flattening an anvil?

[MarkJeffrey]

I dont do a whole lot of forging at the moment, but I am acquiring the things I need to do it more often. I got a new (to me) anvil, and the top is slightly crowned side to side. It appears to have been made this way, are most anvils like this ?. I've heard not to mill them.. but I feel like having it completely flat on the top would be better? I'd maybe have to skim off 1/8th

 

[MarkJeffrey]

this is the anvil

 

[ron_m80]

I have been using sandpaper and a flat stone backer to sand mine down. I am alternate sanding in the horn to heel direction, from the left to the right of the face, and then diagonally, repeating as needed. Its pretty flat now, and it has been roughly 20 hours of work.

I don't think its going to be that big of an issue when I do start forging, but it makes my anvil look squared away. I am just killing a little time until I can get a belt grinder spinning in the shop.

 

[Greenberg Woods]

If you take it to a local machine shop I'm sure they would surface grind it. Bring cash or some beer

 

[Lieblad]

......

 

[Drew Riley]

I'd think about leaving it is, with maybe some minimal clean up with some sand paper. Forge a few things on it, and see if flattening the face would really benefit you.

In that case, swing by a local machine shop if you don't have a surface grinder or a knee mill, and see what they'd charge you to run a few passes off the top.

 

[Will52100]

I'd leave it as is, maybe a de rusting with wire wheel or fine flap wheel, just don't get carried away. Far more important is the rebound, IE ball bearing test, or is the face hard?

As for the rounded corners and such, my new high dollar Refflinghause anvil came with a perfectly flat face and edges that had a tiny 45 deg. bevel. Immediately I rounded the corners a bit with a flap wheel, after a while I rounded the edges more, more radius at the horn end, less toward the heel, will most likely leave as is now. I primarily use this anvil for blacksmithing though, and currently do detail work on a 4"x4" post anvil I made.

A blacksmith anvil is over kill and kinda less than ideal for blade smithing. The horn gets in the way for one thing, for another you don't use all those radiuses that a blacksmith uses for forming. If you get into blacksmithing you'll be happy to have the rolled edges.