I'm finally taking a stick welding class. Somewhere along in the
semester I want to take some time to rebuild a small, abused anvil I got
when my grandfather died.
It's around the 60-70 pound mark, covered in pits, welding bbs, and
rust. I would like to brush/grind off all the crap and hardface the top.
Questions: anyone have a ball-park estimate (assuming I'm an average
welder after a little practice) to how many hours such a task would take?
What alloy stick is recommended? How much can I expect to go
through? I'll add a margin to allow for screwups once I get there.
How thick do I need to make it and how far around the horn should I
bother going?
I need to rebuild the tip of the horn and the back edge of the anvil
top. Can I just keep stacking up the hardface or should I use something
else to build it back up?
How clean do I need to get it? There are a lot of beads mashed into
the surface, creating little crevices all over full of rust, probably
about 1/32nd of an inch or so into the surface. Can I let 'em slide, or
do I need to dig that out?
It's cast iron and has no markings on it. What's the recommended way
of making it pretty? I want something worth bragging about when I
finish. (:
Yeah, I know, harbor freight has 'em cheap, but this is a project.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net
http://web2.airmail.net/thegoat4/

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

--
Steve Williams

"B.B." u wrote in
message
news
I'm finally taking a stick welding class. Somewhere along in the
semester I want to take some time to rebuild a small, abused anvil I
got
when my grandfather died.
It's around the 60-70 pound mark, covered in pits, welding bbs, and
rust. I would like to brush/grind off all the crap and hardface the
top.
Questions: anyone have a ball-park estimate (assuming I'm an
average
welder after a little practice) to how many hours such a task would
take?
What alloy stick is recommended? How much can I expect to go
through? I'll add a margin to allow for screwups once I get there.
How thick do I need to make it and how far around the horn should I
bother going?
I need to rebuild the tip of the horn and the back edge of the
anvil
top. Can I just keep stacking up the hardface or should I use
something
else to build it back up?
How clean do I need to get it? There are a lot of beads mashed
into
the surface, creating little crevices all over full of rust, probably
about 1/32nd of an inch or so into the surface. Can I let 'em slide,
or
do I need to dig that out?
It's cast iron and has no markings on it. What's the recommended
way
of making it pretty? I want something worth bragging about when I
finish. (:
Yeah, I know, harbor freight has 'em cheap, but this is a project.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

http://web2.airmail.net/thegoat4/

Steve W. wrote:
http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

Now _that's_ inspiration! I'm inspired to go to the local farrier's
supply and see what I can buy -- I think I could dig ditches for the
money faster than I could build up one of those.

But it sure looks nice.

--

Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com

Steve W. wrote:

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

Alternate suggestion for hardy hole (no I've never done this):

Get some thick-enough steel to do the trick (plot it out to make sure).
Cut out the pieces for the tapered hole as Ernie says, then turn the
thing round on a lathe. Drill or bore a matching hole in the anvil
blank & weld it in.

Or go to your local farrier's supply...

--

Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com

"B.B." u wrote in message
news
I'm finally taking a stick welding class. Somewhere along in the
semester I want to take some time to rebuild a small, abused anvil I got
when my grandfather died.
It's around the 60-70 pound mark, covered in pits, welding bbs, and
rust. I would like to brush/grind off all the crap and hardface the top.
Questions: anyone have a ball-park estimate (assuming I'm an average
welder after a little practice) to how many hours such a task would take?
What alloy stick is recommended? How much can I expect to go
through? I'll add a margin to allow for screwups once I get there.
How thick do I need to make it and how far around the horn should I
bother going?
I need to rebuild the tip of the horn and the back edge of the anvil
top. Can I just keep stacking up the hardface or should I use something
else to build it back up?
How clean do I need to get it? There are a lot of beads mashed into
the surface, creating little crevices all over full of rust, probably
about 1/32nd of an inch or so into the surface. Can I let 'em slide, or
do I need to dig that out?
It's cast iron and has no markings on it. What's the recommended way
of making it pretty? I want something worth bragging about when I
finish. (:
Yeah, I know, harbor freight has 'em cheap, but this is a project.

www.keenjunk.com
has archives covering anvil refacing. Your anvil won't be used by a serious
blacksmith, so just about any hardfacing will work. Have to do a lot of
grinding, but with time you will learn that it will work. Also, you will
learn to appreciate the old time blacksmiths.

In article , Steve W.
wrote:

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

yes I do don't I.

In article , Tim Wescott
wrote:

Steve W. wrote:
http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

Now _that's_ inspiration! I'm inspired to go to the local farrier's
supply and see what I can buy -- I think I could dig ditches for the
money faster than I could build up one of those.

But it sure looks nice.

Yeah, I threatened Bob Powel that if I couldn't deliver it to him
immediately it wasn't leaving my shop.

Bill Malden brought me a beat-up old anvil that he had picked up. I
rebuilt it with hard surfacing rod used for backhoe teeth, I forget the
number, but there are several types available. We ground the corners
square and it looked like a million bucks when I finished. He was never
able to knock a chip off the shoulders.
That was many years ago. I still miss stopping by for a cold root beer
with Bill. G
Bugs

In article ,
Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

In article , Steve W.
wrote:

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

yes I do don't I.

Hey, Ernie, that was helpful, thanks! About how many sticks,
grinding disks, and hours can I expect to go through on an anvil top
about 20 inches long and 4 inches wide? I don't need to be accurate,
just enough I can go to my instructor and say, "I'll burn up about this
much time and space, is that OK?"

