Combination Vice Table And Anvil

Combination Vice Table And Anvil FARM SHOP Tools 27-1-38 Karey Waldrop, Walterboro, S.C.: "I used a 55-gal. barrel and lengths of old railroad track to make a combination vice table and anvil. The drum was filled with sand to within 8 in. of the top and finished off with rebar and cement. The vise is fastened to bolts that are anchored in the cement. "I started the project by cutting into the barrel until the tops of the railroad irons were just above the top of the barrel and then spot welded the irons in place. Then I put in the rebar, positioned the bolts for the vise, and poured the cement. If I want to lay something big on top of the anvil I can unbolt the vise and take it off. The railroad irons will take all the pounding I can give them without cracking. "I also converted an old gas grill that didn't work any more into a portable parts washer, by replacing the grill with a 3-gal. electric-operated parts washer. I use the grill's folding front and end sections to hold parts. The nice thing about my parts washer is that I can take it anywhere I want. If I'm working on a tractor on the cement pad in front of my shop I can just roll the parts washer out there and wash parts on the spot. It's amazing how much that helps. It saves hundreds of steps and also eliminates the possibility of dropping parts that I'd otherwise have to carry into my shop. It also avoids making a mess in my shop."

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