Anvil should I repair or not?

[IronWolf]

TreeHouse l repair anvil,s often @ my welding shop
done over 30 now and lost count
I use 110-18 on base & Stoudy 1105 arc rods haven't had a return yet

[philip in china]

I would leave it. Just do any superficial work and leave it as it is. there is plenty of space on a 200 pound anvil and, as you said, you are not (yet) primarily a blacksmith so why worry? If you have enough space to do what you want then do it!

Did you get that rather dishy looking stand with the anvil? If so it was an even better buy!

[TreeHouse]

Nah... the stands made from some 4x4's I had and some 4"x3" old oak beams taken out of a barn. I removed the nails and planed the oak down to make a solid cross-section then coutersunk and bolted that beast together... what you can't see in the picture is the old Pexto interchangable mount system attached to the other end of the stand for copper forming.

[Gerald Boggs]

Treehouse, I would repair it. Having a anvil in poor shape is like having half a anvil. If you following the directions Robb Gunther gives in this link and you know how to weld, you'll have no problems with the repair. These are the directions I used to repair mine. If you surf the net, you'll find a lot of folks warning against repairs, and talking about the horrors that can happen Personally, I think a lot of the myths about the difficulty of anvil repair are by folks that aren't trained welders.

Anvil Restoration

[maddog]

Looks like a very good anvil and ready to go to work. IMO the only concern is the crack. I would wait and see what happens with that. The plate too can be repaired with 7018 which work hardens over time. Mild steel on the face works fine save that it wears faster and mushrooms faster. But then you can always reweld it later. I wouldnt touch the welded section for the moment. If the edge chips off you can fix that with one of the high impact crush resistant rods. Irnsrgn has a BP for that. I also wouldnt do much to the face and horn save knock off the worst of the rust.

[Thomas Dean]

IF you decide to repair FOLLOW ALL OF THE PROCEDURE! skipping something will only make things worse. If you have soft spots now it is the result of not following through with the repair. When you weld on or near the face you are removing temper that needs to be replaced...or you end up with what you now have. I have read several procedures for anvil repairs, have not tried any, but to me Robb's would be the one I would use and recommend. That not to take away form JR's procedure, just my preference. Also, I personnally, would not use MIG for any of the welding.

From what pictures you posted, I would be hard pressed to do anything with this anvil. Use it for a while and see if you feel it really needs that kind of work. Oh, and BTW, Welcome too IFI!

[Doug C]

There is a 150# Peter Wright for sale in Southern New Hampshire (chester) for $300. The heal has a big gouge on it and some of the typical chipping found on older anvils. The rest of the face is in reasonable shape. I have pictures if anyone is interested. The owner may be willing to go a little lower in price.

Anvil 150# Peter Wright

[ThomasPowers]

Looks in great shape to me; I'd not even think about reparing the heel diviot as it's not a place I've used much in the 27 years I've been smithing and If I needed it I'd just make a bridge for the hardy hole.

More of concern is that the important part---the face--- s hidden by the swages they have placed on it

[gustab]

i would use it and see if it be comes a problem . They try to fix it.