metal_butcher

Columbian listed on Craigslist and Ebay. Purchased on 08/22/2009

Stated weight (not verified by myself) 205 lbs.

Seller accepted $325, but countered at $340 to cover his Ebay fees. Comes to about $1.66 per lb.

Original patina removed by previous owner, so I had no qualms with cleaning it up a bit. Obviously, an anvil that's had an easy life.

I looked under my horn and did not see the symbol you showed.

I'd be really curious to know what that denotes as I think it's odd to have a Pennsylvania mark on an Ohio object.

Mine was painted in red. I have not cleaned it, touched up the work surface or removed the paint. It works fine just the way it is

That's the beauty of owning something -- you can do whatever suits you.

Nice anvils to work on. A friend has one that's just an excellent tool.
Finnr

I'm certainly looking forward to using this one. I really like the proportions. The previous owner had been "keeping it clean" buy running an angle grinder over the working surfaces. Looked like with a flap disc. Since I've never seen early 20th century flap disc marks, I had no qualms with sanding out and lightly buffing the top and horn to get back to square one. The base also had a bad paint job on it and it looked like someone had blasted it before because there was no rust or foundry scale underneath. After blasting it I rubbed it down with a graphite dressing that simulates the color of scale and won't burn off with torch heat. Ready for work:

I have a 96 pound Columbian with the same symbol.

Say, I was cleaning mine last night and found what looks like a Pennsylvania keystone with a "U" in the center on the underside of the horn. Does yours have that?:

Did you ever get an answer to your question? Vactra No. 2 is generally a good across-the-board headstock oil, but your question would best be answered here:

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-Walter.

A forum for anvils -- is this a great country, or what?

I've been pounding steel for several years, but up to this point either on something homemade or borrowed. When my good borrowed anvil moved away recently, and I got tired of just making do with whatever mass I could find, I finally set out to find a proper anvil of my own and just this morning acquired the one pictured below. My understanding is that it's a Columbian, but more information with regard to age, interesting details, etc. would be appreciated. It's supposed to be 205 lbs., though I've not been able to verify that myself. I've highlighted the markings I found on the side as best I could.








-Walter.