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My uncle swore by using motor oil on anvils and I nearly ruined mine | Blacksmiths - Free To Speak

My uncle swore by using motor oil on anvils and I nearly ruined mine

So my uncle Bob, who's been forging since the 70s, told me to slather my anvil in used motor oil to keep it from rusting. He said it's what all the old-timers did back in his shop outside Pittsburgh. I figured he knew what he was talking about, so I took the oil from my truck and coated the whole face. Man, that thing stank like a gas station and after a week the oil had gummed up with dust and made the surface slick as ice. I tried hammering on it and my stock slid sideways on the first hit, almost caught me in the shin. Had to spend three hours scrubbing it down with acetone and then repolish the face. Has anyone else gotten bad advice from a family member that almost got them hurt?

2 comments

2 Comments

dylan_brown301mo ago

Funny how some of the worst advice comes from people who've been doing something forever. I've noticed that with older guys in a lot of hobbies, not just metalwork. They'll swear by some method that was a shortcut back when they had no money for the real stuff, and now they think it's a secret trick. My father in law told me to sharpen my lawnmower blade with a file while it was still on the mower, said it was fine. Nearly took my fingers off when it slipped. It's like they confuse surviving bad habits with actual skill.

christopherw341mo ago

Three times I've had older guys tell me to "just hit it with a hammer" instead of using the right tool, @dylan_brown30, and each time it ended up costing me more time fixing the damage than doing it right the first time. Is there a specific generation gap you see where the advice goes from "helpful shortcut" to "dangerous old habit," or does it just come down to the person? Feels like the lawnmower example is just the tip of the iceberg with this stuff.