njanvilman

Everything I build is built to last, and be twice as strong as needed. I did add a couple of 3x3 oak verical supports in the middle of the table holding the big anvils, as "insurance". However, there was no sag before they went in. The tables are build with a truss under the table. The tops are 3/4" and 1/2" plywood glued and screwed together, with secondary layers 6" wide on the edges glued and screwed together. Everything is then bolted to the leg assembly. NOTHING I have ever built has ever failed. I think I missed my calling as a structural engineer.

Thanks for coming Stewart. It was a great day with about 75 people here, and about 25 tailgating. A lot of tools changed hands. I will probably do this every few years. I think everyone had a great time. Next time I will post the event on IFI too. Remember, any can contact me for a private visit. Just not during Christmas Tree season, or during a snow event. Check out craftsofnj.org for more information on this wonderful tool collecting group.

Nice find. The machine looks to be in great shape. Lube up all moving parts and work the oil in manually. I would try to get a flat pulley for the motor(if it is missing) and put a flat belt back on. I use that set-up on my 35 lb Champion and it has worked flawlessly for many years. It is easy to control the speed by varying the amount of slipping of the belt with the idler pully.

That anvil is a Vulcan, from 1875 or shortly thereafter. You can tell by the oval name cast into the side. I have a FISHER that was used as a mooring weight in salt water. The steel is almost corroded away, the mounting lugs are mostly abraded away, but the cast iron is in good shape. That Vulcan is just plain ugly after years of abuse.

Not this year. Still teaching. Maybe retirement soon, making next year a must. Have fun out there.

Boiled linseed oil on the body. Lots of use on the top.

STAT What these replies are saying is that worth is determined by: 1. Manufacturer 2. Condition 3. Location 4. Who wants it, and how bad. Asking a value without information and photos is impossible. We like photos and details.

Sorry about the earthquake. I dropped my 800 lb anvil......was trying to juggle the big anvils.

They both look like Mousehole anvils, or a similar old English design. These were wrought, not cast, and usually done on water powered trip hammers.

Fluidsteel I will measure a 'complete' horn and get you the exact length, just so that you will know what is missing. Aside from the small round end, your anvil will give you years of service, as it starts its second century of use. Your edges are in good shape, and the top looks pretty flat. Forge away and be happy.

I will be talking to my local tree people this week. This is too interesting not to try.

There is no lower plate on an anvil. That level is whatever they made the rest of the anvil out of. Still steel, but not a tool steel top.

If you need the sides cleaned up, grinding slowly with an abrasive sanding disc is probably the best way to go. One of those that look like small pieces of emery paper overlapping each other, 80 or 120 grit. Be careful to go slowly, and do not heat up the top. Check progress often, and try to resist the urge to sand the top.

Is there a date on the anvil?

Nice anvil. I have two that are about that size. Be careful moving them around. No horn or heel to grab. Crowbars and pipe rollers for me only.

n-town, Javan is correct. FISHER did not put the mounting lugs on their anvils until 1896. And they dated most of their anvils from 1880 to their end of production. 1950 it is. I actually have a few anvils that the factory ground off the last digit and stamped in the correct year. Dating had to do with manufacture date, and also their factory warranty. The original FISHER plant was right where RT 29 runs today. Some of the state buildings parking lots are also on the site. All of this was demolished in 1961 to make way for the road and state expansion. Several square blocks of Trenton were leveled. Crossley took over production in 1962 till 1979. They were on East State St, just past the Amtrack main line overpass, on the right. They listed their address as Monmouth Ave. That building came down in 2000/2001, and today is a brick strewn lot, in a very bad part of Trenton(don't go their at night). PM me for a visit. I am in Monmouth County, off Rt 195, about 45 minutes from Trenton.

Look up my earlier posts on Fisher anvils to get more background on the company. Your anvil was made in 1950. It has a steel top welded to the cast iron during the casting process. The anvil is in great shape. Use it properly and you will never wear it out. If you have any other questions fire away.

You just have to keep looking and traveling. Farm auctions in NJ used to have at least one anvil or other stuff. However, most of the old farms are gone, replace by housing and malls. There are still a few farms around, but not many auctions. I have acquired anvils and other stuff by every method: EBAY, friends, garage sales, flea markets, antique stores, and just plain asking around. I have done thousands of miles across the NE and East coast looking and picking up stuff. You have got to do the leg work. Sometimes you just luck out and make a big score. I figure I attend about 10 auctions to get to a auction where I come home loaded. You never know. Just got to have the means to move iron, and the means to pay for it. Sometimes you get a deal, other times it is costly. In the end, it usually averages out.

Frank Turley: You are correct. A properly used sawmakers anvil was used to straighten and tension circular saw blades. It was not used to make a blade. Blades were made in specialized factories. After manufacture, the sawmill had to specify if it was a right or left blade, HP and RPM of the mill. The blade was then hand hammered before delivery by a highly skilled person. If used properly, the hammer never ever struck the anvil. There was always a blade inbetween the hammer and the anvil. If you have a sawmakers anvil with hammer marks, it was used for other work. I never heard of "saw dentists", but most sawyers did their own hammering, or someone at the sawmill knew how. When I first got my sawmill, I took my blade to a 75 year old farmer who also had a mill and had done milling his whole life. He tuned up my blade, just by flexing, then hammering just right. It did work better after he was done. I friend of mine was given a FISHER saw anvil. He was demoing at a fair and an elderly lady asked him if he wanted her late husbands anvil. Of course, he picked it up. It is about 300 lbs, with a perfect top that we estimate is about Rockwell 60+ hard. He was the chief sawyer at a mill for many years, and part of his job was to care for the blades. I have a DISTON catalog from about 1900 that has a whole chapter on the care and tensioning of saw blades. I will check it out and see if I can scan and post it here. Fisher also advertised that some of their anvils were for bandsaw blades. Of course this was for those large blades used out West for those large logs. I guess that sometimes small dings in the blades had to be worked out. FISHER saw anvils were made from about 30 lbs to 600+lbs. in a variety of sizes and shapes. They made mostly rectangular tops, but also some were also square, and they made round top one too. FISHER also made their own saw hammers for sale. I have 4 in the museum.

Definately have got to get to Alaska some day. Also nice to see that at least one Fisher anvil made it all of the way up there.

The weight mark on the leg is a 25, indicating about 250 lbs. They were never exact. 1935 is the year is was made. You have a few edge chips, but they can be worked around. I would not attempt any repairs. The other marks were foundry marks, but they are on no consequence. Your anvil was made at the original Fisher foundry in Trenton, NJ. If you ever in the NJ area, hit me up for a tour of the museum with all of the remaining artifacts. This offer is for everyone in the blacksmithing community.

It kind of depends on how you are planning on using the anvil/feet. I would put two different sized half rounds, a half sphere for upsetting into, and a 90degree V.

Any makers marks? Can you tell if it is cast or forged? Or if there is a hardened steel plate on the top. First guess is that it is a sawmakers, but it just could be a nice block of hardened steel.

Whatever if weighs, you got a great anvil and a great deal. Use it properly and it will last many lifetimes. Check to see if it has a date under the heel. Thanks.

Yes, it is a FISHER. Fisher anvils are the only ones with the cast mounting lugs. All Fisher anvils from 1896 till 1979 had them, in the 100 to 350 lb. sizes. That anvil looks to be in nice shape.