What improvised Blacksmith tools do you have?

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Dave Budd

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Jan 8, 2006
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Dartmoor (Devon)
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Did I hear my name :D

Yep I have two anvils currently in my workshop. The main one is a couple of bits of forklift spikes welded together and a couple of spikes on the underside to hold it to a log. The other is a small post anvil from a late 19th/early 20th century power hammer. The forklift spikes are a bit soft for my style of baldesmithing, where I need to get a very fine edge, so need sharp hard corners. But it works fine for general lumping and bumping :) The anvils I use on my group courses are all made from 10" lengths of the spikes with some grinding modifications and a couple of spikes underneath.

Other good anvils I've used:
* Reground and retempered sledgehammer head (ground to be flat on the face, retempered to reduce the hardness and prevent it form chipping and thus throwing sharp lumps of metal at my face!)
* RSJ, though this rang like a bell (read -hurts the ears and is inefficient), so I only use it for leatherwork these days.
* Railway track, though in england it's round on the top and the flat underside is thin, so rings like the RSJ
* Lumps of steel from scarpyard. Vary from soft mild steel (about same as forklift) to -
* Large leaf springs, chopped up and welded together. need ot be good welds!
* Lump of hard igneous stone (granite rounds here, but finer grained is better). Works very well, but don't try sharp corners on them :( I use a piece of granite curb stone fro ethnographic demonstrations)

I've also heard that the half shaft (or is that drive shaft, not a mechanic me) from lorries is very good if cut through, that's what Tai mostly uses I think.

Here are the three main anvils I currently use:
postanvil.jpg

Post anvil. You can see why I need sharp corners!

mainanvil.jpg

Two bits of forklift welded together for lumping and humping

groupanvils.jpg

The smaller anvils I use for group courses.

Hope that helps people a bit :) (oh, btw, I would like to have a nice new London pattern anvil for general work, but new ones are ruddy pricey and old ones are oftn knackered or collect only from 300 miles away! :( )
 

Dave Budd

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Ah ;)

the rounded portion (nearest the user in this pic) is used for drawing out and bending, just like the beak on a lonon pattern. The flat side gives you a full length flat and straight edge, which comes in very handy when working on small anvils. The groove in hte middle of the two is V-sahped at the top (and narrow) end, changing to U-shaped at teh bottom (wider) end. This gives a variable swage, comes in handy for bending and forming things like sockets. ;)

The anvil was carefully designed based on the things I tend ot make and teach people to make :) All carved out with an angle grinder ;) The only down side of these anvils (aside from the softness) is that they are only 1/2" high fromthe block, so bending longer things has to be done sideways on the ends of the anvil.
 

Dave Budd

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Jan 8, 2006
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um, partly coz it never occured to me :lol:

Though the widtha nd weight of he bases is what holds the thing steady during forging. The anvils only weigh about 15lbs, the sleepers weigh mor than that on their own :)
 

Ogri the trog

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Apr 29, 2005
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My work was getting rid of a small anvil, so I asked for it - its well past its best, and has some patches of damage, but for my novice abilities - it suits.
Then there are some tongs that I made from round bar - again, barely useable but where needs must....
My biggest improvised thing, is my solid fuelled, kitchen range - pressed into service as a forge, until I can cobble together enough bits to build a coal/charcoal fired thing.

ATB

Ogri the trog
 

pibbleb

Settler
Apr 25, 2006
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Sussex, England
Dave thanks for the pics. Looks like you have a good set up there. I'll have to see if I can blag a visit off of you some time.

I was toying with the idea of asking father Christmas for an anvil like a London Pattern. Does anyone know what size of work surface you'd get on a 28 or 40lb anvil?

Pib
 

Mike Ameling

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Jan 18, 2007
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An anvil is whatever you happen to have handy to hammer a piece of metal on.

Over the years, I have used that classic London pattern anvil, an early 1700's pattern anvil, various square round and rectangular blocks of iron/steel, assorted granite rocks, and even a green oak block. I have made several Viking era anvils, assorted swage blocks, and a wide variety of carved shapes in oak blocks for forming metal.

And then there are all the assorted hand tools you shape to the needs of the moment. From full forged tongs, to re-worked pliers, even a twisted green branch or a forked stick combined with a straight stick to form a three-claw gripper.

And I've also smithed with as little as a wood splitting maul for an anvil, a claw hammer, and a pair of pliers - working out of a campfire. In the end, it's what you do with the tools you have on hand that matters.

I just checked the size of the Monster Maul I use for wood splitting. It is a tall steel wedge with a welded on pipe handle. It weighs 15 pounds. The back of it is 3 1/4 inches by 4 inches. Many traditional anvil faces are between 3 and 5 inches wide, with 4 inches being pretty common. My working anvil is 3 1/4 inches wide. So one of these would give you a little larger working surface than a sledge hammer.

I picked up several large machinery drive shafts or tool bars from a scrap yard. One is hexagonal and 4 inches across. The other is just under 4 inches square. I cut off 5 inch lengths from each, and welded a tapered spike tang on each - to create my own stump anvils. Unfortunately, a friend already talked me out of the hexagonal one. I also took a 3 inch square section of a modern farm cultivator tool bar, and hot forged it into a T shaped stump anvil. Plus a heck of a lot of grinding/shaping along the way! All in my quest to form some early historically shaped anvils.

Something many people don't consider for a working anvil is a wheel from a railroad car. They tend to be machine tool steel, or hot forged stampings - instead of cast. They are HEAVY, with a large flat surface, and can take a beating. Check out a scrap yard near a railyard, or a repair shop for the rail lines. They are always replacing wheels.

I've created a complete Viking era blacksmith shop from scraps of iron - with minimal tools. So don't be discouraged. You are only limited by your own imagination.

Just my humble ramblings.

Mike - out in the Hinterlands
 

pibbleb

Settler
Apr 25, 2006
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Sussex, England
Mike thanks for your comments there are some great idea's there thanks.

Have you got any pictures you can share of your work ad workshop?

Pib
 

Mike Ameling

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Jan 18, 2007
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Iowa U.S.A.
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I'll see if I can scrounge up some pics. My digital camera is a cheapo, so close-ups aren't that great.

My shop? Nothing much to talk about. The roof is a couple sheets of roofing tin tacked to a couple 2x4's which are tied to a couple old teepee poles. Then I tacked a couple plastic tarps around it - going down to within a foot or three of the ground. It is ... breezy ... and quite ramshackle/temporary. Electricians kring just thinking about what passes for wiring in it (drop-cords feeding power strips and trouble lights), and building inspectors wouldn't feel save standing within 20 feet of it. If it burnt down or colapsed, I might be out 50 bucks or so. But it works for me, and it's better than working without any roof or sidewalls.

Like tools, a shop is what you make of it. I don't know what I would do working in something resembling a REAL shop - with a roof that doesn't leak, walls you can't throw a cat through, open space to move/work in, real wiring, actual designed ventilation, and all those little details that cost lots more money. All those "right tools/equipment/building" stuff can often get in the way of your creativity, imagination, innovation, and make-do spirit.

And it's more fun to just ... tinker ... out in the shack!

Just my humble thoughts to share.

Mike - out in the Hinterlands
 

longshot

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Mar 16, 2006
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Newfoundland, Canada
well ive made an anvil from a length of RR track, and tongs from some mild steel pipe and an old (cheap) pair of slip joint plyers and im now working on the forge kind of a cross between maddaves 5 hour forge and tim lively's wash tub forge.

dean
 

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