Fair price for anvil?

[Half-fast eddie]

Came across this ad on craigslist. Seems a little expensive.

Hay Budden 220 pound anvil - tools - by owner - sale

Nice hay budden blacksmith anvil. Serial number dates it to 1920. Great shape and rebound. Weighs 220 pounds. Anvils more than 150 pounds getting hard to find, especially Hay Buddens. Using a...

richmond.craigslist.org

 

[Davefr]

IMHO it's a fair price (not a "you ****" price). I've seen a lot worse anvils at >>$6/lb. There's a lot to like. (Hay Budden, great condition and >200 lbs.)

 

[jonshonda]

No such thing as fair price when it comes to anvil prices!

 

[merkyworks]

Anvil looks to be in pretty good condition, working surface looks pretty flat and not chipped Out. Seems like a more than fair price at ~ $5.70 per lbs. Anvils can easily be $10 per lbs.

 

[Aaron_W]

Even a Harbor Freight anvil runs about $1.50/lb, 3-4x that for an actual quality anvil doesn't seem unreasonable. Anvils seem to be like wine, they get better with age.

 

[Cypherian]

He is right on the mark from what I have seen here in the northeast, Prices seem to relate to where in the country you are looking. The name adds to the price and from the pictures it is in at minimum good condition doesn't appear to be sway backed. Just be sure you inspect and rebound check. I have seen twice now anvils that had been in a fire and softened. If you know anyone with Richard Postman's Anvils in America which is pretty much the bible see if you can match the marks on it with a Hay Budden etc I would offer 1k and hoped he took it if so get it in the truck and leave quickly :}

Cypher

 

[Firebrick43]

My wife (as an aniversary present) bought me a 175 lbs peter wright anvil 19 years ago and paid $3 a lbs then and there were 5 guys trying to push her out of the way to buy it. It was perfect where that hay budden is nice but has some wear on the corners but yea, it doesn't seem out of line.

 

[TailGunner3000]

Seems very reasonable for that anvil.

 

[Maui]

Here in the northeast (in upstate NY) I have not been able to get more than $3/lb for any anvil, regardless of the make, size, or the condition. People here hit a hard stop when an anvil price exceeds about $450. They just don’t appear to sell when they are priced higher than this.

 

[Kscardsfan]

I got a 462 lbs Peter Wright for $800 with a post vise about 10 years ago and have watched them spiral out of control since then. Based on what I see around here in the middle of the Midwest that’s pretty fair. The antique stores around here are driving the anvil prices so far out of sight it’s not funny. Even cheap cast anvils are getting ridiculous.

 

[Renegade1LI]

You can get a brand new ridgid model 9, 165 lbs for about 1000$

Ridgid 69632 Model 9 Forged Anvil 5" Width 10 1/2" Face 7 1/2" Horn​

SKU: 95342

$ 1,028.30/ea​

 

[Renegade1LI]

Or if you want to go big

Ridgid Peddinghaus Forged Anvil - Model 12 - 8-1/2" Horn (69642)​

SKU: 95340

$ 1,728.74/ea​

I believe they are both made in germany.

 

[MarkH]

We used to get a good used anvil at a farm auction for 300-400 dollars. Now we have the collectors and flippers. Usually go sky high

I do see some places that prices are still reasonable but shipping hundreds of pounds is an issue that lowers the price. You add a couple hundred to a 450 anvil and it is a 650 anvil.

Recently we have just gone to Anvil Brands and gotten new ones. They specialize in farrier anvils but there are about 3 models of quality ones that work for blacksmith and farrier work. In the long run it was just cheaper. Also the quality is known.

We need anvils but they are not in daily professional use. So these beat the cheap cast iron ones and have worked will with at least weekly heave use.

 

[Duke74]

That’s about what they are selling for up here in Canada. That anvil looks like it is in decent shape. As long as it's not a ‘dead’ anvil, it’s not a bad deal.

 

[Walkers]

Pretty standard price here too.

 

[yelchevelle]

I am a tool junky about like everyone else here, but what are y’all doing with your anvils. I could use one occasionally, but I can’t part with the stupid money that they sell for. Is it just another thing people collect for the most part, or are y’all using them regularly.

I have a 6” athol vise, a 4x8 1/2” plate work table, and an old school 48” metal break, all get used pretty regularly, but it would have to be under 500 bucks for me to buy an anvil. I say all that to illustrate I don’t just have my stuff to look at, it gets used. I just don’t see the value for the money. Please tell me what I am missing. That’s a sincere request. I don’t understand the crazy obsession.

 

[Steve_P]

At GJ, vintage anvils are like vintage vises and are to be coveted and worshipped over because they're made of magic steel that can't be created anymore, 100 years later. Not. I ended up buying a generic Chinese anvil on Ebay as I won't play the collector games. 66 lb, $130 shipped, top surface tested to 50+ RC and was ground smooth. If you really need a 200+ lb anvil, then maybe it's not a bad deal, but..

 

[Kscardsfan]

I am a tool junky about like everyone else here, but what are y’all doing with your anvils. I could use one occasionally, but I can’t part with the stupid money that they sell for. Is it just another thing people collect for the most part, or are y’all using them regularly.

I have a 6” athol vise, a 4x8 1/2” plate work table, and an old school 48” metal break, all get used pretty regularly, but it would have to be under 500 bucks for me to buy an anvil. I say all that to illustrate I don’t just have my stuff to look at, it gets used. I just don’t see the value for the money. Please tell me what I am missing. That’s a sincere request. I don’t understand the crazy obsession.

Can’t speak for everyone else, but on nights and weekends I like to fire up the forge and pretend I’m a blacksmith. I Mess up a lot, but I have fun trying.