Instagram instagram.com/oldhickoryforge/ Support the channel here www.patreon.com/user?u=16387344 Purchase some of my work here www.etsy.com/shop/OldHickoryForge?ref=shop_sugg Videography by Dan Bailey Dan.bailey84@yahoo.com

@BillyR1968

Жыл бұрын

Anvils aside, I'm more interested in the symbolism in your logo and some in your shop. Do you answer questions here ?

@OldHickoryForge

Жыл бұрын

@@BillyR1968 symbolism?

@BillyR1968

Жыл бұрын

@@OldHickoryForge Yes, symbolism. Can you tell me how you came up with your logo and/○r what it means to you ? How you came up w/it ? And thank you for getting back to me so soon. 👍

@OldHickoryForge

Жыл бұрын

@@BillyR1968 my full name is John Norwood the third. That's why my touch mark is the "JN" with the Roman number three.

@BillyR1968

Жыл бұрын

@Old Hickory Forge Thank you, John. But I'm more interested in the [tree of life] the kabbalah tree... the fallen angels tree....the, as above, so below, tree. It's known to be used by an evil bunch. Just curious, John Norwood the /// . Are you a freemason by any chance ?

You may be the best product reviewer that I've ever seen. I could write several pages on how and why that is. You're knowledgeable. You're thorough. You're insightful. You explain to the layman. You do this all without youtube filler or fluff. You're a damn masterpiece and what other YT people should strive to be. This 15 minute video is nothing but perfection of education. Just wow man. Well damn done.

This guy hits harder than most power hammers

@jeffreycarter1223

Жыл бұрын

I seen him in person at bladeshow, I’m 6’3 about 210lb and this dude is a monster lol

@2hotscottpro

Жыл бұрын

Haha yah he looks big.

@adrianfirewalker4183

Жыл бұрын

He hits like a working Blacksmith

@johndixon4337

Жыл бұрын

I noticed the shock waves vibrating the camera. Computer speakers don't convey the energy involved.

@THE_PeglegSwantoon

Жыл бұрын

Power hammers aren't all about striking power, but rather in consistent blows. Most of the power hammers I've seen have been capable of just lightly tapping ( dusting) the workpiece

Memories coming back. I bought the "Russian Cast Steel" anvil from Harbor Freight almost 20 years ago. I remember it being about 80 lbs. It was just fine for a hobby knifemaker.

$140 is pretty low-cost versus things like a grinder, power-hammer, press and so forth. If you are going to forge, you need a forge and something for an anvil. Vevor has a sub $100 forge (and many options under $200). For $250, you can be forging. Thanks for doing these low-cost reviews. A lot of us are new to the hobby, and don't have hope of sales to offset some of the cost.

@zarathean8758

Жыл бұрын

you can also make a simple propane forge for reasonable (kaowool, refractory cement, used tank/thick can, and a few parts from supply store)

@mikeblair2594

Жыл бұрын

@@zarathean8758 I made a side blown forge out of dirt, clay and scrap lumber for using charcoal that is strictly for blades. With my coal forge its to easy to burn the steel and make the blade useless and lost work and time. It also makes the heat treatment a lot easier, particularly the tempering. I have another forge just like the one described above, only instead of a side blown air system. This one has a long fire box made from a long pipe with holes drilled about every two inches. It a yard long, but I can unscrew the end cap and insert a clay plug that regulates the length of the fire box air doesn't get past the plug. This forge is used for longer blades or any longer items that are made of high carbon steel. Making the metallurgical charcoal is easy and a lot cheaper than propane and even the coal forge is cheaper than a propane forge to run. So there's my two cents on other ways to make a forge on the cheap. It takes time, but so does learning how to be a blacksmith and making your own tools is an easy way to learn blacksmithing if you do t have someone to teach you.

@BuzzLOLOL

Жыл бұрын

$140 seems awfully high for a lump of foreign iron... often times new items at HF drop as much as 75% in price over the next year or two... of course, most items at HF just increased in price by 10-50% because of BidenFlation...

I remember this from Jr high. We made chisels and hay hooks. Good ol days. Lots of fun.

I have to say, I have been quite happy with the vast majority of the tools and other items i have purchased from Harbor Freight.

