Anvil on apartment balcony?

Well, guys, looks like I'm going to compromise, somewhere in the middle of everyone's suggestions. This weekend, I bought an anvil, a 100# Vulcan. I didn't buy tongs or hammers, because I don't think I'll be using the anvil any time soon- it's in the storage closet now.
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So I'll just hang on to it for a while, till we move someplace I can use it.

In the meantime however (!!:eek: !!) I found out that there's a blacksmithing group that gets together somewhere around Parma, MI, every Tuesday "to hammer stuff and drink beer." That tidbit alone was worth the trouble of buying the anvil! So here in a couple weeks when my Tuesday night commitment ends, I'm gonna go fart around with those guys, and maybe actually learn something instead of just farting around on the apartment balcony. :thumbup:
 
that's good to hear...
I would have asked all the neighbors what they thought,,asked them to watch and make them something that gets them warmed up to it.:)
But the apartment manager is another matter, where you are using the forge now :eek:
I think once the insurance agent for the apartment finds out they will cancel their insurance real fast.. and if you burn the place down you'll feel pretty bad if someone died in it.

I met a fairier <spelling, makes horse shoes and manicures their huffs,,:) )the other day with a Mobile shop, that truck was the coolest set up I ever saw. he's getting into making knives too.

the truck has a gas forge on a swing arm for ease of use and storage.

and the same for his anvil, the anvil is weird, it's cut in half horizontally and has a piece of sheet rubber in-between,, no ring to it at all:eek:
talk about Mobil :D that is one cool toy :thumbup:
 
Daniel Koster said:
DanG - did you see my thread?
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=368188
Where I posted about this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7188596597
Congrats on the anvil. Some people have to travel much farther and spend lots more just to get what you've got. I do my forging on a 100 lb. anvil.
Double congrats on hooking up with the group. You'll be hooked soon enough!

:D
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nope I didn't see that, I liked that price :)
I like the swing arms better though but that's just me ..
this guy has a 12" panel box on a 350 Ford
doors all along the sides and the back door opens from the bottom up. it acts like a rain and sun shield too that way.
I want to take some pictures of it some time,, he don't live to far from me here..if I can find him again:confused: he bought some BS steel from me and it was dark were I met him.. two guys work out of it at the same time..
 
Dan Gray said:
nope I didn't see that, I liked that price :)
I like the swing arms better though but that's just me ..
this guy has a 12" panel box on a 350 Ford
doors all along the sides and the back door opens from the bottom up. it acts like a rain and sun shield too that way.
I want to take some pictures of it some time,, he don't live to far from me here..if I can find him again:confused: he bought some BS steel from me and it was dark were I met him.. two guys work out of it at the same time..
Click to expand...
Thats a really common set up among farriers. My farrier actually squeezes all of it into a dodge dakota, using the same style box/bed. Has a multi tool grinder on one side of a baldor motor with a buffing wheel on the other, 2- 12" drill presses, forge, anvil, cutting torch....all the good stuff :D I've always thought that would be a pretty sweet set up for hammer ins and demonstrations. Trouble is you have to dedicate a vehicle to it, and then either always work out of your truck, be able to afford 2 sets of tools:eek: , or haul stuff in and out all the time :mad:
Now if I didn't have room for a shop at my house, I'd think real hard about setting something up like that. Might even consider a small box trailer.
 
Matt, from Pinoy Knives in Portland claims to do the balcony bladesmithing route... Maybe he'll see this and chime in with practical experience...

Unless, of course, he's been pullin' my leg for the last several years! LOL!!!:eek:

:D
 
Until you are ready to forge you can at least get the anvil ready.Make a base out of 2X4s.Cut them in 2 foot lengths and 18 inch lengths.Put a solid layer of five 2 footers on the floor (do this on the balcony and put down newspaper).That will be 24X18" approx.Spread tightbond glue over the surface,and put seven of the 18" boards on the glue.Square the stack up and put on glue....boards....glue...etc. until it is the right height (about 8 to 12 layers).The exact height is determined by holding your hand at your side,and measuring from the wrist to the floor.Subtract the anvil height from this and you have the height of the base.You can adjust the height to fit your hammering style.Go to the smithing group and try an anvil or two and see what height works for you.After the base has dried ,put the anvil on it and position it where you want it.Cut some pieces of 2X4 to fit on the sides and ends,and glue them down.After the glue is dry,you can screw these pieces down with two screws each board.Next make a muffler for the anvil.Put a good size screw eye in the wood on each side of the bick (horn),about mid-way.get a piece of heavy chain around 12-16" long (depending on how tall the anvil is) and attach it to one screw eye.Put a short and strong bungee cord on the other end to the other screw eye.This will quiet the anvil some.One other thing that can cut down the noise is to put a 1/4" to 1/2" rubber pad under the anvil.You can get one at the woodworking store.They often call them router pads,or sanding pads.This base is portable,fairly lightweight,and rugged.
 
I'd just go out back and find a great big tree and make a stump out of it and bring it home :D :D

Stacy I saw your mug in the new Blade too way to go Guy:D
 
Glad to see you got your anvil good choice I like the horn on it, good for drawing out tangs.

As I said higher up in the thread I have seven anvils I just like to have them.
May be a bit like knife collectors. You don't ever have to use it to enjoy having it.

That said I am sure you will get plenty of use from it. If you have to carry it somewhere else just remember there are millions of men around the world who go to GYM's and pay big dollars to carry heavey bit of steel around. You have you own home GYM now.
 
Sounds like you can do just about everything but forge now. Start bagging an anvil, and the next time you do anything out there, someone who is terrified of the fire hazard will call the super and say "he's at it again".
 
It's already been suggested that you set up to be portable. Just to add a bit, I'm a farrier and when I first started I had a 1980 Chevette. That little hatchback sure wasn't perfect but I managaged to carry enough to get started including a 70 pound anvil and a small gas forge. I eventually got a truck of course but the point is, I also lived in an apartment but sometimes I had to spend a day making shoes. I would take my portable setup and go wherever I could work without being bothered. I worked in my parents drive way as well as some forest preserve parking lots (I actually picked up some customers that way). Anyplace that allows outdoor cooking might not mind the forge. Besides, if they do, a camp fire with a little air blown in the bottom would make a fine forge.

You could set up fpr portable knife making and be a lot lighter than what I need to carry. A small charcoal forge doesn't have to weigh hardly anything. With a hand crank blower, belows or even an inverter and a battery, you don't need an electrical hookup.

If I were you, I'd throw that little anvil in the car/truck along with a small forge and go find a place to park where I could work. Now, I have an indoor shop right outside my back door but I'm in the process of setting up a more portable charcoal forge so I can move out under my farorite shade tree on nice days. I still have a gas forge but I like the charcoal much better and mostly save the propane for working shoes on the road.

I think there are ways for apartment dwellers to forge blades.
 
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