Thread: Anvil restore

Well "restore" is too strong of a word, but it came to mind quickly.
I have aquired my father's 55 pound anvil - it is not vintage - I actually bought it for him for Christmas from Grizzly about 10 years ago. The top surface has a light coat of rust that I will remove. My question is - can I wax it to protect the surface, like I do the cast iron table of my tablesaw and jointer, or will the wax make the surface too slick to be functional? Should I remove the rust and then leave it alone to patina? What do you guys do?

Thanks a lot - Gags

I think it depends of what you are planning on using the anvil for. Glen says he polishes his small anvils, i just keep the flat smooth but not polished and use tuffglide on them as an rust inhibitor, i rarely work with hot. wax, I'm thinking like paraffin, might be a little sticky and if you are using it for hot metal it will melt and burn.

As said above, it depends on what all you are using it for. Keep in mind that any imperfections on the anvil or hammer faces are imprinted onto the metal you are working. If you are riveting, it's not a big deal but if you are forging a blade, it becomes a very big deal. With my blacksmithing anvils, I grind them smooth and rust free and then apply a light spray coat of either penetrating oil or cooking spray. Of course the best way to keep the rust off is to use them daily