I had a 419lb fwds German double horn made in 1909 5 piece forge welded. I moved to North Carolina and I gave it to a buddy and the rest of my stuff forges tire hammer press hand tools etc was stolen when I was bringing my first trailer to the new place. I recently started building up my tools again and I got the Doyle anvil and I will say I’m very impressed with it. Normally I always went for name brand stuff in everything. Makita or Milwaukee. Since losing everything I stuck with harbor freight for now until I can get back what I had and I’m very impressed. Aside from my welder. All my tools are harbor freight at the moment and from what I can tell they pack more of a punch then Milwaukee. And I use the shit out of them. So as I am surprised about the anvil, I’m not because they definitely stepped there game up.

@WayneWerner

Жыл бұрын

Even better is if you pay for the warranty you just take it back to the shop and walk out with a new one. Not a bad deal.

*Learned more in this15 minutes then in all of last week! KUDOS and THANKS!*

Good review. Thanks for not being an anvil snob and realizing who will consider purchasing these. I like your attitude

Great video man, really love that you review entry level stuff, and give us sound advice on these tools. Thank ya.

I love seeing somebody who knows what he is talking about and is good at his craft. It is a joy to see you pound out that steel. Thanks for sharing...

Really appreciate everything you do to help us folks trying to get into knifemaking!

I was rummaging through an old scrap yard looking for things to resell online and saw the base of what looked like an anvil in the dirt. I dug it out and got the owner to help me lift it. It was an anvil, but the tip of the horn had been broken off. He quoted me a price of $25, but after thinking of how much the freight would be and I was skeptical that I could even sell it, so I passed. I didn't know much about anvils, so when I got home I did some research and that brand was selling used and in poor shape for around $300, not including shipping. I decided to buy it, but when I called the scrap yard the owner said someone saw the anvil and bought it already. I missed out on that sale, just like I missed out on an old Browning splitting axe that I didn't buy. I thought it was a fake, because I didn't know Browning made axes. Turned out it wasn't related to the gun manufacturer, but it was a popular brand in the old days. By the time I got back to buy it, it was already gone as well. Oh well, you win some, you lose some! You can't know everything about everything.

@mikeseidner3085

5 ай бұрын

Just ask yourself. Will I kick myself in the butt tomorrow if I don't buy it. 😢

@justdoingitjim7095

5 ай бұрын

At that time I was struggling just to get by. I had a stroke and was getting zero assistance and couldn't work. So, I was using the little bit of money I had to buy things to sell on Ebay. A $25 dollar buy that took weeks to sell would mean I'd go without a lot of meals. But, I more than made up for those missed buys with some of my other finds. So, it evened out.@@mikeseidner3085

You should consider using a respirator when using aerosols and grinding even if you have good ventilation.

Great review John keep up the great work

@OldHickoryForge

Жыл бұрын

Thanks buddy. Means a lot coming from you. 💪🏻

Thanks for reviewing this kind of stuff! As someone that is compiling resources for once I get some space it's really helpful.

Clicked on to see the anvil review but totally got into your black smithing skill. My first ever video of this type. Great job, I’ll be back!😊

First time I came across your channel; I like your testing, clear pros and cons, and a physical test on the anvil. Can’t wait to see what the rest of your channel has.

I've noticed a lot of people are using a German style double horn instead of the usual London pattern these days. It's nice to see. I went German style double horn decades ago and never looked back.

If you can find one used, Harbor Freight at one time sold a ~110 lb "Central Forge" brand steel anvil made in Russia and the one I have rings LOUDLY when you hit it with a hammer and although I've not done a ball bearing test, the hammer rebound is very good. The odd thing that makes it easy to ID is that the 1" hardy hole is diagonal to the axis of the anvil and the horn is completely unfinished.

@Chris_the_Dingo

Жыл бұрын

Yeah, I had one of those years ago. They were actually pretty good anvils.

You really did a "quick" demo. Well written too.

@tactileslut

Жыл бұрын

"bang out a few projects..." nice.

Thank you for the honest review on this anvil. I do believe you just helped me make up my mind, gonna go grab one Friday.

Thank you for sharing this content. Those of us who have no access to a direct mentor/teacher, who must more or less figure it all out on our own, & are trying to self educate on a reasonable budget really struggle sometimes, & this type of content is invaluable to us to help us avoid most of the most costly of errors. You are greatly appreciated.

Man you have impressed me just subbed. Your one of the better blacksmiths ive watched work and im an amateur at it.

Very informative and complete review of the anvil. There is no doubt you are a professional at what you do. I look forward to seeing more of your videos, thank you !!!

