Thread: Where to find an Anvil

Scrap metal merchants are also worth a try, as they tend to keep anvils aside. But also failing at having an actual anvil they would probably have a chunk of steel not anvil shaped that would suffice for the same purpose in a pinch.

-J

I agree with Brob.... A visit to your local scappy could be productive, a large piece scrap could be a way to get started into blacksmithing quickly. I think that a rail anvil done down these lines would work reasonably well. Railway Line Anvil (this link seems to take a while to load the photos?) Graeme

If you can ever find any, Fork Lift tynes makes a half decent surface to belt hot metal on.

Before I had my anvil I found a rusty set of tunes on a heap of scrap metal at the tree loppers yard where I mill logs.
I asked the 2IC if it was OK to take them and he said no worries, but two weeks later the owner contacted me to ask if I still had them because he wanted to adapt them to one of the wood chip loaders.
A few weeks after that I bought my current anvil.

I have been searching for some cheap railway track myself, but for a different purpose.

Found some in Sydney. Not sure how close it is to you:
Railway Track Steel in Sydney, NSW | eBay

Cheers,

Simon

Originally Posted by simonl

I have been searching for some cheap railway track myself, but for a different purpose.

Found some in Sydney. Not sure how close it is to you:
Railway Track Steel in Sydney, NSW | eBay

Cheers,

Simon

Thanks mate, got in contact with him, but he has already sold it all

Shall give some of the local scrapyards a go

How easy is it for you to get to Riverstone?
Ask All Steel Brokers & Merchants if they can cut off 800mm of this; Used Steel | Billet | Spring Steel | Sydney
800mm of 127mm square works out to about 101kg or 222lbs.
Stand it on end and clean that up and it would be a sweet anvil.
At less than $140 I'm tempted myself.
AndrewOC

Originally Posted by AndrewOC

How easy is it for you to get to Riverstone?
Ask All Steel Brokers & Merchants if they can cut off 800mm of this; Used Steel | Billet | Spring Steel | Sydney
800mm of 127mm square works out to about 101kg or 222lbs.
Stand it on end and clean that up and it would be a sweet anvil.
At less than $140 I'm tempted myself.
AndrewOC

I heading there this weekend. i didn't know such a place existed, I'm buying some rail, plate and maybe some more bits. Thank you so much Andrew.

Originally Posted by steamjunkprops

I heading there this weekend. i didn't know such a place existed, I'm buying some rail, plate and maybe some more bits. Thank you so much Andrew.

Scratch that i think, the yard is in Vineyard, the factory is in Riverstone. I will definatly try though

I have both railway track and forklift tine in my collection. You are welcome to choose something free of charge of you want it. Send me a PM

I also have a 200 kg lump of cast iron partially hardfaced, on a stand I am asking $200 for that.
I can help you out with tongs, hammers, punches, drifts etc also if you need em.

Just a bit of learning for the anvil looker's! Solid Anvil 30kg in Brisbane, QLD | eBay These are Ch.....ese and sold for about half this price a few years ago, they are cast iron and note the flat round cornered bick ! definitely a Anvil Shape Object (ASO) It might be better than a piece of railway track but not by much!? Graeme

I spend years searching for a hard anvil at a fair price. All I found was soft ones at over inflated prices. I have been using a piece of railroad track for years on a timber stump with good results. I stumbled across a boat builders YouTube video on kids making anvil from track. They hardened them up on the ground in a makeshift kiln made from stacked kiln bricks.
I had a crack at making one. I shaped it up with a horn, milled it flat and cut a hardy and pritchel hole. It took 90mins in the in the kiln to bring the face whole face and horn up to critical temp and then straight into a wheelie bin full of water. I annealed it to a light bronze and it rings like a church bell and bounces a ball back into my hand.

I bolted it down to a cast concrete post and bedded it in with a strong sand and cement. It took the ring right out of it.

It's not as good as a $1000 anvil but for the price and how much I will be needing it, I'm happy.
I do hear guys 'poo pooing' RR anvils or bothering to harden them up, but I think it's well worth it. Fire bricks are reusable if your gentle with them and I used a large standard primus torch which worked fine. I have bigger torches but I was after a slow buildup in heat. The fire bricks did all the hard work.