Nimba Anvil and The World Greatest Hammer Organizer

[PatP]

being lazy, im just copying this from my blog...

After doing tons of research on the interconnecting web thingy, I finally bit the bullet and purchased a Nimba Anvil. Its one of those *this is going to be the one and only anvil I will ever purchase* sort of things. Made right here in the USA, I gotta say, its one high quality anvil.

I got the smallest one Nimba had to offer, The Titan….small is pretty ironic in this sense, the sucker weighs in at 120lbs…Id hate to see what their bigger anvils are like. Shipping was approximately $100 USD at this point in time. After hastily unwrapping the anvil, which in itself was pretty humorous, the shipping label was taped to the top surface and a heavy duty nylon cord was strung thru the hardie holes to make a handle, that was all the unwrapping I had to do.

Man, what a beautiful surface, I must say the finish on this thing is superb, my luck ill dent this thing as time progresses, but at least I can say its being used. The anvil itself has a super loud ring to it when struck. To deaden the ringing, the guys at Nimba recommended putting a magnet under the square horn end, that was that, ring gone. With a pine stump that was reclaimed from the house were rebuilding (old roof viga actually) and some plumbers tape, we *securely* mounted this beast. So far so good, the height is perfect for me to do some heavy wailing on here. Down the road Id like to find a bigger log for a wider base, right now its kinda precarious if you happen to bump into it with some force.

With such a large mass of steel under the work, stamping (hallmarks and such) are a breeze, before I would get double strikes, not any more. Doing inlay work (gold/silver/copper into stainless steel) is so nice on the rounded horn, every impact with the hammers are solid and do their job. Now its time to start collecting other accoutrements for this anvil…

With the new anvil and base assembly, my brother and I started thinking it would be a good idea to put all our impliments of destruction close at hand….hence…

The Wolds Best Hammer Organizer!!!

Okay, maybe not the best in the world, but for $10 ($6 PVC pipe, $4 Pine 1″x2″, and screws we had laying around) you cant beat that with a stick.

To make, grab some 1-1/2″ PVC, I like black, thus, we got black pipe, cut into 6″ sections. Since the pipe is 10′ long theoretically you can get 20 units out of this, but my bro had to cut it down to fit into his car, so we only got 17 pieces from the stick. Next take a 1-1/2″ hole saw, and in a drill press with a vice (we used the milling machine) cut a half round section from one end. This saddle that is created helps keep the hammer heads all pointing in the same direction.

From here, we marked and drilled two sets of holes 1″ from either end. One hole big enough for a screw driver and the head of the screw, the second hole just big enough for the screw to fit thru. We placed these around the stump with enough room to give the heads plenty of clearance, don’t want those tools getting nicked up and all. The second row was placed lower and the 1″x2″ pine cut 6″ long situated underneath it to space it out from the stump. Pre-drill holes in the pine to keep it from splitting. Then just screw those suckers in. We were able to get 16 hammers in there.

If we get more hammers, were gonna need a bigger stump. Images are attached below...

P@

[SVD]

Good looking setup! :thumbsup:

After hastily unwrapping the anvil, which in itself was pretty humorous, the shipping label was taped to the top surface and a heavy duty nylon cord was strung thru the hardie holes to make a handle, that was all the unwrapping I had to do.

So, they weren't worried about it getting damaged in shipping then?

Next take a 1-1/2″ hole saw, and in a drill press with a vice (we used the milling machine) cut a half round section from one end.

Or you could cut the pieces to double length and drill a single hole in the center, then split the piece so both saddles are already cut.

[FlatBrokeForge]

Nice anvil, wish I had the disposable income to purchase one. I like that style of anvil. I did buy myself (actually it's a belated present from my MIL) another shop anvil this weekend, buy not near as nice as your Nimba.

It does weigh a little more, though, at 162 lbs +/-. Has lots of character already beat into it. If only it could talk.

[PatP]

Originally Posted by SVD

So, they weren't worried about it getting damaged in shipping then?

:smilie5:, yeah, I don't think the anvil has much to worry about in the UPS truck, although Plasma TV's and other items had much to fear Im sure.

Originally Posted by SVD

Or you could cut the pieces to double length and drill a single hole in the center, then split the piece so both saddles are already cut.

uh, yeah, that would have been the smart way of doing it ;-)

Originally Posted by FlatlandForge

It does weigh a little more, though, at 162 lbs +/-. Has lots of character already beat into it. If only it could talk.

Man that's a sweet anvil, needs a little love, but not much, and the stories would be awesome!

As for it being a disposable income purchase, this was far from it, definitely an investment that's for sure, but one of those things I have been saving for quite some time...much like the PC, just another part of business.

[FlatBrokeForge]

PatP: Didn't mean to depreciate your purchase. Maybe disposable income was a bad choice of words. I admire anyone that has the discipline to save up the cash to purchase something they really want. That anvil will give you years of great service, probably still be going strong after we are all gone from this earth. The hammer holders are a nice touch, but I'm worried about that pine stump not holding up well for you. Would be a shame if it splits and let's your Nimba drop under heavy use.

Anyway, enjoy that beast. Forge on!

[Daniel Houwer]

Hi P@,
Thats really a nice anvil! It is so flat and smooth on top.
The ones I have look just a bit better then FlatlandForge's one. I should get one of them machined to a nice flat surface and a nice 90degree angle on one side.
Great way to store your hammers! Do think the logg is a tat on the small side too.
I put some lead slabs in between the logg and anvil to reduce the singing (though my 106kg anvil that I have standing at the ready is a bit shy on the singing part (lucky for the neighbours). Some magnets on the side wil help to reduce singing too although I think your Nimba will only give a nice motivating "ting".

Hope you get a lot of forging time!

[FlatBrokeForge]

Daniel,

Don't machine them unless there's plenty of face plate left. also, have the bottom trued up first, then do the face. Nobody likes a lopsided anvil! Many an anvil has been ruined by machining. If the face is too thin, it may eventually break under repeated blows. The only machining should take off the minimum needed to correct the deficiency. All this is dictated by the face thickness, though. Too much sway or large crater like dings is sometimes more than machining could correct. Research anvil repair by welding to fix one like that.

For an anvil that is completely cast steel, this is less of a worry, as there is no "joint" to worry about between anvil body and face, just solid steel. However, the face hardening if not deep enough, may be machined away.

At least that's what I have read on anvil machining and repair. YMMV.

[Daniel Houwer]

Thanks a lot Mr FlatlandForge.
The top layer is at least a thumb thick on my 106kg. There is mostly pits from slag in there so I think a few mm would do the trick.
The other big one(175 I believe) looks pretty good but just the side's are to much rounded of. That one is just too big and heavy to put up in my workshop. No to find a company that can handle these things. Not in a big rush though.

Greetings,

Daniel

[FlatBrokeForge]

If you just need a couple millimeters, a handheld belt sander would make quick work of smoothing the top, without much cost. As for rounded sides, most blacksmiths actually dressed the sides like that to allow different radii for different tasks. Usually, it was kind of like a taper, with the larger radii near the horn, tapering back to a sharp angle about midway back on the face.

At least that's what I am told by a few more accomplished smiths. :yesnod: