Subject: Re: Home made Anvil hardening, ABANA

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 7 May 1996 21:28:12 -0400

Re: Vance's question on quenching the face of an anvil, I've never seen a
blacksmith's anvil hardened, but Heppenstahll (sp.) Die Block Co. (now out of
business) made what they called "shank tempered" die block for the open and
closed die forging companies.  Die blocks are basically anvils, or better top
and bottom swages weighing about 500# for a small one.  They heated the
entire block to temperature and held it with a chain face side down, that is
the side to be quenched.  The block was lowered into room temperature brine
in a huge tub, but only about two or three inches of the ten or twelve inch
thickness was actually put into the brine.  After the surface was cooled for
maybe 30 seconds, the block was raised and the heat still in the balance of
the block was allowed to travel back to the face until the proper color was
obtained for the end use of the particular dies. Once the color was reached,
the entire block was quickly lowered into the quench brine.  The forging
companies then "EDM'ed" the required shape(s) into the upper and lower
blocks, or used as is for open dies.  The idea was to have a hard face for
wear resistance and a shock resistant backing.  I think that Finkel Company
in Chicago still makes "shank tempered" die block in this fashion.
Mike Schermerhorn

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From: Phil Plumbo <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 8 May 1996 09:22:07 -0500

At 09:28 PM 5/7/96 -0400, you wrote:
>blacksmith's anvil hardened, but Heppenstahll (sp.) Die Block Co.
>
>[Mike Schermerhorn's description of anvil face tempering process deleted...]

Alexander Weygers describes a nearly identical process for tempering
a small anvil made from steel rail. He builds up an oven of firebrick
and refractory to heat the entire piece, and quenchs it face down, 
using remainder heat to draw the temper.