RR Track anvil

[SuperCracker]

I have come by about a 10" section of RR track and was going to try to make a small anvil. Does anyone have any suggestions about how to go about cutting one end to a point to form a horn?  I have a small plasma cutter but it's not going to blow through that. I have an angle grinder but I'm not looking forward to going through a pallet of wheels trying to shape it.


Any tips or suggestions???

[John Archer]

Cut the horn out with an oxy-acetylene torch...smooth up with an angle grinder.

John.

[cmac]

I have one that was cut with a torch and I milled flat. Works well for small stuff

[Habu]

Visiting a nearby welding shop around quitting time on Friday with a case of ice cold beer has always worked for me. . . .   I tell them what I want, and that I'm not in a hurry, and usually in a week or two the thing is done. 

[PPatch]

Cracker;

Here are photographs of one in my shop - it was made by a blacksmith who worked in the shop quite some time back. Perhaps these will suggest how it was fabricated.











dave

[Metalshaper]

get the book,The Complete Modern Blacksmith, by Alexander Weygers

Has a whole section describing how to make a RR anvil .

Respect Always
Metalshaper/Jonathan

[bedbugbilly]

I made  one years ago.  I cut the horn with the torch and used a body grinder to shape it in to the horn profile.  I used a Bridgeport vertical mill to square the body up and then surface ground the top.  It turned very good . . . unfortunately, i sold it.  Wish I had it back!

[SuperCracker]

Guess I'm gonna have to find someone with a torch. lol

[SuperCracker]

PPAtch

That's REALLY nice!!!!

[Hungry Horse]

 I have a small anvil, that is made out of a piece of narrow gauge track, from an old brick kiln. It is beautifully made, like the one pictured, but much smaller. I had a platform made to bolt onto the bottom of it, with a post that fits into the hardy hole on my big anvil. So, when I need to do small work, I can just drop it into the big anvil and go for it. It is nice to be able to orient it in any direction, depending on the project.

                      Hungry Horse

[Sean]

That's a really nice RRT anvil, but there's a heck of a lot of work in that.  If you have a lot of time on your hands and the tools, go at it.  However, you can buy a 35# Cliff Carroll farriers anvil for about $115.  It will have a much more durable face and will be a lot more useable.  If you intend to do much smithing with it, I'd recommend a 75# minimum.

Sean

[Robby]

That's a nice little anvil PPatch!!
Robby

[halfstock]

That one was cast ,or at least the base was, casting mark is still noticeable in the pictures.

[PPatch]

That one was cast ,or at least the base was, casting mark is still noticeable in the pictures.

What you are seeing is the mark of chiseling Halfstock, there are others like it on the anvil, but very faint. There was another "rail" in the shop the same length but not altered. Dad sold that along with a large anvil and wanted t sell the small one but the lady of the house said NO - her great grandfather made it.

dp

[Chris Treichel]

Something to consider is that you should make the anvil to fit the work you are doing.  Each smithing profession used to have their own type of anvils. Maybe spend some time thinking about what you will do with the anvil before making it. A sharp and a rounded side.  Large, small, round, adjustable height... Do you need a long horn to reach into objects like a helmet or just something round to shape...

[Eric Krewson]

I was in my local BBQ shop the other day and noticed a couple of cross cut saws and a pretty rough rail road track anvil stacked up in the corner with prices on them. $10 for the anvil, really rough, the horn had been cut out with a torch and never rounded, lots of rust an pitting overall. I mentioned how rough the anvil was to the owner, she immediately said "how about $7?"

Couldn't pass it up just to see if I can get it in working order. After all I am retired and have plenty of time for foolish projects.

[mike blair]

hey,don't bother with a horn,just square off the top.round off the edges and forge out a bick that will fit in your vise.the london pattern anvil is not that old(comparatively speaking of course)4/5 century's i believe. the usual anvil was a large solid block of iron with the better ones having a plate of steel forge welded on the face.you don't need a steel face because the train rolling over causes the rail to work harden.much like cold rolled steel.have fun with it and please wear eye protection.     

[mike blair]

sir,i dont know if this has been touched on.but you dont need a horn on your anvil.just make i bick that will fit in your vice.much less trouble.take a piece of one inch bar and draw out the end in square.round it off then bend it at right angle.make sure to make a step down on the square part so it wont slip down in the vice.have fun and please wear eye protection.i have only one eye and i would hate to see others with the same from a simple mistake.   

[Old Bob]

That one was cast ,or at least the base was, casting mark is still noticeable in the pictures.

Not cast. Rail is hot rolled in dies.

[WadePatton]

The best RRT anvil I've seen was at John's the other day.  High School (or trade school) shop class did the work.  Usually an "affordable" option!

I still use mine as is-recovered from a "small" derailment near here in 2003.

[AZshooter]

My great grandfather owned an iron foundry in Algona, Iowa and, of course made much of his tooling.  I have a small benchtop anvil that was apparently too small for him to bother making - story is that it's store-bought from the traveling anvil salesman. 

[James]

Cracker;

Here are photographs of one in my shop - it was made by a blacksmith who worked in the shop quite some time back. Perhaps these will suggest how it was fabricated.

Dave,  I've seen quite a few anvils made from rail and yours is one of the three nicest I've seen.   Most are just adequate, when done like yours- very handy.   It is a beaut.

[kaintuck]

Ahhh.....my piece has been started on.....but I like your pictures and will get moving as soon as flu season is over and the shop thermometer gets above 50!

Marc n tomtom

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I don't do a lot of hammer forging in my shop, but I do need a hard flat place to pound stuff, and my grandson loves it.  So I made my anvil out of a short section of local rail, but turned it upsidedown and welded a piece of 3/4" plate on the reversed top for a base.  I welded big nuts on the corners for stake downs, but the thing is heavy enough without staking it down, for the work I do.  I cut thick sheet lead with a hammer along the edges, and rivet, and cut my patches with a bearing race and ball bearing, etc.  And as you can see, I use it as a base for lay-out blue ink.  This "anvil" gets a surprising amount of use.  It sits on a spruce log.

[mab7]

Hmmmm.....
This thread is giving me ideas. I have a small section of track and a Victor that needs some exercise...