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net
http://web2.airmail.net/thegoat4/

Ernie,

What hard surfacing electrod would you reccomend for the anvil? I was
browsing through the Lincoln catalog, LOTS of choices!!
http://content.lincolnelectric.com/p...ature/c710.pdf



Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

In article , Tim Wescott
wrote:


Steve W. wrote:

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.


Now _that's_ inspiration! I'm inspired to go to the local farrier's
supply and see what I can buy -- I think I could dig ditches for the
money faster than I could build up one of those.

But it sure looks nice.


Yeah, I threatened Bob Powel that if I couldn't deliver it to him
immediately it wasn't leaving my shop.

In article
, B.B.
u wrote:

In article ,
Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

In article , Steve W.
wrote:

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.

yes I do don't I.

Hey, Ernie, that was helpful, thanks! About how many sticks,

Think pounds.

Buy at least 10 lbs of rod
The stuff you want will be somewhere in the RC45-55 range.
That is Rockwell C Scale.
The hardfacing products will list that on the outside.
You never reach their maximum hardness with only one layer because of
diffusion with the base metal.
Don't worry about phrases like "low impact, high abrasion".
That is exactly what you want.
In the hardfacing biz "low impact" means only a 1000 lb chunk of rock.


grinding disks,

Many.
Buy good ones and use a really big grinder if you can, to speed things
up.
If you use 7" discs that are slightly cupped, it makes it much easier
to hold a flat surface.


and hours can I expect to go through on an anvil top
about 20 inches long and 4 inches wide?

All told about 10 - 12 hours of grinding.
Why do you think I stopped making anvils.
My back started to really hate those hours of grinding.

If you can find a grinding shop near you that has a "blanchard grinder"
then they can grind it flat for you.
That is a huge time, and back, saver.




I don't need to be accurate,
just enough I can go to my instructor and say, "I'll burn up about this
much time and space, is that OK?"

In article , RoyJ
wrote:

Ernie,

What hard surfacing electrod would you reccomend for the anvil? I was
browsing through the Lincoln catalog, LOTS of choices!!
http://content.lincolnelectric.com/p...ature/c710.pdf



Wearshield 44 looks pretty good.
Remember to wear a really good dustmask when grinding this stuff.

You don't want lots of heavy metals in your lungs.




Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

In article , Tim Wescott
wrote:


Steve W. wrote:

http://www.metalwebnews.com/howto/anvil/anvil.html

He discusses hardfacing an anvil.


Now _that's_ inspiration! I'm inspired to go to the local farrier's
supply and see what I can buy -- I think I could dig ditches for the
money faster than I could build up one of those.

But it sure looks nice.


Yeah, I threatened Bob Powel that if I couldn't deliver it to him
immediately it wasn't leaving my shop.

In article ,
Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

[...]

Thanks again. Just what I needed to know.
Two more questions: One, what do you mean by "good" grinding disks?
Just anything that's not from Home Wal Harbor Freight Depot Mart, or is
there a brand I need to hunt for?
Two, in your description about the anvil welding you mentioned
filling pits with a TIG welder. I won't have access to a TIG machine,
so can I do this with stick or am I just going to have to live with any
pits? Could I use an OA torch instead?

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net
http://web2.airmail.net/thegoat4/

"B.B." u wrote in message
news
In article ,
Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

[...]

Thanks again. Just what I needed to know.
Two more questions: One, what do you mean by "good" grinding disks?
Just anything that's not from Home Wal Harbor Freight Depot Mart, or is
there a brand I need to hunt for?

Sait or United Abrasives (they are the same company but I cannot remember
what's on the label) and Makita are good names in grinding disks.

Two, in your description about the anvil welding you mentioned
filling pits with a TIG welder. I won't have access to a TIG machine,
so can I do this with stick or am I just going to have to live with any
pits? Could I use an OA torch instead?

It sounds like having a TIG welder would prevent you from having to grind
down a lot of material just to get rid of a couple of lingering pits.

To repair dies at work, or deal with part design changes, we frequently need
to weld up a die. After welding, the surface is machined and then hand
ground and stoned. On occation, this means several square feet of welded
surface. You typically want to make the job as easy as possible because
grinding is a slow process.

HTH.

Regards,

Robin

In article
, B.B.
u wrote:

In article ,
Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

[...]

Thanks again. Just what I needed to know.
Two more questions: One, what do you mean by "good" grinding disks?
Just anything that's not from Home Wal Harbor Freight Depot Mart, or is
there a brand I need to hunt for?

Pferd, Bay State, and Klingspor are my favorites.

Bay State makes a Blue Lightning wheel that cuts so well on hard steel.

Two, in your description about the anvil welding you mentioned
filling pits with a TIG welder. I won't have access to a TIG machine,
so can I do this with stick or am I just going to have to live with any
pits? Could I use an OA torch instead?

Stick works, just make sure to lightly grind the pits before welding
and don't just make dots, lay 1/2" long weldsover each pit, then grind
off.

You really need to use "steel backed, flared cup snagging grinding
wheels", page 2475 www.mcmaster.com these are grinding stones that hog
off lots more metal than the average grinding disk. On the hard
surfacing material, the regular disks just skitter along. Get the steel
backed one, when one of these babys blows up it gets a little dicey to
be in the line of fire.

B.B. wrote:
In article ,
Ernie Leimkuhler wrote:

[...]

Thanks again. Just what I needed to know.
Two more questions: One, what do you mean by "good" grinding disks?
Just anything that's not from Home Wal Harbor Freight Depot Mart, or is
there a brand I need to hunt for?
Two, in your description about the anvil welding you mentioned
filling pits with a TIG welder. I won't have access to a TIG machine,
so can I do this with stick or am I just going to have to live with any
pits? Could I use an OA torch instead?