fluidsteel

No no no no no, leave them alone! :-)

I have three anvils. My 150# Fisher weighs 157#

My 53# stamped anvil that's likely pre civil war weighs 55#

My 300# Fisher I'll weigh tonight. But it's missing 4" of the horn so I'm guessing it's less than 300#.

Edited to add... It weighs 289#.

What are your thoughts about the best anvil stands?

When i get this baby I'm going to need to get it on a stand. I really like the look of some of the laminated ply pyramid stands, but are they the best option? Or just a relatively cheap way of doing it?

For the most part any anvil stand that's well built works.
I love my three legged stands. Sturdy. Heavy. Can be bolted to the floor.
Stumps etc work too.

Nicely done. You have quite the smithy taking shape!

I easily could get that dreaded disease, anvilytus from you. You're clearly infected.

I'd say it's worth it if only costs you rods, time and beer. I'm in favor of saving every anvil possible.
My caveat would be that you take the time to thoroughly research anvil welding repair. It would likely take a few days to read through the different welding rods used and why. What pre-heat temps and why. Etc.

I'd investigate welding those pits before I'd touch it with a mill or a grinder.

If only your boss would let you coat the sides with diamonds.. :-O

Looking forward to seeing it all cleaned up. I've never seen an English double bick anvil. All that I've seen were German, Peddinghaus etc...

Congrats! Looks like a stout little fella. Nice thick waist.

If that's an 00 on the foot it indicates 100#..

And.... The paint doesn't deaden the sound. It's a Fisher and therefore made of a cast iron body.
They were known as a "neighbor friendly" anvil.

You get more of a thwack than a ring when forging on them.

Feel free to clean that ratty paint off and wipe it down with linseed oil.
Btw, odds are it's lead based paint so use precautions when removing.

Nice! Anvils seem to beget anvils! I have friends e-mail me CL postings that know I have three.
I just got a 150# Fisher myself. I love mine! Congrats!

Are you going to mill the top on this one as well?

I'll go with an "English response".....
Bloody hell, please no! Don't touch it with a mill!!

Lovely anvil. I'd love to see it cleaned up with a wire wheel and rubbed down with some linseed oil. Oooh la lah!

Thanks guys. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. Very stable and lots of extra mass.

Eventually they can be bolted to the floor.

I'm happy to have a taller anvil now for forging the bevels on blades and in general a taller anvil is better for me.

And yes, they are way too clean. I wiped em down with linseed oil for the photo.

So,

I bought my 300# Fisher a year and a half ago and just tonight got the stand built. :rolleyes: :o
I still have to drill the base plate for the lugs on the 300# anvil and add a couple tong/hammer loops.

I built the stand for the 150# Fisher a couple of weeks ago.

Both of the stand's base plates are 1-1/2" thick




The 300# anvil sits at 32-1/2" and is closer to knuckle height. The stand's base plate is 107#. The stand and anvil weigh around 425#. Well, maybe slightly less since it's missing 3-5" of the horn....I have some 2-1/2" rounds of W2 to strike down now!

The 157# anvil sits at 35-1/2". That's around wrist height...The base plate on this stand is 61#. I imagine the stand and anvil run around 240#.

The legs are splayed out at around a 8 degree angle with cross supports. 2" Sch 40 steel pipe legs with 1" Sch 40 cross supports.

Both take a lot of effort to tip. I can't anchor either to the ground in my rental house/garage, but the feet can be drilled later if desired.

I had the forge going last night to help a friend heat treat a blade. Tomorrow I fire it to forge a blade! :)

I'd say leave it alone. It is a fine anvil and a steal at $.80 a pound. Congrats!

Oh, here's a WILD idea, drive over to Fluidsteel's place and see if he'll turn loose of one. yeah, I know it's crazy but you just never know where one will turn up. Same for the other tools.

Frosty The Lucky.

Hahaha! ;-) But I NEED all my anvils. Lol.

I do know where there's a 250# Peter Wright just a sittin....

I looked thru the Portland area and its just about as bad as up here is on anvil prices lately. Just gotta keep looking and jump on it quick.

