[TheForge] Fw: Anvil repair

[Jason Nass]

I didn't mean to imply that it is a 1-2-3 process, but if you are going to
heat treat a large anvil, it only makes sense to replace the face of it.
Utilizing the "dry-welding" method, sticking large welds is far easier than
conventional methods. Believe me, I fully understand the challenges, and
have witnessed the process in video form. I merely meant to say, that if you
are already heat treating a large anvil, you have already accomplished 2/3
of the task of re-facing, at which point, it only makes sense to me to
complete the task fully.

Jason Nass - MacTalis Ironworks
me at wargoth.com


-----Original Message-----
From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Andrew Vida
Sent: Friday, October 15, 2010 2:03 PM
To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Fw: Anvil repair



Jason Nass wrote:
> If you are going to heat treat an anvil face anyway, doesn't it make 
> more sense just to reface it with a new plate? It just seems a lot 
> easier to me... I could see maybe spot filling with electrode and then
spot heat
> treating with a rosebud, but refacing with rod makes no sense to me...'
`

	Just like that, eh?  HAve you ever executed a weld that large?  If
you haven't, then you have no idea what you're getting into.

	The largest piece of iron I've had at welding heat was maybe 30#.
At that mass, standing 3 feet awway will earn you third degree burns if your
skin is not properly protected.  A 100-200# or larger mass will throw off
heat you cannot begin to imagine until you stand before it. 
Consider the energy requirements of getting that much iron up to welding
heat.  None of this is as easy and inexpensive as you may think.

On top of all that, there is the actual task of sticking the welds such that
they are sound throughout, another feat that most smiths are unlikely to be
sufficiently practiced at.  This is especially so when joining tool steel
with wrought, given the widely differing heat tolerances and requirements
for welding between the two materials.

The people who did this kind of work did it every day and knew the ins 
and outs of the process.   Doing it onesey-twosey constitutes an 
exercise in high risk where success and in some cases even safety are
concerned.
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