Finally admitting I was wrong about using motor oil on anvils

Kept seeing guys in the forge using canola oil and thought they were wasting time, but after ruining my #110 Peter Wright with a sticky rust layer last month I gave it a shot and the difference in rebound was night and day. Anyone else make the switch and notice a big change in how your hammer strikes feel?

3 comments

3 Comments

lily3941mo ago

That Peter Wright was a hell of an anvil to learn that lesson on, how long did it take you to get the motor oil residue fully cleaned off before you tried the canola? I've heard some guys say they had to wire brush and heat cycle theirs three times before the surface was clean enough.

faithb781mo ago

Three heat cycles with a wire brush between each one seems to be the magic number for most of those older anvils with stubborn oil residue. Took me about six hours total with a cup brush on an angle grinder to get mine down to bare clean steel, and even then I still had to do a final acetone wipe before the canola would stick right. Once you get that surface right though, the difference in hammer control is night and day and totally worth the elbow grease.

paul_morgan1mo ago

Spent a whole weekend scrubbing like an idiot - worth it though, my hammer actually bounces now.