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I Forge Iron

Absolute Newbee from Virginia


jerryt

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Hi Folks,

I'm 72 years old and a retired 30+ year Army field artillery guy who started a small business after retirement in 93 and wound that down in 2011.  Now run a weekend inside flea market in my building,  Got interested in welding a couple of years ago and one metalworking thing led to another...here I am.  Absolutely there is much to learn!

Got lucky last Saturday on a big anvil (300+/- lbs) and hope to find others.  It is Fisher, I think.  Base is hastily constructed 16x16x16" of 6x6" scrap treated post held together by 24 threaded rods 3/8".

Jerry

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Hey Jerry. You'll recognize quite a few  guys here from over there. Glad to see you joined and am looking forward to what you make once you get all set up. Take a minute and add your location to your profile so we always know where you are at. You'll find the guys here very helpful and many will go out of their way to help a new guy if they know you are in the area.

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Thanks DSW, I had a heck of a time getting on here.  I must have registered a year or two ago and when I try to log in it tells me I'm banned.  Don't think I ever posted.  Tried my storeman e-mail and it blocked me there also.  Finally got on my wife's puter and registered under a little used g-mail account and it let me in.  I don't know what has blocked my usual e-mail accounts.  Sent an e-mail to admin from blocked status and got no response.  Will update my profile.

Jerry

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There have been more than a few bugs with the site that the provider IPS doesn't seem interested in resolving. Your issues getting online might be connected to that. I had some issues getting back on here for a while as did several other long time members so your issue might be connected to the issues we had for a bit. Glen is pretty good about resolving those issues once he is made aware of them. If it happens again, let me or Shortfuse over on WW know and chances are we can PM Glen to help solve the issue.

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Welcome aboard Jerry glad to have you. Good looking anvil and a good job on the stand. If you make a rim around the top to contain the anvil foot it'll stay there without special tie downs, the rim also makes handy places to put tools you're using.

I'm sure Glenn will get your login status straightened out when he gets to it. Running this site is a LOT of work so it takes them time to get to problems. The platform isn't worth . . . Nevermind.

Frosty The Lucky.

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Hello Jerry. You seem to be just a hop skip and a jump north of me. The flea market you run wouldn't happen to be on Jefferson would it? I've been meaning to make the trip there to look for a few tools. I'm not much more experienced than you are and don't make it that way too often but if there's any way I can lend a helping hand let me know.

Your anvil looks quite nice as well. Good find for this area.

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Hi Jumbojak,

Thanks for the compliment on the anvil.  I'm located in Mathews County about 10 miles east of Gloucester.  The flea market is an indoor one located in my former hunting and fishing store.  Its at the intersection of Rte 3 and 198 at the north end of Mathews County (Cobbs Creek, 23035).  Come on up!  I haven't figured out how to get site notifications of responses, so just stumbled on yours.  BTW:  Is there a setting that will let a member see all new postings to all forums?

Jerry

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Click on "unread content" at the top right corner just below the search block. It will pull up any posts you haven't read yet. Another option is to go to the upper left and find the button that says "Activity. You can go to unread content there, or pull down a menu listed My activity streams and select several areas, again unread content as well as "Content I started", "Content I follow" or "Content I posted in".

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1 hour ago, DSW said:

Click on "unread content" at the top right corner just below the search block. It will pull up any posts you haven't read yet. Another option is to go to the upper left and find the button that says "Activity. You can go to unread content there, or pull down a menu listed My activity streams and select several areas, again unread content as well as "Content I started", "Content I follow" or "Content I posted in".

Thanks Doug.

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1 hour ago, stuarthesmith said:

nice looking old fisher

 

Thanks Stuart. 

With blue chalk dust I was able to confirm that the cast emblem is a Fisher. 

njanvilman informed me that it was manufactured in the 1860 decade from the unique markings Fisher used at that time.   He said "The logo should be an Eagle holding wheat stalks.  The logo on your in worn down or was never done well when it was made."

IMHO, If it was in Virginia during the civil war, it was one of the few that was overlooked as Virginia territory was taken over by the North.  I've seen several anvils of that period which were minus horns and were broken off at the Hardy hole.  I guess it was to frustrate war production.   Trace information from the 78 year old seller was to his grandfather or great-grandfather in Culpepper, VA. Culpepper was a very active area during the civil war. It may also have come into the region after the war, perhaps as a replacement anvil.

Jerry

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Welcome from the desert Southwest.

The breaking of anvils is an urban legend. Even broken they can still be used for smithing. Many of the old anvils were made from multiple pieces, and sometimes the forge welds we're not strong enough. Broken heels can also be caused by using sheet metal stake tools in the hardy hole. Those tools have a tapered shank, which works like a wedge in the hole splitting the heel off. 

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If you look at the anvil advertisements from the late 19th century and early 20 century---some are in Anvils in America---you will note that a lot of the anvil manufacturers offered anvil repair services for just such issues so why would so many anvils from that period still be broken?  Turns out that it was NOT the North breaking anvils; but anvils breaking through wear and tear during reconstruction that many southern smiths didn't have the money to have repaired.  The urban legend was started by Jim Paw Paw Wilson and spread like wildfire---please don't spread it any further.  We have a number of such anvils out this way in places that the Civil War *never* got too; but poverty did.

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  • 2 months later...

Tom,

I just got access to the site restored due to a technical glitch.  Regarding your comments above, I didn't mean to be spreading urban rumors.  The country folk here in Virginia believe it and I doubt they have ever heard of Paw Paw Wilson.  Nonetheless, I shall cease and desist as you requested.

Jerry

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