How to make a small anvil from an old rail

Here I will tell you why and how I made anvil No. 2 from a rail. Why didn’t you like the first version, what were its mistakes and shortcomings? This post will be useful to anyone who wants to make an anvil with their own hands. A few years ago I made my first homemade anvil from a rail and was very pleased with myself.

This is the anvil.

There is a short video with an old anvil in this post: How to make a forge.

But it had shortcomings and errors:

rounded surface. This is very inconvenient, the forging turns out crooked,
the welded square hole for the backing tool is held in place only by welding and may fall off under impact load,
non-standard hole (my mistake),
wrong base height (my mistake).

I talk more about this in the video below.

In view of the above shortcomings, I decided to turn the rail over and make a square hole in the base of the rail.

: Find a piece of rail

To make an anvil like mine, you will need a small piece of rail. I got my piece, which is about 23cm long, from a blacksmith who teaches lessons in the area where I live.

Also, you can go to eBay at any time - they usually have ready-made anvils, so you can just buy one of them. However, I prefer to spend a little more time, money and effort making my own things as I really enjoy the process of creating.

So, the first step is to ask, search online as well as your local scrap metal dealer and legally purchase some scrap iron.

Experience

Experience helps you repair objects and combine spells. The experience level must be increased in order to use more powerful magic when forging. Forging can be done with a wide variety of materials. You will not be able to combine items if it requires 40 levels or more. But this does not apply to creative mode.

When you transfer an enchantment to another item, you can spend less resources on it. But this is only if you need to create a more powerful item in the first slot, and not so powerful in the second. Let's look at this with an example...

The first slot takes the sword that needs to be repaired and is combined with sharpness one. In the second slot, the sword is combined with sharpness four. The severity of four is transferred in this case. Basically, you can create anything by combining items with different enchantments.

: Wet sanding

After all the shiny surfaces were dry sanded to 320, I switched to wet hand sanding using 400, 800, and then 1000 grit.

At this point, the workpiece began to look quite beautiful!

Homemade portable forge

A forge is necessary for heating metal workpieces. The fuel most often used is charcoal or coal. In order to reach high temperatures, air is supplied to the forge. To make the simplest open portable forge, you need a “hearth”, or, as it is also called, a “forge nest”, as well as a base and a device for forced air supply.

DIMDIM:
To understand how to make a forge, I started studying the Internet again.
The search turned up a bunch of ideas for making a homemade forge. As I understand it, everything comes into play. Most often, forges are made from auto parts from the chassis, sets of pipes, fittings and electric fans. In addition, forges are made from what is “underfoot.”

Construction hair dryers (heat guns) are often used as pressurization.

Having roughly decided on the design of the forge, the user again reached into the “bins” and dug out an adapter from a steel pipe to a cast iron one, which was used as a barbecue.

Inside, the adapter looks like a pipe with a shelf. Bye DIMDIM

I was thinking about what to insert into the pipe to make a real “forge nest”,
Movik
and brought a brake disc from an SUV that fit perfectly into the pipe.

Next came the components that are used to install the water supply system. This is a two-inch tee, a coupling and a piece of pipe cut from behind the barn. All the “wealth” was docked, and Movik

cooked.

At this stage, the homemade blacksmith's forge began to look like a finished object.

All that remains is to attach the ash pan. A bracket from a heated towel rail was used for this role, which was welded to the pipe in the form of a valve.

The user used an old hot air gun as a “bellows”. To do this, he disassembled it, inserted the air supply mechanism into the rubber coupling and connected it to the pipe.

You can also use an exhaust fan for ventilation.

At the end of the work, an opening was cut out in the wall of the furnace, where a heated workpiece, for example, a steel rod, was placed.

According to the user, he was eager to test the forge. Soon such an opportunity presented itself. On the weekend, after smoking fish, there was a grill full of burning charcoal. After quickly loading them into the forge with a shovel, the user turned on the hairdryer.

The air supply turned out to be so strong that a column of flame flew into the sky, and it became possible to approach the forge only when the coals had burned out a little.

To prevent coal from going to waste, DIMDIM

grabbed a steel rod with a diameter of 1.4 cm and stuck it into the forge. While the metal was heating up, the user took a hammer, an adjustable wrench instead of pliers, and forged a simple poker.

