Building up an old anvil

S.Crum

Well-known Member
I have an old chipped up anvil I'm considering repairing. I know everyone say's don't, but I think it would still be better than the Chinese junk that is on the market today. What would be the most durable rod to use? I have 50# of 1/8" 7018AC and 50# of 7014 on the shelf just going to waste.
 
I used to hear folks say and joke about "you cant tear up an anvil" but I bought one at an auction that had some top uneven small chunks out damage sooooooooo I ask the son at the estate sale how in the world did that damage take place. He goes on to tell me that in Martin County Indiana if the nnalert got elected his dad set dynamite off on top the anvil and you could hear it ring all over the county NO WONDER IT GOT DAMAGED but its not so bad I still dont use it, theres plenty of smooth even top space left for me to beat on things....Sorry no help on choice of hard surface rod to use, theres some "real" welders on this site who can help

John T
 
I saw Larry the Cable Guy go to an anvil shooting contest on his show.
They set one upside down then the other on top with black powder in the middle. Those things launch HIGH into the air !!!!

Maybe yours would be a good canidate for that ?

Or can some of the surfaces be remachined to true them up ? I don't have an anvil so I don't know how hard they are.
 
You might be able to get useful information from a tech rep at one of the companies that make specialty rods. Lincoln Electric, for example, lists seven different hardfacing stick electrodes on their site, and it's a free call (or email) to their service department.

I watched the You Tube that Sean Feeney provided a link to, and while I didn't entirely trust the guy who was repairing the anvils, he may have been right that the heat of the repair was more of a concern than the composition of the repair metal. My guess is that some service department person would be able to give you good advice about it, and would be glad to do so.

Stan
 
Steve , I have an old 1921 Peter Wright anvil that would benefit from resufacing, and so I looked into it at a machine shop. I found out that many anvils have a hardened plate cast into the steel body. He did not recommend resurfacing, because if it had the plate, it might grind the plate so thin it could peel off when hammering on it . So I"m thinking , what about a new plate on top ? Get a piece of the cutting edge you weld on a loader bucket and weld it onto your anvil .On big wheel loaders , the cutting edges come in segments 2-3 feet long , it would be easy to shape and weld one on ....
 
My boy lives in Plainfield. He drove by a house where people were moving and there was a large anvil next to the road, giving it away.

He picks it up and gave it to me. I put in on a 3 ft log for a stand. Well that was years ago. The only thing I can figure out the anvil is good for is gathering saw dust. Getting tired of moving it out of my way. If I need to bend metal, I have a 20 ton press. Or put metal in my large vise and pound away.

What does a person do with an anvil? Would make a nice boat anchor, but I don't have a boat.
 
My dad faced one off in his Bridgeport mill with no problem. It also had a void type crack in the underneath he didn't see when he bought it. A local welder simply built it up with weld.
 
If you use your anvil for what it was made for( shaping heated metal) and not beat cold steel, chisel on the surface without a scrap plate to protect your anvil it would last many life times, Your better anvils have two tong holes on the sides. That is were someone used tongs on it to hold it during forging it into shape. Good anvil will bring $4 dollars a lb. If it hasn't been abused. No not every one see the value of the anvil. It was the foundation for a lot people lives and because of these people and their tools we have a easier life.
 
I have heard someone described as "He could break an anvil with a broom". Not someone to whom you want to loan anything.
Zach
 
You have never watched a blacksmith at work? Go to youtube, or a farm show. With nothing more than hammer and tongs, a good smith can do near unbelieveable items. Remember all the iron parts of a wood wheel farm wagon were made on the anvil. The first steam engines, anvil. First railroads, anvil. Just takes imagination.
 
I worked with a man who was a blacksmith on weekends. So, yes I've seen a blacksmith. I still don't have a need for an anvil. Just takes up space and collects dust.
 
I claim no expertise on this topic. But I would use the 7018 for the buildup. Preheating the anvil will reduce the stresses induced by the welding. I suspect that the 7018 will be damaged by hammering much faster than will the original metal.
 
I repaired a 150# cast steel one that had aparrently been damaged by cutting a piece of steel atop it. I ground it clean, preheated with a blow torch, welded using 11018 rod and ground it flat. this was about 35 years ago. I'v had no trouble with it
 
If you don't want it I'll take it. Would even pay some. I can pick it up too if you like near a trucking lane.
 
