Sources of big thick hardened steel for making anvils

[ELL]

So, they don't have to be super thick, since I am thinking of welding them onto thick blocks of mild steel. They just have to be thick enough to be the hardened work surface for the anvil.
I don't mind scrap since I can clean it up. Like I say, it's for anvils not something that must be brand new and conform to any regulations etc. More just does the job and looks the part.
Any ideas guys? Thanks.

 

[Nomad]

No idea if practical but would the crankshaft from a scrap / van / truck / car engine work?
Use an old diesel if possible for maximum weight, thickness and metal quality.
Slice the end journal off the crank, mill the exposed end flush, turn it vertical and go from there...

I can't think of anything apart from motors that have heavy chunks of good steel in them, expect more sensible options from others soon

 

[MattF]

Forklift tines are supposedly good for that purpose.

 

[MetalMonkey]

A lot of crankshafts are cast steel rather than forged thesedays.

 

[Kram]

What size are you after? Your other thread mentioned rail track which other than length, is not very big.

Are you able to heat treat? O1 tool steel is very good and commonly available but arrives in the soft condition.

Use hardfacing rods, or tig using silversteel as filler?

Are you intending to sell these?

Cast iron may be better for anvils? Steel will have more ringing.

 

[ELL]

What size are you after? Your other thread mentioned rail track which other than length, is not very big.

Are you able to heat treat? O1 tool steel is very good and commonly available but arrives in the soft condition.

Use hardfacing rods, or tig using silversteel as filler?

Are you intending to sell these?

Cast iron may be better for anvils? Steel will have more ringing.

I am not able to heat treat with what I have currently.
Hardfacing is a good idea possibly.
I am intending to sell them, yes.
Is cast iron not too brittle for anvils?

 

[Hitch]

A nice big chuck of leaf spring welded on with suitable filler works well.

 

[CompoSimmonite]

I am not able to heat treat with what I have currently.
Hardfacing is a good idea possibly.
I am intending to sell them, yes.
Is cast iron not too brittle for anvils?

Remember if you make to sell them you are the "manufacturer" so be wary about legal implications such as requiring product liability insurance. Last thing you want is to get sued because such a product injuries somebody.

 

[timgunn1962]

Fork lift tines are generally pretty good: they seem to be heat treated primarily to raise the yield point, but seem to have a decent balance of hardness and toughness when used as anvils.
The biggest challenge I can see is that an anvil really needs to be one piece so the face needs welding continuously: not a problem when forge-welding a steel face onto a Wrought-Iron anvil pre-Heat-Treat.
With the caveat that I'm no welder, when I was looking at possible uses for a forklift tine, I couldn't see any way I could weld a tine onto a lump of steel without getting the tine hot enough to soften.
I just ended up cutting the tine, mounting it vertically and using it as a post anvil.

 

[Erie Fred]

How about some Starrett hardened & ground stock, say 1/4" thick, and braze it on top.
Would be fully supported by bedding in with the brass (buy it in sheet form cut with scissors,
and paste flux it)

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

An anvil needs to be a single homologous lump, even if it's a hardened face on a softer body. a perimeter weld just won't cut it.

 

[nickk]

Piece of rail track.

 

[mechman]

They're scrapping a lot of track into 5 foot lengths on the Lincs wold railway.

 

[Kayos]

Remember if you make to sell them you are the "manufacturer" so be wary about legal implications such as requiring product liability insurance. Last thing you want is to get sued because such a product injuries somebody.

At the scale he's talking this is irrelevant

They could easily be sold as ornaments

I'm speaking as someone who has product and indemnity insurance, plus other financial mechanisms regarding design liability

 

[BrokenBiker]

tig using silversteel as filler?

Is this actually a thing? I was wondering if there was a tig equivalent of hardfacing

 

[Kram]

Is this actually a thing? I was wondering if there was a tig equivalent of hardfacing

I have not tried silver steel but no reason it wouldnt work, tho with anything like this you try to avoid diluting with the base metal.

HSS as filler works very well. See this post and the one bottom of page, Im still using the small chamfer cutter very often and it has no damage and not needed any sharpening.

Stuff you have made today

good excuse to go get the bike then, you could get a full roll in they paniers nae bother..... :whistle: :laughing:

www.mig-welding.co.uk

 

[hotponyshoes]

How many are you hoping to sell?

If it's just a few I've got a good amount of various hearty lumps of tool steel, various grades depending on the sort of performance you are looking for, probably enough to make at least a dozen to start with..

 

[DAPPH]

IIRC
Anvil tops are high carbon steel & supposed to be hot forged directly on to the hot forged wrought iron base .

If you can sift out the American verbal diarrhoea & gobble de gook here is a basic run down for making them .

How an Anvil is Made? Empower Your Master Crafting Skills

Discover the fascinating process of crafting anvils from selecting steel to skilled forging. Learn how an anvil is made with precision and expertise.

smithingsociety.com

 

[Beanwood]

Is this to be as a hobby funded by selling or a business? If the latter do some sums on the hours it will take you and the materials - you’ll need to be creating a premium product to earn a wage I would think- and that’s going to be quite a few practice pieces away

 

[Kram]

Not just that... If I wanted to buy an anvil, that is what I would buy. I dont see the advantage of buying a modified bit of rail track, or something produced in a shed by welding, rather than a proper cast or forged item. If its free or significantly cheaper, or better, thats different

Note that amazon has small 25-30kg anvils for 50 -90 quid. It would be hard to compete with that unless your getting free metal or have some special design in mind.