Show me your ANVIL

[CrotalusAtrox]

Found a pretty clean 161 pound Peter Wright anvil this week probably need to upgrade the stand to something a bit more sturdier then the Home Depot bucket it is on.

 

[sandman54]

You can put shoe polish on this stand for sure, but do not put it in the oven! lol oh yeah nice find

 

[CrotalusAtrox]

Shoe polish no oven good advise thanks Sandman

 

[drivesitfar]

CA: nice find and i know you want to keep it for yourself, but i bet it already has a down payment from one of a couple guys in TEXAS?

speaking of shoe polish do you remember Fretters putting shoe polish as a finish on one of his old vises and it's still holding up a year or two later?

if you were closer i'd consider trading a few vises for that PW cause i'm viseless in SEATTLE currently.

can you post up a few more pictures of your PW anvil and maybe a close up of the weight stamps cause i always like to test my math skills? did you weigh it cause most of the PW's i've owned were about 5 pounds lighter and maybe that was from 100 years of sitting around and use?

cheers

OUTLAW: I agree that the English weight #'s are 112 pounds for first #, 28 pounds for second and actual pound for pound on 3rd #. you might have already known that and just had a senior moment.

 

[Outlawmws]

Not a senior moment, just notes from a bad resource. - Can't believe I never caught the error before.

 

[CrotalusAtrox]

I Didn’t weigh it just did the calculations i lifted it a couple times and my back says #160.5

 

[Outlawmws]

Should be 142 if the number is 112?

 

[G-ManBart]

I Didn’t weigh it just did the calculations i lifted it a couple times and my back says #160.5

That's in pretty good shape...lots of life left. Since it has "England" stamped on the side, it was made after 1909 (when England passed the law requiring country of origin markings on exports).

CA:did you weigh it cause most of the PW's i've owned were about 5 pounds lighter and maybe that was from 100 years of sitting around and use?

Drives, a couple of months ago you told me you hadn't bought your first anvil. Have you been on a buying spree?

 

[G-ManBart]

Should be 142 if the number is 112?

The third number is "21" if you zoom in, so that would work out to 161lbs.

 

[AngryBeaver]

Got a decent metal beater a couple weeks ago from my buddy up in Michigan. Needs a little work but it will work for what I do and my price range. I'll let the new blacksmiths pay the big dollars lol. Thanks again Bart

150lb Vulcan. Nice rebound. Will work perfect for my needs and better than the piece of rail I've been using

 

[G-ManBart]

Picked up a super nice 137# Soderfors last night. It was filthy....I swear it must have been buried an manure for years, but it cleaned up nicely!

 

[CrotalusAtrox]

Drives As far as those anvil freaks in Texas they use 160 pound anvils as door stops that house their collection of 400 pound up to 900 pound anvils.
Outlaw I thought the same thing when I saw it the first time.

G Man You are correct it is 1.1.21. That is a sweet looking Swede you selling it ?

 

[drivesitfar]

GMAN: I think i might have mentioned i'm anviless in SEATTLE, but i've owned several (maybe 6 in the 100-200 pound range). i tried to keep one or two, but unfortunately my friends and clients have more money than i do and they had a need for one so i let them have them. i wish i had the access to some of the stuff you find, but i'm doing ok around here for now. i have a little beater anvil maybe a Vulcan that might be 60 or 70 pounds and a ton of RR track, but i'm still searching for a good old 100 to 200 pound PW or an old US or European one.

i'm not in a huge hurry cause my shop is still more like a storage unit while i'm working on my house.

nice looking anvil you picked up today!!

CA: 160 pound doorstop.

well if i ever take a road trip and i might have something you like better than you PW we might have to do some horse trading.

nice find

 

[CrotalusAtrox]

Think I may keep this and if time permits and I get into a house that I can pound on stuff I may dip my toe into this blacksmithing craze. I passed up a few big anvils over the last few years and regret it now. They sure have gone up in price probably come back down someday but maybe not.

 

[Outlawmws]

The third number is "21" if you zoom in, so that would work out to 161lbs.

Outlaw I thought the same thing when I saw it the first time.

G Man You are correct it is 1.1.21. That is a sweet looking Swede you selling it ?

Yup didn't see the last 1...

 

[G-ManBart]

G Man You are correct it is 1.1.21. That is a sweet looking Swede you selling it ?