DIMDIM:
After testing the mini-forge, I made the following conclusions for myself: you need to forge with an open flame source away from buildings that could catch fire.
At the same time, just in case, you should have a fire extinguisher on hand. You also need to make a frame (base or “chair”) for the anvil. And most importantly, you need to come up with a way to regulate the air supply or install a less powerful fan. But the most important thing is that I liked the forging, I will continue! In the topic on FORUMHOUSE you can find out more about the mini-forge DIMDIM,

as well as further modernization of the forge and various options for air pressurization. We recommend a section on the portal where homemade machines and tools are collected that simplify work in the house, on the site and during construction.

Step-by-step instructions for making an anvil from a rail

Prepare the work site. Place a piece of rail on the table, mark it with a marker and ruler as follows:

Measure 40% of the total length of the rails, draw a line;
Measure half the width of the rail, make a mark;
Connect the lines and the mark so that you form a triangle or the so-called “anvil horn” on the rail site.

If you still have questions about the correct marking of the workpiece, look at the photos and videos on our website.

Secure the future forging anvil in a metal vice. Turn on the grinder and cut the horn according to the marking lines.

Important! When working with power tools, be extremely careful. The metal vice must be securely fastened to the table surface. The work table should not be loose. To protect your own health, wear a welding mask, protective apron and gloves.

After making deep cuts with a grinder, take a hammer. It will help you speed up the process: use it to beat off the left and right edges of the metal triangle. Be prepared for the edges to be uneven - there is nothing wrong with that, we will process them later.

Take the rail out of the vice, turn it on its side so that the broken triangle is “looking” at you. Use a marker to mark lines leading from the edge of the rail to the inner hole (closest to you). Beat them off with a hammer.

Stepping back an inch from each raw “back” end, draw lines with a marker. Your task is to mark the “tail” of the anvil. Use a grinder to make cuts on the metal, then beat the metal into pieces with a hammer. The "tail" is the functional part of the tool. But since we are creating a home, and not a professional, anvil, whether to carry it out or not is only your desire.

Requirements for a blacksmith's anvil

If your workshop requires making such a device, then you need to take into account some requirements.

Dimensions and weight. For small-sized forgings, you can get by with relatively small anvils that can be installed on a table or workbench. However, serious forging work will require a massive, securely fastened device. Factory devices have standard weights of 5, 10, 30, 50 and 100 kg.
Parameter matches. Simple forging can be done even on an ordinary piece of channel. But, if the work includes forging operations such as piercing, bending, and reaming, the parameters and dimensions must be observed. In this case, the edges of the anvil should be kept at right angles, and the holes should be located at convenient points. The horns should be appropriately evenly rounded, the rim should be an exact rectangle.

At home, it will be difficult to make an exact copy of a factory-made product, but some conditions can be met. So, how and from what is a homemade anvil made?

: cutout under the horn

Using the same grinder and cutting disc, I make a cut under the horn, and then knock out the metal with a hammer.

Note! The wedge size (cut length) is limited by the diameter of the angle grinder disk.

Typical design

For extended functionality, this blacksmith tool must consist of the following parts:

Faces. It is a flat surface in the center where you can process flat, wide workpieces. Often a blind hole is made in the left or right side of the face to make cavities and holes, as well as to fix a part of the workpiece, the opposite end of which must be bent.
The horn is a cone-shaped process that is adjacent to one of the ends of the anvil. Designed for plastic rolling or rolling of strip metal into a body of rotation. Ideally, the anvil is equipped with two horns, then the second (sometimes called the tail) is made in the shape of a pyramid, and is used to obtain spatial bodies of more complex shapes.
Paws - four supporting protrusions in the lower part of the body, with which the tool rests on the workbench. If the anvil is assumed to be stationary, then through holes are made in the paws for fastening.
Rim - a rectangular or square area of the face, which is located closer to the horn, and is used for crimping sheet metal products.

Anvil device

In the simplest version of the anvil, the rim and/or tail, as well as holes in the paws, may be absent.

Methods for attaching anvils

What is better to make it from?