Thanks for checking this out for us!

This is the first video I've watched on this channel, and as soon as i heard, "high speed notebook" I had a flashback and subscribed.

@OldHickoryForge

Жыл бұрын

You're lucky it's not one of the ten thousand green notebooks I stole from supply and then never used

Thanks for a great video! It is great to see some of the things you should do when buying a new out of the box anvil. I did like the rebound on the one you got.

Honest, articulate review. Thank you!

Thanks for the work on the video. Was happily surprised about the new anvil offering from Harbor Freight. Have been looking, unsuccessfully I might add, for a vintage one. After watching your demonstration, and with your recommendation, I'll be heading there in the morning to buy one. And yes, I'll open the box and take a good look at it before I crank my car. You just got yourself a new subscriber.

The best review I've seen. Your summation , pro's and con's REALLY WELL DONE.

I'm not a metal worker and appreciate the entry-level coverage! Thanks!

I want to get started in the smithing as a hobby and to add to my art practice, so this is a great video to learn from. If all goes as planned I'm buying a forge and starting this fall. Definitely followed for sure.

Thats pretty dang good for a weekend warrior user like myself! Really appreciate your time for reviewing this for us! New Subscriber!

Awesome job on the review. I'm not a blacksmith, but you made that look easy. I weld, machine fabricate, etc.. so this popped up my feed. I enjoyed it and now I want to try it.

This was really great to see. I hadn’t even realized HF upped their anvil game. I think I’ll go out and get one of these thanks to your review!

Thanks, John. I might grab one of these anvils.

Very interesting video. I particularly liked the Rockwell test. The rest was a learning experience. Great video ! And I might add. Excellent very informative delivery.

Hey, thanks for the work and information putting this together, well done.

Great video! I see they have in stock near me. Super tempted to grab one but really want one in size of the Vevor 132lb anvil (already have their 66lb) Still if I keep having friends over this looks like a no brainer addition to the shop. 👍 Thanks again for posting this

Just bought this anvil yesterday then saw your review today, thank you nice quality review!

Good, down to earth review! Very much like his high tech note-taking spiral bound notebook! 😅😅😅 Great job!

Thanks for doing this. I can see the value in a good anvil.

Your presentation was excellent young man! I’m glad I happened to see your channel! Thank you!

Centaur Forge. Great selection for mid to high price range anvils. After hammering away for over a year on a piece of railroad track, i made enough to secure a 70# North Carolina Tool steel ferriers anvil. Just over $500, with shipping, arrived in Ohio 5 days after i ordered it, in pristine shape. Has been an amazing mid range anvil. As an artist, it's met my needs and then some. But for $175, can't go wrong here, for a first anvil. Yes, i still have, and use, my railroad track "anvil".

I appreciate the vid! Im DOD so I move around every 2-4 years and have training and other things that keep me from home so I haven't gotten into the hobby yet because of the space required. I def would be like you described, putting everything in the corner of the garage or on a shelf until I'm ready to use it. This thing would let me dip my feet in without investing thousands of dollars on grinders, sanders, welders, etc that go along with forging. Thanks again!

Great video brother. Very informative and educational.

I was thinking just that. I got my old Kohlswa back in around 2006. I was looking at this anvil and thinking about the railroad tie and stuff like that. My Kohlswa has these massive chunks taken out the side. This anvil looks like it can give a good return. To set up in the next hit. This one video probably showed me more on blade smithing than any of my books or videos that I watched. This is a cool channel.

Great video love to start blacksmithing when I retire

Very informative. I’m going to pick one up now.

Thanks for another great review John

For what I want an anvil for, this is perfect! I'm not doing dedicated forge work, just basic metal fab. For me, I just need a good solid surface if I need to bend some 3/8" round stock to do a zig zag, or some flat stock to make mounting brackets, flatten a bent blade etc. Sure beats using my vice!

Good review, John! Thanks!

WOW....40 years, I thought all anvils were the same except for size. Thanks for posting my new friend, you have a new subscriber, great job.

I don't forge at all or even in the market for anything related to this but I watched the whole video. Great job!

I'm glad you do these videos, I have the older version cast iron I don't know how a steel one feels ,so I might go get one of these , thank you

@tijlaerts

Жыл бұрын

It should certainly be very high on the list of upgrades. It'll hold up miles better and you should notice a difference in how much steel it moves.

