anvil accessory - cone mandrel

[Philip Davies]

This cone has been forged from a very large bolt, the biggest I’ve ever salvaged.



Originally it held a lighting rig above a stage in a theatre. They have to be renewed at intervals.

This took 4 sessions of forging, each lasting about 90 minutes. It’s also the largest component I ve ever forged. If it hadn’t kept rolling off the anvil, it might have been done quicker. But I had smaller items in the fire too.


I had 4 methods of keeping it in place. A T stop in the hardy hole. A cone swage, to which I had welded two lugs so it straddled the anvil at the horn end, but mostly I used chain, hooked on one side of the stand, looped over the piece and hooked on a hinged board on the other side of the stand. Once in position, I put one foot on the board and struck about 10 blows with a sledge. Then repositioned the work. If it hadn’t fallen off before, it would probably fall off now. Once or twice it fell in the quench. The chain had to be cooled each heat, since it had to be looped by hand over the yellow hot bolt. I used a holdfast made from an old C clamp, as shown above. The board tucks nicely up against the stand and probably will be jettisoned. It’s away from the fire, so it’s less of a trip hazard. however in this small workshop if I trip, I end up over a bench.

This in all was quite adventurous, hard work but worthwhile.

The quantity of charcoal was about 8 sacks, each sack weighing about 10 kg. This is homemade, too.

This is not of course a perfect cone and was dressed when cold with an angle grinder. This took only 10 minutes.

This accessory is called a mandrel by smiths although for many the word has other associations, it seems.