Anvil

An anvil is a manufacturing tool, made of a hard and massive block of stone or metal used as a support for chiseling and hammering other objects, such as in forging iron and steel items. more...

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History

Anvils have been used since early Bronze Age times by smiths of all kinds for metal work, although the tool was also used in much earlier epochs for stone and flint work.

There are many references to anvils in ancient Greek and Egyptian writing, including Homer's works. The anvil was perfected during the Middle Ages when iron working was commonplace.

Structure

The primary work surface of the anvil is known as the face. It is generally made of hardened steel and should be flat and smooth with rounded edges for most work. Any marks on the face will be transferred to the work also sharp edges tend to cut in to the metal being worked and may cause cracks to form in the workpiece. The face is hardened to resist the blows of the smiths hammer so the anvil face does not deform under repeated use. A hard anvil face also reduces the amount of force lost in each hammer blow. Hammers should never directly strike the anvil face as they may damage it.

The horn of the anvil is conical projection used to form various round shapes, and is generally unhardened steel or iron The horn is used mostly in bending operations. It also is used by some smiths as an aid in drawing out stock "making it longer and thinner" Some anvils Mainly European are made with two horns one square and one round. also some anvils were made with side horns or clips for specialized work.

The step or pad of the anvil is used for cutting, to prevent damaging the face by conducting such operations there. Although most professional smiths shun this practice as it can damage the anvil.

The hardy hole is a square hole into which specialized forming and cutting tools are placed. It is also used in punching and bending operations.

The pritchel hole is a small round hole that is present on most modern anvils. some anvils have more than one. It is used mostly for punching. At times smiths will fit a second tool to this hole to allow the smith more flexibility when using more than one anvil tools.

Types of anvil

There are many designs for anvils, which are often tailored for a specific purpose or to meet the needs of a particular smith.

The common blacksmith's anvil is made of either forged or cast steel, tool steel, or wrought iron (cast iron anvils are generally shunned, as they are too brittle for repeated use, and do not return the energy of a hammer blow like steel). Historically, some anvils have been made with a smooth top working face of hardened steel welded to a cast iron body, though this manufacturing method is no longer in use. It has at one end a projecting conical bick (beak, horn) used for hammering curved work pieces. Occasionally the other end is also provided with a bick, partly rectangular in section. Most anvils made since the late 1700s also have a hardy hole and a pritchel hole where various tools, such as the anvil-cutter or hot chisel, can be inserted and held by the anvil. Some anvils have several hardy and pritchel holes, to accommodate a wider variety of hardy tools and pritchels. An anvil may also have a softer pad for chisel work.

Read more at Wikipedia.org