The main supporting blacksmith tool is an anvil weighing 100-150 kg, made of carbon steel. Anvils are divided into three types- hornless, one-horned, and two-horned. The upper surface of the anvil is called the clypeus, or the face, and the lower- the base. The upper part and casing should be hardened and ground, free from cracks and dents. Otherwise, traces may remain on the hot work piece. On the front surface of the anvil there is a square through hole, usually 30X30 mm in size, for mounting tools and accessories. The pointed part of the anvil (horn) is used for bending and dispersal of the rings. And the opposite flat part (tail) is used for bending at right angles.
How to attach anvil?
There are several ways to attach anvils. Traditional is the mount on a wooden deck – a chair. To do this, use blanks with a diameter of 500-600 mm of solid wood species – oak, birch, etc. The height of the chair together with the anvil is about 75 cm, i.e. the face of the anvil should be at the level of the thumb of the blacksmith’s lowered hand. If it is not possible to purchase a solid deck, then the chair can be made of individual bars fastened with steel hoops. Anvil to the chair is fixed with U-shaped staples. The chair can be made of a steel corner with a size of at least 70X70 mm. between a steel chair and an anvil, a rubber gasket with a thickness of at least 8 mm must be laid. Fasten the anvil to the chair with U-shaped steel step-ladders. The method of fixing it in a home forge is not practical to apply on a concrete base.
Shpereki – It is also a supporting blacksmith tool, but with a lower mass, and have a variety of shapes. They are usually made by the blacksmiths themselves for a certain type of work. They can be inserted into the square hole of the anvil, clamped in a blacksmith vice, and also hammered into a wooden chair.
Sledgehammer – A large hammer weighing 4-8 kg is used for applying strong blows and processing large work pieces.
Blacksmith punch – A tool usually with a square or round shape of the working part, serves for punching holes in hot work pieces, sometimes used for stamping on hot metal.
Rolling – A tool of various shapes, used to accelerate the drawing and flattening of metal.
Along with these, black smiths also use more equipment, such as- Macro leather craft, bamboo work shocks, various types of magnets etc.