There are usually 1-4 anvils in CL for $3 a pound and up at any one time.
The key is the regular searching.
The 4 anvils I've bought in less than 2 years.
119# Kohlswa $130. Listed at 8am in my truck by 8:30
300# Fisher $360 listed at 10:30PM in my truck at 8:00am
157# Fisher listed at 6:00pm in my truck at 12:45pm the next day 15 minutes before the guy who called before me.
My 55# anvil was $140 it was on there for a week before I succumbed to my little voice.

I have seen no less than ten other anvils for around $1.00 a pound show up and have the listing gone in a matter of hours. If you only went by tfe anvils that sit on CL you'd think we were Incan anvil poor area...

Your return on your time investment will pay off. For example there was a 280# Peter Wright recently with a few tongs that sold for $350 or so..

I live in Beaverton I just sold a 119# Kohlswa. Craig'sList will have anvils at reasonable prices if you are willing to wait. I'd say our area has more anvils than people give it credit for.

You need to set up a search alert, or check 7-8 times a day.

PM me if you want to exchange numbers. I'll help as I can but am working 60-70 hours s week right now.

Waiting on Stan..... :)

My 1913- 300# Fisher has no Eagle. My 1907-150# has the exact same Eagle to my eye.

My 1907 Also has a L O(Square) on the base too...I am forgetting what Josh suggested those marks stood for.

My guess is 1903?

On that note. She's a beauty!!! Are you sure you want to use it? :unsure: Congrats!!!

Chad,

One of the first rules of buying anvils is if you take time to post questions you just might miss out.

I called about a 150# Fisher a couple of weeks ago and the seller's wife said someone was coming to buy it at 1:00. I got there at 12:30.....

Spend some time researching anvils so you are educated and can make a quick decision.

Also, get a 1" ball bearing so you can do a drop test. Both of my Fishers rebound 90%.

Good luck finding an anvil!!

BrIan

That anvil can be repaired. My friend has a #260 Fisher that he welded up some abused edges on years ago and it still looks like a new anvil today and he's a full time bladesmith using it as his main workhorse anvil. So, don't be frightened of the rough hardy hole.

It will take some work to repair so use it to your advantage in negotiating!

I would LOVE to get that anvil. Good luck!

I think yours looks 280?
My 300# Fisher's specs. 1913
Face 5-1/4"x19"
OAL(minus 3" or so of horn) 27-3/4"
Height 14"
Base not including lugs 13"longx12"wide


My 157# is 25" OAL
4"x15" face
11-3/4" high
Base minus lugs is 10-1/2"Lx10"W

That does look like a beauty! Congrats!

Well for reference my 300# Fisher has a 5-1/4"x18-7/8" face. Hard to give you an overall length as mine is missing 3-5" of the horn.
But, the over all length as is, is 28-1/2"....
I sure hope you get it. I know you've been wanting one forever! :D
Mine's from 1913, No eagle, and it does have casting lugs.
My 1907 157# Fisher has an eagle, head facing left. It also has what appears to be a 10 with the 0 being more of a sqaure block on the heel end of the base.

Looking forward to seeing pics of it at your shop!!! :D :D


BTW, stone weight would never have a number larger than 3 for the second number.... so it can't be english weight....

Your uncles anvil and mine have to have been made by the same person.
Look at your third picture. From the rear yours has the flat at the base that is taller on the left and tapers to the right. The lopsided shaping with the feet splayed out differently match too. Look at the pics of mine in the link I posted and you'll see the similarities.

And they both have the same really high waist.
Proportionally they are very close. I looked at mine tonight and while the feet on mine are welded better, there are obviously 4 seperate feet welded on like this one.
Mine was brought to Oregon from Georgia. That's all I know about it's history....

Well.... It appears to be a Vulcan. They are real anvils but on the low end.

That'd be $2.50 a pound shipped. Kinda high if you ask me.

When I am searching for anvils on CL I check 5-6 times a day. I've seen good deal anvils posted and removed in less than an hour. If you didn't look often, or download the search app that automatically notifies you, you'd never know there were anvils to be had in my area.
I've found enough good deals that I have run out of money now!!!

I'd say pass on the 100# Vulcan unless you have been looking a long time with no luck.