Thanks....I haven't decided yet, but I sure do like it! I'm slowly putting together my shop and the plan is to have one large, and one small anvil by each forge. The big anvils are a 305lb PW and a 330lb Refflinghaus (neither is set up yet) but the smaller anvils keep changing.

Luckily I'm not a collector, or hoarder, so most of them will go to new homes before long

 

[G-ManBart]

GMAN: I think i might have mentioned i'm anviless in SEATTLE, but i've owned several (maybe 6 in the 100-200 pound range). i tried to keep one or two, but unfortunately my friends and clients have more money than i do and they had a need for one so i let them have them. i wish i had the access to some of the stuff you find, but i'm doing ok around here for now. i have a little beater anvil maybe a Vulcan that might be 60 or 70 pounds and a ton of RR track, but i'm still searching for a good old 100 to 200 pound PW or an old US or European one.

i'm not in a huge hurry cause my shop is still more like a storage unit while i'm working on my house.

Gotcha.

If you already have a Vulcan and some RR track I wouldn't bother trying to find a "good" anvil unless you're going to set up a forge and hammer hot metal. Using a good anvil as a cold hammering surface just destroys them for no purpose...I see a lot of them that have suffered that fate

 

[drivesitfar]

GMAN: if you read back years ago on this thread and the blacksmith threads (not many of those) i've been telling members and the public that hammering on an REAL ANVIL with cold steel is not a good thing and will chip the edges as you have mentioned. good to get the word out cause there are a lot of people that inherit an anvil and just use them as a doorstop or something to beat on. hell i had a tenant leave me one in my garage about 30+ years ago and i think i gave it away cause i couldn't lift it.

ALL: so speaking of hammering metal on your anvil are any of you pre heating your anvils by heating up a sacrificial piece of steel in your forge and laying it hot on your anvil while you are getting your piece heated up in your forge and ready to pound on it?

also are some anvils likely not to chip cause my 80 year old neighbor's anvil has perfect edges and he hits cold steel on it all the time as i cringe. i'll have to get a picture of it, but it looks like a Vulcan.

 

[lis2323]

GMAN: I think i might have mentioned i'm anviless in SEATTLE, but i've owned several (maybe 6 in the 100-200 pound range). i tried to keep one or two, but unfortunately my friends and clients have more money than i do and they had a need for one so i let them have them. i wish i had the access to some of the stuff you find, but i'm doing ok around here for now. i have a little beater anvil maybe a Vulcan that might be 60 or 70 pounds and a ton of RR track, but i'm still searching for a good old 100 to 200 pound PW or an old US or European one.



i'm not in a huge hurry cause my shop is still more like a storage unit while i'm working on my house.



nice looking anvil you picked up today!!



CA: 160 pound doorstop.



well if i ever take a road trip and i might have something you like better than you PW we might have to do some horse trading.



nice find

I NEVER see good anvils advertised locally. (Except for a nice 50-60 pound Södofor the seller wanted $8/lb for)

Here's my 290 pound Peter Wright.



Terry

 

[Swingpress]

Here is a couple of mine.

 

[Tennessee Cattleman]

Scott 100 lb anvil with a fresh coat of Dupli-Color engine paint on a chainsawed stump.

 

[drivesitfar]

LIS: i love your 290 pound PW. i'm not sure if i could lift it or move it, but i would love to own one that big. did you make the stand for it and what kind of wood is it? did you cut the sides with a chainsaw or have it milled?

i have a huge piece of Madrona tree sitting on the side of my property waiting for me to find a nice size anvil to mount on to it.

SP: i love your footrest!!

Tennessee: i'm not into painting anvils, but i do like that blue color.

 

[lis2323]

LIS: i love your 290 pound PW. i'm not sure if i could lift it or move it, but i would love to own one that big. did you make the stand for it and what kind of wood is it? did you cut the sides with a chainsaw or have it milled?



i have a huge piece of Madrona tree sitting on the side of my property waiting for me to find a nice size anvil to mount on to it.



SP: i love your footrest!!



Tennessee: i'm not into painting anvils, but i do like that blue color.

Thanks. A friend has a small saw mill and he saved me a piece of oak. Not certain of the variety.

Used a chainsaw to form it's shape. Put a bit of a notched taper on opposing sides so that I could pick it up with a forklift.



Now that's it mounted I usually just pick it up by the anvil to move any distance. The belly band can be tightened if needed. Those rivets I added are for decor.