@MoabYoda

Жыл бұрын

If you get this one you will never use that cast iron one again. It would be a serious step up.

I learned a lot from your video, thank you for sharing your knowledge, time and effort!

Very nice video this week. Very informative and very helpful video review. Can’t wait to see more videos soon. Keep up the great craftsmanship and hard work my friend. Forge On. Fab On. Weld On. Keep Forge lit. Keep Making. God Bless.

I don't do black smithing, I'm not going to start black smithing. I did really enjoy your video though. It was interesting and l, as far as I can tell, very professional. Thanks for posting.

thanks for the excellent review i bought and OLD anvil and rebuilt it but like the reviews these are getting

I have two of the old cast harbor freight anvils gifted to me when I was beginning the craft. I can confirm that they leave much to be desired. They got the job done, but once I purchased a farriers anvil at an auction, they were only pulled out for rainy day projects

Railroad track section rocks!

I've always liked the idea of an anvil. Even as a kid watching old Westerns on TV, I've always liked anvils.

Excellent review, thank you!

I saw another video where the reviewer pointed out a number of plug welds in the top surface, and that they were notably softer. Now that's a sample size of one, which he was very up front about, but wondering if you noticed anything like that. Got the Vevor mostly because of your review a while back, and thank you for keeping us informed.

@OldHickoryForge

Жыл бұрын

I haven't noticed any on mine but that wouldn't surprise me at all.

@melgross

Жыл бұрын

I saw that one too. I was really surprised. Small holes, yes. But these were pretty big, as in 3.8” to what looked to be over 1/2”. That’s wild. My Vevor 132 black model has a perfect face, though there are some fairly minor defects on the bottom edges. The HF model has sharper definition to the feet. Mine are rather uneven. The horn on this is very round and is finished. The horn on mine is really of the European pattern being flatter on top with more sharply rounded sides, and came unfinished. Mine is just below RC 55, by my tests.By the way, I’ve read in several places that the Vevor (Acciaio) anvils are made in Italy, mostly, with one size being made in Bulgaria. So I don’t know what’s true there as I haven’t tried to research it myself. Great review.

@worldsmack

Жыл бұрын

Remember, there was at least one other guy who bought this anvil and had the same plug problem He left a comment talking about it

@shadowdog500

Жыл бұрын

I tried to buy one last night and asked if I could look at it before the purchase. It had a plug weld the size of a 50¢ piece and a crack radiating from the hardy hole. I did the same thing today at another harbor freight and it had a few pinholes similar to the ones on the top of the one in this video but looked perfect otherwise. I didn’t want to open every box in the store so I figured good enough and took it home. I pounded the heck out of it when I got home and concentrated hits near the pinholes and it still looks perfect. BTW the price increased by ten bucks today.

@worldsmack

Жыл бұрын

@@shadowdog500 thanks for the feedback, appreciate it! 👍

Great, honest review. I don't even need an anvil, but now I want one. lol

I remember the old harbor freight anvils used to be 10% filler so definitely an improvement

Thanks for the review. Very informative.

Buyer beware….. I bought a Doyle anvil earlier this year and tried to return it due to a casting defect in the horn that had been filled with weld and crudely ground down with a coarse disc. Since the nearest store seems to have only one in stock at a time, I tried to return it to another store. That store was gracious enough to let me open up and examine the one they had…. but I found an odd defect beneath the tail that was poorly hidden with filler and I didn’t swap. I did eventually exchange it at the original store for the only one they had in stock. Unfortunately, it - too - had a filled defect in the horn and a golfball-sized void along the middle of the Pritchel hole. This one also seemed very soft with poor rebound and little - to no - ring. It dented nearly as easily as the cast iron anvil I have. I suspect it was not properly tempered. So, 3 out of 3 were not acceptable to me. It is interesting that the half dozen display models I have seen are nearly PERFECT… but, of course, it is corporate policy that displays can’t be sold or purchased. In my opinion, it is quite possible that the displays were from early production when HF was trying to generate interest in them. I also suspect that as demand increased, quality control decreased to meet demand. I eventually returned mine for a refund and ended up buying a Vevor 66# London-style from Amazon. The casting was noticeably better than the Doyle - as were the rebound and ring. I would definitely not recommend the Doyle anvil at this time…..

I purchase a Doyle anvil last night. I am new to knife making and look forward to learn knife making skills. Thanks for the video.

Great information. Thank you for honest review.

