Miniature Anvil

This time I have made a mini anvil for my future collection of mini-tools. I have tried to be as similar as an anvil of original size using certain details that are usually seen in blacksmiths' anvils.

My inspiration came from the genious Marco Terenzi

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I would also apologize for my English as a non-native English speaker some terms are very difficult for me. Forward, Instructable!! I will be happy to answer any question.

Materials

• Beech Wood
• Copper block
• Little chain
• Old Windscreen wiper
• Little Eye Screw (2 Unit)
• Sandpaper
• Wood Glue
• Wood inserts (Threaded)
• Metal Nails

Tools

• Saw Metal
• Metal Files
• Ruler
• Drill Press
• Similar Dremel
• Japanese Saw
• Hammer
• Polishing disk
• Pliers

I began marking the silhouette on the copper block. I looked for different anvil drawings and finally I decided to use this (document attached).

Firstly, I only marked the sides and then for the curved areas I used a very useful rule for these type of jobs.

In this step I just cut the main anvil silhouette. For the curved areas I used a bit drill to speed up the work and give it a better finish. For the rest of the cuts, I used the metal saw and extreme patience...

With the attached drawing, I mark the thickness of the anvil and cut the excess material. Little by little it takes on the shape of an "anvil"!!

To get closer to the final size I use files in order to achieve grater accuracy.

In these steps I still do not intend that the surfaces are perfect, I simply delimit the proportions of the piece.

I use different files to define the anvil horn and as if it were a pencil, I sharpen it to achieve a symmetrical surface and as realistic as possible. It is a laborious work and as you are removing material it becomes more delicate, since removing an excess of material would ruin the appearance of the anvil.

In this step I was still not very clear about the aspect I wanted to give the anvil: whether a new look or on the contrary, a degraded appearance...

I decided for the moment to give it a new look: I started sanding the anvil with the following grids: 200, 300, 500 and 1000 and finally I polished it with polishing paste so as to get a shiny look. I really did not want to have that shine, but one of the peculiaryties of the copper is that it oxidizes very fast and it was a matter of days that it took that old touch. And that's how it was...

For the stand I used beech wood: I could use a single piece of wood but as I wanted to give it the greatest possible realism I used small pieces stuck imitating a robust, hard and heavy stand.

In most of the old anvil stands, blacksmiths put around a reinforcement to prevent wood loosening. I came up with the idea of taking advantage of the small metal splints that the windscreen wipers of the cars have, since their dimensions were ideal for this purpose!

With the help of pliers, I shaped it until getting around the piece of wood and then I hammered it with gold small metal nails.

I used a walnut effect tint to give it and old color effect.

To hold the anvil to the stand I used a wood insert and a screw. Possibly, it would have been enough with epoxi glue but as maybe one day it falls up into the hands of a child... better to assure it well :-)

Not happy with the realism achieved so far, I put a small chain fastened with two little eye screw. A delicate and laborious work due to the size of the parts.

I could have done more small details such as small supports to store the hammers, but maybe I would have recharged it too much worsening its appearance. I am quite satisfied with the result, although I would have liked to use stainless steel.

I hope you like it and remember that I will be very happy to solve any doubt.