anvil was not damaged…
i found a shop that would dress/ polish the top and horn…they left one side edge sharp 90 degree, and slightly rounded the other side edge…
i made a small rolling block stand out of 8 4x4”s
top-4, middle-2, bottom-2
the deadblow of a heavy anvil is so satisfying
i wear ear protectors…i can still hear voices…
Back in the 1980’s, when I still lived in CA, I went to the California Blacksmith’s Association’s (CBA) annual conference to buy tools. Part of the event was a parking lot sale. Member’s loaded their pick ups with old tools that they wanted to sell and pass on. It was definitely a funky, down home set up. I was able to get a 125 pound anvil in good shape, a hand crank blower, a coal forge and a bunch of tongs and misc tools for $200-$300 (it was a long time ago, so everything was cheaper). I mention that because there are regional Blacksmithing organizations all over the US. They’re a great resource for info and potential good deals on used tools.
I just checked and CBA is having their annual conference next month in April. Now I want to go!!
You are so right Julie! A dead blow on a solid anvil is very satisfying!! Your set up sounds excellent.
“wrought” with the mouse hole, etc seem like they are totally “forged” out of hot metal…?
but…some anvils are called “forged” or “steel” anvils (as opposed to cast Iron) but they “just” have a hardened steel top layer (that “can” become “delaminated”…as illustrated by the different sound/ “dead spot” shown when testing with a ball bearing in one of the videos).
also, as shown in one of the videos, an anvil might not have a “good” ring to it, but still have great rebound…
i figure as long as i get a good rebound, i am good, haha!
long ago i saw a you tube video that had the audio for a supposedly “good” ring of an anvil…that is when i realized the decibel levels generated and sought out ear/ hearing protection…my dad had hearing loss from being around aircraft in the Air force…
