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I Forge Iron

Moving to SoCal from Pa, Pricing Questions


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I'm currently located in York Pa but moving to San Diego Ca. From what I'm told blacksmithing equipment isn't the easiest thing to find in Southern California. I've been thinking about grabbing some things to take out with me to San Diego and hopefully sell when I get there. I'm really not to sure just yet as to what I might try to bring out. Biggest problem in me trying to figure out if I should try to buy some things to flip when I get there is that I have no clue what things go for in SoCal and right now I'm about broke as it is. There are some sales coming up, not sure if I'll have cash or a way to them right now, I'm fighting vehicle issues but I won't have vehicle issues forever so if I can possibly help myself out with the cost of moving and meet as well as also help some others get things that are harder to find in SoCal I'd like to try if I can. What do anvils go for in SoCal or forges, blowers? It would be a lot easier for me to justify buying prices for things if I know around about what people would be happy to spend on them once I get out there. Just to give people out on the west coast a idea of what Pa has auction wise from time to time here's a pic of one auction coming up. Clearly every auction isn't like this one but in the summer there's normally a few. I'll happily hit what auctions I can with whatever funds I can have available at the time if someone wants something.

image.jpg

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 I was in San Diego 8 years ago when I learned T.P.A.A.A.T. Found two Hay Buddens, a complete Champion 400, big ole Buffalo Climax forge blower needed to soak and scrub but she finally turned. Most quality blacksmith stuff didn't really last long from what I remember. Didn't find any leg vises or small hand crank blowers locally. I would have bought a stake anvil or swage blocks. Anything in your picture should sell just fine. I took classes at Bandy Blacksmith in Escondido, you can contact them and see if someone wants something.

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Hello, IRTim, I live in San Diego, and have found it rather difficult to find much of anything at all out here. I just drove 281 miles last weekend to buy a decent mechanics vise.

I could sure use a "second" anvil over #100, they are virtually never for sale, and then it's $6/# for well tormented Iron.

I dream of owning a swage block as well, hope you are not driving out here with a mini, towing a microtrailer.

I will try to get more information.

A search of San Diego and Los Angeles craigslist shows three anvils only at $7-$8/pound, and no leg vises.

Pac, I have not been to Bandy, but I took classes at AG&SEM in Vista, and that is a very good place. The Wheelwright and the Blacksmith shops are housed together.

Robert Taylor

Edited by Anachronist58
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 Robert, I found out about Bandy Blacksmith digging through IFI. I thought the instruction was great there. Wed nights from 5-10, five students max per class so plenty of one on one time.  The Wheelwright and Blacksmith shops are also together. I wish I took the wheelwright classes but it never happened. I did not get to see the Vista one.

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Oh wow, 281 miles for a vise. Haha. Mechanics vise are everywhere here. There seems to be a big jump in popularity with them though this year. Last year I was looking for one and I kept finding leg vise but bench vise you could pick up cheap. This year it's getting hard to to leg and I know auctions are not the place to by a vise at all here of any kind. They're selling top dollar at auctions. It seems like on craigslist people this year here are pulling out old vise and they get online to check the values and one after another people are seeing each other post way to high and it's been staying that way. Nothing is selling. Leg vise are listed at $250 and bench vise are posted up to $1250. Last year at this time it didn't matter what you wanted. You could find it for $40-$50 on craigslist here. Swage blocks are not easy to find at all!! I have a box van I try to put what I can in. Weight ads up fast but should be able to bring a few extra things for sure. Anvils and blowers are the easiest find here. Leg vise are hit or miss. Cone anvils are here but hard to say what you can find one for. I've come across two swages blocks. They sold super high and both didn't really look like they could be workable. 

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Robert, no we left in 2010, wife and I were stationed there for awhile. Her uncle had a cabin up in Pine Valley(?) was so peaceful and laid back.

I forgot the guys name, but a guy out in El Cajon area had some kind of junker business. I would check with him for anvils and he would sell them as fast as he posted em for sale. I did get ~200lbs of chain in various sizes for $25. I just found them out in the backyard rusting away, need to do something with em...

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  • 2 weeks later...