That looks like a lot of work. I have one from my grandfather that’s made out of a railroad track. Don’t really use it for anything, but it’s sentimental.

I'm buying the Doyle at HF for my son who finished a comprehensive welding school last year and I think the Doyle looks great for his purposes based on your review. I'm also impressed by the tank forge fab you did and am excited about making one of those for my shop. Thanks for the great reviews!

Checked out the store, really nice products! Thank you for the video, sometimes I just need an anvil for shaping a piece of metal or making a bracket.....etc. Cheers!

Excellent video and detailed review..kudos

Thanks for the review. Great information.

For comparison, Porsche 356 valve seats were Rockwell 58. VW bugs were Rockwell 46.

@dmac1259

Жыл бұрын

The Porsche 356 was literally made out of Volkswagen parts.

@jockellis

Жыл бұрын

@@dmac1259 only at first. Years ago, One of the car magazines did an essay comparing Porsche to Cord. One of the big factors in P’s survival and C’s demise was the ability to maintain high quality outsourced parts. Incidentally, yesterday I had to do a fluorescent magnetic particle test on a gear with a specification of Rockwell hardness of 46-58.

First time viewer, Sub'd. Thanks for the content and informative well put together video 👍

Yea I have been a machinist for 47 years/ never seen any thing like this - really cool thanks

Not knowing forging that sounds like a through and honest review. Enjoyed the video (my first) and looking forward to some more.

I use my 551 pound Swedish antique anvil for blacksmithing. The harbor freight anvil works great for the jewerly making and smaller stuff

@brandonbrinegar5316

8 ай бұрын

You are lucky to have found such a large anvil...I was only able to get a 150# ...but it's a Hay Budden, so at least I got that going.

I recently bought one of these. Nice rebound, but I did ding the face pretty good with a bad stike with a cross peen

Great presentation and education skills. I'm in!

I GOT ONE OF THESE 30+ YRS AGO ! & HAVE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH IT !!

When I wanted to "try my hand" at blacksmithing, I bought a section of RxR track and after shipping, it came out near this price, so there's no free lunch, and since the world turned over, there's not even 'cheap lunch' either. This seems to be the 'next to the best', best option. Thanks for reviewing it.

No nonsense video! Good work Sir

I agree…something going into your leg kinda sucks. Great review!

My arm hurts just watching! Thank you so much for the video!

Thank you for the review. Articulate, intelligent and well-presented. There's a prejudice against new anvils here in Australia, and the price of (flooged-out, rattling) antiques is obscene. It's really useful to know where to put my money as a noob.

I don't even forge and I have an anvil in my workshop and it's a handy item that I use for cold working things fairly often. Sometimes ya just gotta bash stuff around some. When you do an anvil is the best place to do it on.

Great stuff!

Excellent review. Thanks much.

Sir, thank you for providing this marvelous review. I concur with your opinion about Harbor Freight's reputation for inferior quality but I have found that some of their products are excellent for the price. I am not into blacksmithing but I am a machinist and do occasionally do need to beat on some flat bar with a hammer to make something. Based on your review, I think I may very well purchase one of these HF anvils in the near future. Keep up the excellent videos. Your metalworking talent is amazing!

This was very informative. Thank you!

Very thorough. Thanks.

I’ve been happy with everything I’ve bought. Shopped there since the ‘90’s.

Thanks for the reveiw. I used to have an old anvil that a farmer lent me but he sold it off now. My dad loves going to harbor freight and i went with him and saw this new anvil there. I already knew from looking that the old blue ones they had were pretty crap, but its good to know this new kind might be of use for a novice like me (most i ever made was knives and a half decent set of tongs).

@Charles-hq7ce

Жыл бұрын

Funny story about the tongs actually, made them out of rebar as a beginner project, but i didnt have actual rivets, so i had a bent nail to hinge them on for ages until i went to a local blacksmithing club and asked one of the more experienced guys there how i did. He told me their a difficult thing to make for a new smith, and that other than the bent nail i did an alright job. Took the nail out and he showed me how to put in a rivet instead. If anyone else here is like me and has very little experience, try out a local club if you can find one. I went to 3 different ones before, and while the availability of decent tools was inconsistent, the people were always great and extremley helpful. Never had a bad time at any of them, and never went to one without learning something new.

Good honest review as always my friend 👍

Great video man. I didn't know HF came out with newer (and apparently much better) anvils. Liked and sub'd. Good content brother keep it up