Last week, I described finding an old, heavy-duty vise for sale in Crown Trout Jewelers, a fine jewelry store in my community. While that was unexpected, its mounting was even more unexpected. Liz Bucheit, the owner, had three of the old vises mounted to a section of cottonwood log that was about 34 inches long and perhaps 30 inches across.
If you have limited needs for an anvil, a foot-long piece of railroad rail might be enough. For those who are intrigued by the idea of having their own working anvil, there are multiple other options …
Anvils are multi-purpose tools developed by and for blacksmiths, but you don’t have to have a forge to put an anvil to use in your shop. In my home farm shop, the anvil was simply used as a base for straightening bent or twisted metal.
I’ve got a wish list a mile long for shop tools and fixtures, but one thing stands out among them all … an anvil.
My shop is back to normal. It’s not just the clutter on the workbench; it’s the engineer’s bench vise.