First of all, you need to decide on the location of the anvil. If a reliable workbench is not available, then you can use a strong, wide stump as a support (oak is the ideal solution: this wood is strong in compression and ideally dampens the vibrations that arise during the forging process). In this case, the diameter of the stump, freed from bark and surface defects, will determine the size of the anvil, in particular its length. It should not be less than 200 mm.

If there is no stump, you can use a high (not lower than 100 mm) wooden shoe, which is rigidly mounted on the end of a barrel filled with sand. The barrel must be buried halfway into the ground.

As a blank for the anvil, it is most advisable to take a suitable piece of a decommissioned crane rail KR-120 or (which is better) KR-140. Unlike railway rails, this option provides the following advantages:

For the production of crane rails, a stronger metal is used in accordance with GOST 4121. This is high-carbon steel grade “steel 63”, which is characterized by a high manganese content and has a standard strength of at least 730 MPa, with a head hardness of 212 HB;
The neck of the crane rails is wider, which will increase the stability of the anvil during forging work;
The profile of the crane rails provides a smoother transition from the neck to the head, which prevents the occurrence of stress concentrators in the tool.

Fixed anvil

The only drawback of crane rails is that there are no mounting holes, and you will have to do them yourself.

A basic set of tools needed for metal forging

The method of imparting plastic properties to metal by heating has been known to mankind since time immemorial. Unlike the so-called “cold forging”, in which the metal is not heated, during “hot” (and, as is considered, “real”) forging, the metal is heated in a forge.

Due to its plasticity, heated metal can be given a wide variety of shapes, which is what masters of artistic forging use.

In addition to experience, which is accumulated over the years, forging requires the appropriate tool. These can be special pliers, mandrels, bending templates, etc., but the hammer and anvil remain the most important “assistants” of a blacksmith for many centuries.

Any person who is thinking about taking up blacksmithing is faced with the need to purchase the appropriate tools. A high-quality and heavy anvil weighing under 100 kg is not a cheap pleasure.

I bought my anvil by weight at a secondary metal shop. From work experience, I can say: what I couldn’t flatten on a rail, I managed to do on a real anvil.

Vtorchermet may be a “gold mine,” but a lot depends on luck. Our price for a used anvil is approaching the cost of a new one. Although I managed to acquire a powerful vice and anvil weighing about 30 kg in this way. Her “face” is, however, dented, but it can be fixed.

So, what to do if you want to forge, but the family budget does not allow such expenses? Moreover, if it is unknown whether the business will be to your liking, or in a few months all the expensive equipment will begin to gather dust in the garage.

In this case, you should take advantage of the experience of FORUMHOUSE participants and acquire a mini-forge made from materials that are at hand. Moreover, even with this “dacha” option, you can make a lot of different things that are needed on the farm, and which you cannot buy in a store or on the construction market.

There are few good blacksmiths and, as a rule, they are loaded with orders, and the farm often needs specific products, for example, a forged nail or some kind of “tricky” rivet. In order not to rack your brains with finding a specialist and ordering, and also to save money, it’s easier to do everything yourself. After all, you can’t just buy nails like the ones in the photo below.

How to make an anvil FROM RAIL with your own hands

Translated by SaorY for

Greetings to all brain inventors! Today I’ll tell you how to create a very necessary craft from useless scrap, and if in more detail, make an anvil from a rusty piece of rails with your own hands.

Materials

piece of rail, at least 30cm
screws for wood (simply “wood grouse”)
stump

Tools

Angle grinder (“grinder”) and discs for it - cutting and grinding of various grain sizes
burr or metal files
gas cutting
welding

!!! This brain guide assumes that you know how to handle all of the above tools! You take full responsibility when creating such a homemade product!

: Anvil Formation

So, look at the presented photo, study brain design and, using all available tools, form an anvil blank from a piece of rail.

That is, we cut off the base a little from the front side, sharpen it in front, and make rounded notches on the jumper between the base and the anvil itself.

A good helper in all this is a cutting torch, or a friend with a cutting torch???? It also works well with a grinder, but it’s better with a cutter!

: Stripping

Next, we refine the craft - we clean up the cutting marks. And we use the same angle grinder for this, although it works well with a brain saw.

