Picked up a bar of U-boat steel. Could this some how be turned in to a first anvil?

[peppen108]

I drove by the metal scrapyard an noticed some serious bars of metal. I'm looking to set up my first small shop soon so I talked to one of the workers an bout a bar for 30$. It comes from the local U-boat ship yard, (has some emotional value to me) its not hardened and should be really high quality stuff (i think its a mild construction steel). The measurements are 2x4x40" and its about 100lbs.

Could this some how be turned in to a first anvil?

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

The best use for an anvil would be to put it in a 20" deep by 12" wide hole in the ground and pour concrete around it.....leaving only about 24" sticking out above ground. Use the 2X4" end as a post anvil. Make a piece of 6" PVC pipe with a cap on the end to drop over it when not in use. This will keep it from rusting. A coat or two of anti-rust paint would be good, too ( like Rustoleum).

Used on the side there will be very little mass under the hammer, and it would make a very poor anvil. Used on the end there will be 90 pounds of mass under the hammer ( steel weight calculation for a bar that size).
While 2X4" isn't a huge surface, it is more than adequate for most knife forging.

 

[peppen108]

Many thanks. I also have a bus feather just shy of 1/2". Cloud that bee hardened an tempered and welded to the end? Or am I making things to complicated.