DIY Anvil?

[Birdman]

I've got a good sized piece of rail road rail I want to turn into an anvil. Once I get the crown cut off the rail , would it be better to leave it as is or weld a piece of heavy steel to the top to increase hammering area and weight, also should the steel be hard or soft if I chose to go that route. thanks for any help, YMHS Birdman

 

[Andrew smith]

What do you mean by cutting off the crown? For about the first year or two that I started smithing I used a piece of rr track and I did not do anything to it other than use a good heavy stand and grind one side into a horn. There is a welder that lives a few hundred yards behind me and he welded up a good solid steel stand for it. I never worried about welding any kind of top plate to it.

 

[Andrew smith]

One more note, you can do a lot more if you have it properly attached to a good, solid, heavy base. The stand makes a bigger difference than some might think, especially with a lighter anvil.

 

[Birdman]

thanks for the reply Andrew, the top of the rail is rounded with one side actully a bit higher then the second side if viewed from the end of the rail. I figured an anvil was supposed to be flat. Besides welding the flat top plate on to the cut rail I was also going to create a horn on one end. A lot of work n grinding but what the heck it ought to be fun if nothing else.

 

[Andrew smith]

I get it now. RR tracks are kinda rounded and now that I think of it, I did grind mine flat whenever I ground the horn. it took a long time to do that much grinding...

 

[Nifeman]

Birdman, I have a 247 pound mouse hole that I use regularly, and I only use an area about 5 x 6 inches (unless I use the horn for making circular stuff). Since I bought it I aquired a rail anvil that some one made and I use it for demonstrations when I do them. It's a well known fact that an anvil for knife makin' or any other small projects doesn't have to be big or heavy, just solid. Also, what is nice but not necessary, is a graduated radius ( 1/4 to 1/2 inch) from horn to heel on one edge, so that you can radius round stock to make integral bolster knives. Hope this helps a little...Bud

 

[4570tc]

A fellow gave my anvil? Not very big #20. His wife stubbed her to one time too many on it. If he didn't get rid of it, she was going to put it in the creek!!!! with the husband!!! :surrender:

 

[J.M.]

Buddy of mine made a few anvils from RR track. What he did was flip the track upside down, the track is flat on the bottom! He welded the track to a home made metal base, they were pretty decent for knifemaking.

 

[gmarc]

Select a piece of appropriate length, and have it Blanchard ground flat on top. railroad rail is tough, manganese alloy steel.

 

[BigDogg]

If you want to shorten up your grinding time, you can use a cutting torch to "rough out" the horn first. It'll save a ton of time and a fortune in grinding wheels. :v

 

[Birdman]

thanks for the replys gents, flip it over, HMMMM, interesting idea. I knew this was the place to ask!

 

[Brasilikilt]

Birdman

Check out this link....it puts a whole different perspective on the whole idea of railroad anvils.
http://www.anvilfire.com/21centbs/anvils/making/RR-rail_anvils.php

Please let me know what you think!

 

[hoochiepapa]

I'm not Birdman, but very cool!

 

[msuspartan]

THAT is awesome. Saved it for future use. Thank you!! :thumbsup:

Cheers, DonK

 

[Birdman]

Brasilikit thanks, that is a way kool site n yea I got it saved for future use.

 

[Brasilikilt]

Hey all
Glad to be able to pass the info along to those who appreciate it!

 

[bwhoffman]

Iian,
Thanks for the great info! Now I have 4 anvils and a nice 24" chunk of RR iron that I can actually use! never though of using the ends!

 

[fatboy]

You can use a pc of 3" round stock or 4x4" cut it to what ever lenght you want put in a 5 gal bucket of concrete

 

[JamesG]

I have seen people use Bib round shafts. If you have scrap yard that you can buy , I would go to a look to see what they have.

 

[fatboy]

I have also looked at a anvil made from a a pc of I beam , also a nice one was made from a pc of 2"X12"X16" stood on edge and a stand made up to hold its not tool steel but you can shape it the way you want and dress it up as needed