: Sanding

In principle, the anvil is ready for use, but like me, it can be polished. Using a “favorite” angle grinder with grinding wheels of grit from 40 to 120, we bring the homemade product to a shine.

: Installation

If desired, before grinding you can drill mounting holes for the screws, as well as a hole in the back of the anvil itself. And then we install the finished craft on the stump chosen for it and secure it with screws or another suitable method.

Having studied the topic of “anvils” on the Internet, I added an addition to the homemade product - another piece of rails, but installed vertically.

To do this, before installing the anvil on the stump, I selected a “quarter” of this stump, welded a metal “heel” onto an additional piece and drilled installation holes, and after all these manipulations installed both the anvil and the addition on the stump. The point of this whole modification is that the vertical piece “damps” the noise from hammer blows.

The homemade product is ready! I hope the brain guide was useful to you!

(Az Source)

Connection with experience

To repair items or combine enchantments, you need experience. The more powerful the magic involved in forging, the higher the level of experience you must have. The materials used in forging do not matter. It should be noted that merging may not be available if the crafted items require over 40 levels (this limit does not exist in Creative mode). Another consequence of "carrying" enchantments is that if you create a more powerful item in the first slot and a less powerful one in the second, you will spend much less. For example, if you combine a damaged sword with Sharpness I in the 1st slot and the exact same weapon with Sharpness IV in the 2nd slot, a Sharpness IV transfer will be made. If on the contrary, then only repairs will be made. This feature persists when combining items with different types of enchantments.

: polish and wax

Our master didn’t give any recommendations regarding polishing, so we had to experiment with polishing compounds:

first I used Mag's Mag polish for metal and aluminum, after rubbing the raw metal turned black;
then I applied Johnson's paste wax, after which the polished surfaces acquired a noble shine.

A basic set of tools needed for metal forging

A forge is an open-type furnace in which metal is heated to high temperatures for subsequent forging.

Due to its plasticity, heated metal can be given a wide variety of shapes, which is what masters of artistic forging use.

Any person who is thinking about taking up blacksmithing is faced with the need to purchase the appropriate tools. A high-quality and heavy anvil weighing under 100 kg is not a cheap pleasure.

Vintik (FORUMHOUSE Member):
I bought my anvil by weight at a secondary metal shop.
From work experience, I can say: what I couldn’t flatten on a rail, I managed to do on a real anvil. Olger73 (FORUMHOUSE Member):
Although Vtorchermet is a “gold mine”, a lot depends on luck.
Our price for a used anvil is approaching the cost of a new one. Although I managed to acquire a powerful vice and anvil weighing about 30 kg in this way. Her “face” is, however, dented, but it can be fixed. So, what to do if you want to forge, but the family budget does not allow such expenses? Moreover, if it is unknown whether the business will be to your liking, or in a few months all the expensive equipment will begin to gather dust in the garage.

Classification of anvils

The types of anvils and their shapes are different. They are classified:

by weight: for example, a 10 kg anvil can only be used for hot forging with a hammer weighing no more than 1 kg (this is the ratio of weights that is considered optimal);
by the presence of a blacksmith's horn: the anvil is two-horned or one-horned. in the simplest cases, an anvil of a simple configuration is used, but much cannot be done with it;
according to the shape of the supporting part - with or without paws, on a solid base;
according to the presence of a hole and its shape - steel anvils with a round and/or square blind hole;
with or without a tail.

Such a complex design and shape of the equipment is determined by the variety of forging operations that can only be performed using an anvil.

Double anvil

Traditional components of a blacksmith's anvil:

horn, which is a cone-shaped process on one or both of its lateral ends. It can be removable or non-removable. In the first case, several sets are made with different base diameters, which makes it possible to do such forging transitions on this element with your own hands as curling, rolling, and bending. The removable horn is equipped with a threaded part (the thread must be self-locking) and is screwed into the body of the anvil;
tail: a protrusion, square in plan, placed on the side opposite the horn. The cross-sectional size and reach approximately corresponds to the parameters of a horn. Using the tail, bend at an angle of 90°;
holes, and in a classic anvil there should be two of them: a square one - for installing some kind of backing stamp, and a round one - for fixing the opposite end of the wire during its curling.

