I found a Kohlswa (admittedly, it was quite a drive) and had to get it. Was a great price for what you normally see them go for. Very excited to try it out. Has anyone used one of these? I've heard a ton of good, but some very bad too. This one came from a ship yard about 20 years ago.




Also starting to cut new Oak blocks for stands (anvil below is not the Kohlswa). My last logs were dry-rotted. Does anyone have any suggestions for making them last longer? Has anyone found steel-banding them to actually help with anything?  Before anyone points it out- I know the chain went loose.

My anvil blocks are Tallow wood, an eucalyptus species. They have been soaked in linseed oil which has worked well so far! White ants not dry rot, are our biggest ploblem`up here on the north coast.
Graeme

I've never used a Kohlswa.    As for anvil blocks, I don't think you could do much better than black locust, which is one of the most rot resistant woods in North America.   Definitely beats out oak of any kind. 

There's always tarring the bottom, which was something once done to the bottoms of wooden pillars.  There's also a product called Timbor.  You can check it out and even order it from:

http://store.doyourownpestcontrol.com/timbor-insecticide-1-5-lb

This stuff works for both prevention and control of various rots and bugs.  Works easily and really well.

When I mounted my track anvil. I laid a large piece of painted sheet metal, I think it was one of those really wimpy .012 grey shelves, under the anvil and then pounded it down around the sides and nailed the sides. It keeps the rain off the top of the log. Four years outdoors and so far so good.

Kohlswa is said to be one of the upper echelon of cast steel anvils. Should ring like a bell, and have great rebound. You may need to use some sound deading techniques to keep your hearing with that awesome score.

I don't know where banding would help, other than to control checking of the wood if that tends to be a problem with that type wood. If so, a band would keep large cracks from developing. I've seen it used with anvil blocks made of multiple blocks, and it works quite well as the wood dries out to tighten everything back up.

As for rotting, I've heard all kinds of tricks. Branson's suggestion sounds like a darn good one to me!!

Thanks all!
Keykeeper, any suggestions on those dampening techniques? I've read you can wrap it in chains (eh..), or put a magnet under it? I'm not sure how large of a magnet you would need, or if that is even a plausible solution.

Because the sound in an anvil is primarily a vertical compression wave inside the metal, there really isn't all that much you can do to damp it out external to the anvil, really. A thin (1/8) rubber pad under the anvil may help stop the long tail of the ringing, but it's not going to do much for the impact sound.....

In theory you could stop it by drilling lots of horizontal holes in the anvil, but who wants to do that to a nice anvil? LOL

Wrapping with a bit of chain is the old way of dampening noisy anvils.  It does work a bit.  I'll be chaining my farriers anvil when I set it up!!

Mac,

Really, all I have heard of has been mentioned....rubber mat under the base, LARGE magnet stuck under the heel, and chain around the waist (or any combination thereof).

Ask five blacksmiths what they think works, and you will get 10 different answers, usually!!

I personally believe Rusty is correct, I worked on one for the last four days with a magnet under the heel, and I don't see (or hear) any difference. About the best you can do is find some comfortable ear plugs to help keep your hearing from declining. The cheap little cone shaped ones, with a plastic loop connecting them are about the handiest I have found for forging, as they are easy to apply and drop around your neck when not needed.

I know one smith in our organization that just swears by Fisher anvils, simply because they don't ring. The only reason I like a ringing anvil, is because most usually the rebound is great and will bounce your hammer right back up with little lifting. When it is all working together correctly, there is no better rhythym than that!

I have found if the anvil is clamped down to the block the ring is a lot less, but I don't think that the rebound is affected but I'm not an engineer! If anyone knows the answer to this I am all ears.
Graeme

Mac,

In order to keep rot to a minimum you might think about painting thinned epoxy on the top and bottom.  Will keep the rain from getting to the top and moisture from the bottom.  Just a thought.

Mike

Thanks again all. With my shop, everything is totally covered. The reason I'm replacing them is actually dry-rot. The logs were from...'04? though, so perhaps that is a decent life for an anvil stand? How often do you all that keep them inside have to replace them?

If you have a concrete floor, the wood endgrain will suck water up right out of the floor, sealing the end of the block is a good idea regardless of inside / outside.