Terry

 

[drivesitfar]

LIS: i think you said you own a FARM? nice looking anvil and stand and that fork lift looks like it could go off road if you needed it too.

thanks for the pictures and WELL DONE!!

 

[lis2323]

drivesitfar: Yes in answer to the farm question.

I'm retired now and spend my days puttering in the shop. And yes the forklift is "off road". A necessity when working alone in a shop with no overhead crane.


And moving stuff around for pressure washing...


And thank you for the kind words. Truth be known I just do the typical farmshop stuff and would starve if I had to do this for a living. [emoji2]

 

[Tennessee Cattleman]

I NEVER see good anvils advertised locally. (Except for a nice 50-60 pound Södofor the seller wanted $8/lb for)

Here's my 290 pound Peter Wright.



Terry

I really like the way that big Peter Wright is held in place on the stump, some of the best mounting brackets I've seen.

 

[lis2323]

I really like the way that big Peter Wright is held in place on the stump, some of the best mounting brackets I've seen.

Thank you!

 

[lis2323]

This may not qualify, but here's my "anvil shaped object" (ASO).



ZERO% rebound. Dropping a ball bearing is identical to the concrete floor it's sitting on. BUT great for center punching large pieces and general 'cold' pounding.



400 pounds (plus or minus), slide out extension for longer pieces, forklift/pallet jack pocket for moving, horn torched to shape.

Hardy hole torched out with 1.25 square receiver welded in for various accessories.



Terry

 

[drivesitfar]

LIS: IT QUALIFIES!!

GEESH AND ALL THE OPTIONS IT HAS EVEN MAKES IT BETTER!!

WELL DONE and not easy to make i'm guessing either.

 

[lis2323]

drivesitfar: Thank you. As with most of my projects, it's 85% head scratching and 15% DOING. [emoji23]

 

[drivesitfar]

LIS: I totally agree about the planning and doing percentages especially when things get heavier and bigger.

again that might be the best ANVIL SHAPED OBJECT I'VE SEEN in person or in pictures. i'm sure a lot of us wish we had it and the space to use it.

 

[G-ManBart]

also are some anvils likely not to chip cause my 80 year old neighbor's anvil has perfect edges and he hits cold steel on it all the time as i cringe. i'll have to get a picture of it, but it looks like a Vulcan.

Even the best anvils will chip and some of the best are the most likely to chip if used cold because they had the hardest faces. I'd be leery of any anvil that takes cold hammering without damage

Vulcans have very thin faces and are prone to losing entire sections of the face more than most brands. If it's a Vulcan the logo with a raised arm and hammer. I can't imagine anybody cold hammering on a Vulcan without having pretty immediate damage evidence, but anything is possible.

 

[sandman54]

Lis i like the i beam very creative !

 

[lis2323]

sandman: Thank you!

 

[turnpikecrusier]

Here are some of mine.

 

[Mike.VA]

Been cleaning this up and finally found a good base.
Need to level it a bit more and then will be covering then base with clear coat. Saw how lis2323 mounted the Peter Wright. That is sweet.

 

[G-ManBart]

I did a little anvil hunting today and came home with this sweet newer Peter Wright....150lbs on the nose. The edges are nearly perfect and it only has a couple of very minor marks on the face that really don't detract from it at all. 1910 or newer since it has "England" stamped on it.

 

[drivesitfar]

Gman: do you used a steel ball to test the rebound or a hammer? nice looking anvil and just about the right size for those of us that have to move it cause of lack of space.

 

[G-ManBart]

Gman: do you used a steel ball to test the rebound or a hammer? nice looking anvil and just about the right size for those of us that have to move it cause of lack of space.

I keep a 1.25" ball bearing in all my vehicles just in case. It seems easier to compare between anvils with the ball bearing...just drop and see what happens. A hammer works fine, but if I'm at an auction or estate sale I worry folks might see the hammer test and try copying it later, but not realize it's a drop rather than strike.

The PW is a really nice size for sure. Heavy enough to do real work but not impossible to move.

The I gave the PW a five minute wire wheel cleaning....going to get it really clean, then BLO when I get a few minutes. My wife has informed me that she needs a She-shed, so I'm going to have her list the PW on eBay followed by a few more and a couple of vises.

I took the second picture so I could practice saying "I do not have a vise and anvil problem" over and over and over...

 

[GETRIDAONE]

Here are some pictures of a bizarre anvil / swage