In factory conditions, anvils are made of 35L steel, for example, at JSC Glazovsky.

One-horned anvil

A simplified mini-anvil can be made by hand either from a wide equal-flange channel GOST 8240, or from a piece of steel rail, and experts believe that not a railway, but a crane rail KR120 or KR140 is suitable for these purposes.

Anvils. GOST

Before you buy a blacksmith anvil , you need to clearly determine the type of this tool. To do this, you need to know that there are anvils:

- hornless: GOST 11396-75, weight 96-200 kg

— single-horned: GOST 11397-75, weight 70–210 kg

- two-horned: GOST 11398-75, weight 100-270 kg

— single-horned console: GOST 11399-75, weight up to 95 kg

— shperaks: GOST 11400-75, weight up to 30 kg.

It is recommended to make all types of anvils from 45 steel.

Types and types of anvils

Types of anvils, their shape and weight can vary significantly.

They are divided into several categories according to the above criteria, namely:

hornless – massive instruments with a large weight, the value of which is in the range of 96 – 210 kg;
one-horned - have only one cone-shaped horn, their weight varies from 70 to 210 kg;
two-horned anvil - a device weighing from 100 to 270 kg;
single-horned cantilever;
shperaks are mini anvils weighing up to thirty kilograms.

The choice of anvil for hand forging is made based on the work that is planned to be performed. Heavier models are perfect for working with large and massive workpieces. Simple, lighter options with one horn are a good choice when working with small-sized structures.

Lightweight models are suitable for small jobs at home. If you need to make any homemade product, there is no better option.

An important criterion is the type of work performed. Here you should decide which option is better: a two-horned or one-horned model. In addition, anvils may have additional elements, for example, a vice, which allows you to perform work alone.

It is worth paying attention to the presence of holes used to place hammers and sledgehammers. Shperaks, small in size and weight, are widely used in jewelry. In this area, products do not require serious impact processing, so they need an appropriate tool

In this area, products do not require serious impact processing, so they need an appropriate tool

Shperaks, small in size and weight, are widely used in jewelry. In this area, products do not require serious impact processing, so they need an appropriate tool.

Drawing of an anvil for making it yourself.

Quite often, devices for performing jewelry work are made to order. They have various functional elements necessary to solve certain problems.

Sometimes one anvil may not be enough. In large workshops, it is advisable to have two options for devices: one stationary and the other portable.

Don't forget about proper installation. The quality of work directly depends on this

Despite everything, this device is quite heavy, its installation should be given due attention

Falling and tipping over are common problems caused by improper installation. In addition, the stand must fulfill its direct functions: in addition to securely fixing the device, it must be able to absorb hammer blows.

A wooden block is the most commonly used type of stand. Its diameter usually ranges from 500 to 600 mm. Hard woods are used. These include oak, birch, ash, etc.

The installation height is determined by the height of the master. To prevent the wooden stand from creating additional unnecessary vibrations, it is buried in a hole more than half a meter deep. The bottom of the pit is compacted with a sand lining.

It is important that the chair is installed horizontally. This parameter can be easily checked using a level. If buying an anvil is not affordable, then it can be replaced with a homemade device

It can be made, for example, from a rail, channel or I-beam

If buying an anvil is not affordable, then you can replace it with a homemade device. It can be made, for example, from a rail, channel or I-beam.

Such devices, made with your own hands, will last for decades. However, you should not think that they can fully replace a real, professional instrument. Hand anvils will not produce the same quality work as production models.

In this case, it is important to understand: the factory version, produced using casting technology, will be significantly better than homemade ones. Its design contains all the necessary components with a hardened surface. In addition, in this model the horn has the correct shape, necessary, for example, in skillful figured forging

The factory model will last quite a long time

In addition, in this model the horn has the correct shape, necessary, for example, in skillful figured forging. The factory model will last quite a long time.

How to make

The mass of the anvil must be at least 10 times greater than the mass of the hammer, otherwise unnecessary vibrations occur during forging, reducing the convenience of making deforming transitions. In order to increase the durability of its use, a do-it-yourself rail anvil should not have connecting parts, and therefore is made from a single piece of rail, taking into account the length of the horn (or horn and tail).