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I'd do some more research but I wouldn't use 7018 or 7014. I think something like a build rod used before hardfacing would be a better choice because it won't mushroom like a mild steel rod. It's the same type of rod used to build up undercarriage. Harfacing rods would be more likely to spall off in chunks. The build up rod isn't as hard and can be put on in multiple layers. You'll most likely need some good preheat before welding.
 
A blacksmith I knew would sit you on his anvil and give you a haircut for 35 cents.He built one of the first big V type snow plows used here.Cataracts took his eyesight away.He could not stand being unable to work at blacksmithing.He shot himself.Before electric welding Blacksmiths made all iron and steel items.Good anvils are hard to find.Sell it to a fellow who will put it to work.
 
This is interesting. My Father used to build the big "V" snow plows as a side line to his bodyshop. I have one of them here he built when he was 22 years old. Yard art for me as I don't have anything big enough to use it on. My Father succumbed to congestive heart failure when I was 16 months old. Ironically I gave up welding full time due to cataracts in both eyes 2 years ago. Certainly a universe of difference in technology between the last time I welded and the last time my Father welded. Two sessions of outpatient surgury restored 85% of my vision. And had the technology existed in 1960, medication would have probably saved my Father's life.
 
(quoted from post at 12:38:24 09/13/13) [b:14663eb3e5]Or put metal in my large vise and pound away.[/b:14663eb3e5]


Well, after you break your vise you will have a place to put your anvil.
 
In the Marine Corps, we'd sometimes refer to someone as "the kind of guy who could screw up a crowbar".

Believe me, they're out there.
 
Here is an example of what you can do with an anvil; I go to an estate sale an buy an anvil for 60 bucks . I go to a garage sale and buy a crow bar [old round and forged] for one dollar then I cut up the crow bar on the chop saw beat out three auto body spoons on the anvil more unusual than ones you can buy today. Then I sell the spoons on ebay for 25 bucks each . Anvil paid for plus fourteen bucks. I like this anvil. Don't keep it in the way but just keep it around.Much more valuable than a boat anchor.
 
I take 2 meds for CHF.They keep blood pressure down but I think the major factor is stress.I welded a bracket on my neighbors riding lawn mower in May and noticed the weld looked awful.Its held all summer.Had an eye exam,cataracts are present.Was going to have one eye done but chickened out.I take daily BP readings.They run 121 to 162.Got a reading of 180 at Doctors aug 2.
 
My vice may be older than I am. I bought it used 35 years ago. I had to use my loader to put it on the workbench. I bet it's as heavy as my anvil. This vice was made in the USA, not china.
 
36 coupe,
I retired 10 years ago and it is nice not to be under stress. My BP runs a little high, been keeping good records. 3 days we had a heat wave and I'm not smart enough to stay inside. Got over heated, BP dropped as low as 99/59. Thought I was going to pass out. Next day it spiked, 169/120. Learned a good lesson, drink only water and stay out of the heat. BP is back to my normal level. Still going to see a DR in a few weeks. Guess if I live for 2 more weeks, I must be in good shape. It bugs me that it takes so much time to see a DR, so by the time I do, I may not need to see him.

Perhaps you need a stress reliever. I like tractor therapy as a stress reliever. Love to play in the dirt with a backhoe.

George
 
He was the head of the History dept. Retired about 15 years ago and does blacksmithing full time.
 
(quoted from post at 07:04:48 09/15/13) .........Had an eye exam,cataracts are present.Was going to have one eye done but chickened out........
Why did you chicken out? I had my right eye done Aug 9, 15 minute operation, was awake during the surgery (light anesthesia). Could see 20-20 in that eye right out of surgery. Absolutely no pain or discomfort. Had left eye done last Monday. Same deal: could see great out of it as I walked out of the hospital, no discomfort. Only difference was that the left eye was 20-25. Doc said it may improve but I'm happy with it. Not cheap but 30 years ago, there was no miracle solution. Doc removed old cloudy lens and put ocular implants in. Only downside: Still need to wear glasses but for close-up work and reading. Heading to Lowes today to buy safety glasses with reading lens built in.

One of our customers is a company that makes the ocular implants. Pretty neat. They're poured in a mold and then then machined on a mill. We make systems that measure the critical dimensions on them during the mfg process. If you chickened out due to fear of some kind, reconsider. You won't be sorry.
 

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