I live in San Diego and I can tell you this isn't the place to look for black smithing tools. There is a farrier supply in lakeside you can get light stuff tongs small hammers, flux, bar stock, I think they may sell coal but don't quote me on that. If I was you and had the cash before I moved id make sure your set up with an anvil and forge. You can get hammers and punches and drifts online or make them but anvils, forges, swage blocks, fly presses, power hammers, all the big stuff your gonna travel to find and it will be way more than you want to spend. Not to hate on the forged in fire show but since that came on tv prices on anything black smithing related has just skyrocketed. My buddy sells equipment and is getting $5-600 for a 100lb or less anvil which is just crazy.

there are a couple scrap yards though you can get yourself an ASO or auctions here in San Diego and Los Angeles county of machine shops shutting down. They're dropping like flies out here and it's a great time to get lucky on some machinery or the occasional anvil.

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19 hours ago, Bmallen77 said:

I live in San Diego and I can tell you this isn't the place to look for black smithing tools. There is a farrier supply in lakeside you can get light stuff tongs small hammers, flux, bar stock, I think they may sell coal but don't quote me on that. If I was you and had the cash before I moved id make sure your set up with an anvil and forge. You can get hammers and punches and drifts online or make them but anvils, forges, swage blocks, fly presses, power hammers, all the big stuff your gonna travel to find and it will be way more than you want to spend. Not to hate on the forged in fire show but since that came on tv prices on anything black smithing related has just skyrocketed. My buddy sells equipment and is getting $5-600 for a 100lb or less anvil which is just crazy.

there are a couple scrap yards though you can get yourself an ASO or auctions here in San Diego and Los Angeles county of machine shops shutting down. They're dropping like flies out here and it's a great time to get lucky on some machinery or the occasional anvil.

$500-$600 for a 100lb anvil is common even where I'm at now if you look on craigslist. (I'm in York Pa) I post wanted ad's and that's my best way if finding things. People might hit you with high numbers but you can luck out. I did. I got my 137lb Peter Wright for $85.00. I know of another PW that's 99lbs for $400 because of my want ad's and I even saw a 100lb PW sell at a auction in Philly for $900.00! I couldn't believe it. Yeah it was mint but $900? Crazy! Last PW I saw at a auction was just under 200lbs and sold for $485.00. Wasn't the best but good and I'd take it over that 100lb for $900 any day! I just bought my Champion No.104 forge at a auction in Lancaster Pa. I paid $310.00 plus 15% buyers fee. It's the vary forge I wanted so I was lucky it was just a farm auction and not a blacksmith-farrier auction. Price goes up at them a lot and anybody interested in blacksmith stuff shows up to pay ebay prices on everything. Box lots of tong that sell for $30.00 sell for $30 per tong at blacksmith sales. It can also be hard buying things here any time you see Quackers are at sales or kinda Amish looking people. THEY WILL BUY EVERYTHING!! EVERYTHING!!!!! They have truely deep bottomless pockets and they don't even have to know what it is they'll just buy it. I hate it.. 

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On 06/20/2016 at 5:06 AM, Bmallen77 said:

Border parts??

Pacific Contours, formerly Jaycraft. We were heavily involved in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, and a lot of other stuff. The plant had a packed one acre footprint.  It is sad that all of the Human Capital was squandered, literally, to this day of bleak demise.

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Well its just hit and miss here in SoCal...

I haven't paid over $2.50 a pound for decent anvils here....just have to be patient...the anvils that are listed higher($4+ range) are usually misinformed and still have the anvils...

I know a guy that has them for sale at $4 a pound and still can't move them (great condition)

BUT if you were to set up a auction thats well advertised, who knows....

There is really just one source for coal in my area...thats lee greens place in yucaipa...(think i got his name right)

There is a few antique places here on route 66 that can sell ice to eskimos ...(tourist suckers buy anything inflated)

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On June 24, 2016 at 0:54 PM, Anachronist58 said:

OK now, Bryan Horseshoeing Supply in Lakeside has coke only - $24.99 for #50. I had to have a little of course:

20160624_094141.jpg

That's awesome to know.. I've been wondering how easy it's going to be to find coal & coke out that way. 

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