[TheForge] anvil construction

Thu Apr 24 12:27:00 2003

It is normal  and generally preferable for the face of the anvil to be 
made of a different material than the body.  Your description is typical 
of anvils with a wrought iron body and  tool steel face.  This is the 
type of anvil preffered by most.   It is possible that you have a cast 
iron body and  tool steel face.   These are ok as well, but not as 
desirable.  The holes in the base of the anvil are artifacts of the 
manufacturing process.  I believe they provided purchase for large tongs 
to grip the anvil base when it was red hot.  

Charles

jon.sloan wrote:

>All:
>I have an old anvil, I am not sure how old it is but it must be from
>about the turn of the century - it was my wife's grandfathers.  It is
>not very large, about 50 to 70 pounds. I am a novice at smithing and a
>bit ago there was a thread on repairing anvils so I thought I would ask
>about its construction.  Its top, flat, surface (about 1/2 inch) is
>different from the rest and does not extend into the horn - you can see
>a seam.  Does this means that the horn is of a different material,
>possibly softer, than the top flat area? Is this typical construction?
>Also there are holes on the bottom and lower back (not round but then
>not square either)- what are these for? Thanks for your time and
>expertise.
>
>Jon
>
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