Work on obtaining a one-horned anvil is carried out in the following sequence:

A horn is being made. To do this, one of the ends of the workpiece is sequentially peeled off on a cutting machine or “grinder” in order to obtain a sharp conical part. The final finishing is done with a file; however, for safety reasons, the top of the horn should be slightly rounded. Grinding the horn is mandatory: this will not only subsequently increase the accuracy of forging operations, but will also give the structure a marketable appearance (for example, a souvenir from a rail - an anvil, and a functioning one - will be a wonderful and original gift for a home craftsman).
Volumes of metal are cut out from both sides of the workpiece in the middle part of the neck, and thus the anvil legs are formed. Four mounting holes are drilled in the legs for bolts or self-tapping screws (for a fixed connection) with a diameter of M16.
The tool is mounted on a stump/shoe, after which the face is ground “flat” and a blind hole is drilled in it. If the anvil is used frequently, it is worth installing a thick (at least 10 mm) plate made of tool steel grade U12 or even X12M over the face. Dovetail grooves can be milled into the plate to make it easily removable. It is convenient to make 1-2 through holes of different diameters there.
To make the rim, it is necessary to make three flat grooves on the face with a depth of at least 10 mm using a cutting wheel. The opposite ends of the rim must be strictly parallel to each other. The width of the rim is determined locally, but usually does not exceed 25...40 mm. The prepared surfaces are polished.

The homemade anvil is ready. All that remains is to maintain it in working condition, and during long breaks between regular forging works, lubricate the working surfaces with a conservation thick lubricant.

Homemade testing

We check the quality of our homemade anvil. We place it on a block with the base down and begin tapping the face over its entire surface with a hammer. A loud blow should be heard everywhere, and the hammer should bounce almost the same amount as the swing and then continue rebounding until it fades completely. “From the master class presented by the author, you will learn how to make an excellent anvil for your workshop from a piece of 30 cm rails. At the very least, every self-respecting craftsman is simply obliged to have a small anvil in his workshop for processing metal with cold or hot forging. Because today the topic of blacksmithing and the manufacture of all kinds of forged objects and tools is becoming very popular, which is quite well appreciated among lovers of handmade work.

Of course, you can buy an anvil at a hardware store, but the price will probably not please you)) So there is an excellent option to make it yourself from a small piece of rail, which will require a gas cutter and a grinder. Initially, the contour is marked, and then the final shape of the anvil is cut out with a cutter, and the cutting areas are polished with a grinder. You can also burn holes in the lower part for subsequent attachment of the base to the block.

So, let's take a closer look at the whole process.

Materials

rail
block of wood
wood screws
graver
washer

Tools

cutting torch
grinder angle grinder
drill
wrench
bus saw
hammer

The process of creating an anvil from a rail.

An anvil is a supporting forging tool that is designed for hot and cold forging of metal by plastic deformation. The anvil is the main and main tool in blacksmithing; it has a large mass and is fixed motionless on a base in the form of a wooden block.

First of all, it is necessary to consider the presented drawings of the anvil. Well, we’ve completely figured out the purpose, and now let’s move on directly to the process of making the anvil itself. The author takes a workpiece 30 cm long and uses a gas cutter to give it the required shape.

Please note that there is also a hole in the middle. The nose part is sharpened in the form of a horn

Using a grinder, the master grinds the surface and removes metal deposits and rust. This is exactly what happens. The working surface turned out to be perfectly flat and smooth, so you can see your reflection. The anvil is ready, now it needs to be installed stationary on the stump and secured with bolts. The plane is attached to the block with 3 bolts on each side. This anvil also has a design feature, and this is the presence of a resonator that dampens the ringing from the hammer hitting the anvil, and it is also made of rails and screwed to a block of wood in a vertical position. That's all, the anvil made from rails is ready for its subsequent use. Now the author can forge small metal products in his garage, and simply straighten metal when cold or straighten nails; in general, a very necessary tool for a craftsman. If you liked the material, then we invite you to join our group.

In this article I want to talk about how to make a small anvil from a railway rail with your own hands. I decided to make an anvil with my own hands because buying an anvil is something unrealistic, especially since they usually sell blacksmith anvils for 12 thousand rubles. and more, I wanted to have a small pocket