Rain chased me in.
Today I used the big coil spring I received a few weeks ago to make two new chisels. These are heavier duty chisels that I need to make the clock. Both chisels are annealing in wood ash as I type.
I have to say that the new anvil really makes a difference. What the Peddinghaus anvil is known for is its rebound. To a blacksmith, that means the anvil does more work for you. It acts as a hammer from under the metal. I had to draw out the chisels a bit and it was much easier than it ever was with the Russian anvil. Very happy... :)
A chronicle of my attempts to create an early clock using only traditional techniques.
10 comments:
A "dead" anvil is no fun to work on.
The Russian anvil wasn't dead but it wasn't top of the line either. Honestly, I recommend the Russian to those who are interested in trying smithing. You can get it from Harbor Freight for $89. Not bad for a 110# anvil. If the person decides they want to continue smithing, they can make the real investment in an anvil. After three years of use, its surface doesn't look that bad. Most of the dings are from the first six months when I still frequently had bad swings.Mind you, not saying I ever want to go back to using it but a decent "starter" anvil.
Interesting we have a couple Harbor Freight stores in the area. I wasn't even considering their anvil, but now . . . well it is something to consider.
Honestly, if you are still relatively new to blacksmithing the Russian anvil is fine. Do not buy Indian or Chinese anvils. Those dent if you look at them funny. The main problems the Russian anvil suffers from is that it is a noisy anvil and the horn is not very circular. It has a good tool steel face. I recommend a cheap anvil when first starting out because it does take some practice to learn proper hammer control. Better to ding a cheap anvil then an expensive one.
One other thing about the Russian is that it has a 1 1/2" hardy hole. Not exactly a common size. Most anvils have either 1" or 7/8".
I suppose a person could make themselves some type of wedge to take care of that issue. I will keep the Russian anvil in mind, it is on the back burner until I can get a permanent position.
Hurry up and get a permanent position so we can get an anvil......
I went by Harbor Freight they currently don't have 100# Russian anvils, how about a nice 50# Chinese iron anvil instead?
If you are just looking to get started, you can try the chinese anvil. Probably only costs $45 or so? Just understand that if you do get it, you will probably want to upgrade within about 6 months. But if you are starting from scratch, its not a bad idea. Until you have full hammer control, you will hit the face of the anvil frequently. Better to screw up a bad anvil then a good one.
The chinesse anvil option is always open. I will keep and eye open and hopefully something else will show up. It just seems a little bit light to make it worth while. I am sure something will show up.
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