Sask Mark

Many trentons had a letter stamped in front of the weight. I vote for Trenton.

In the 2nd picture it looks as though it has already been welded back together.

Hay Budden (as well as many other anvil manufacturers) also made anvils for hardware stores and other customers (ACME, SD Kimbark, BIC Omaha etc.).

A knotted wire cup brush on an angle grinder will clean off the rust. Then wipe the anvil down with some boiled linseed oil on a rag. This will leave a nice finish.

Hey Julius, Your anvil was made in 1899 by the Columbus Forge and Iron Company in Columbus, Ohio. I also have an 1899 Trenton. The later Trentons had the tops arc welded to the base at the factory, so assuming the welder of your anvil was relatively competent, yours will probably stand up to years of use. I have found anvils relatively easy to find in Saskatchewan. They are quite common at farm auctions around here. Do you know which auction he bought the anvils at?

Is it possible that it is a date stamp? I.e. Jan. 26th, 1916. Or perhaps an asset number? I have never heard of a manufacturer stamping the anvils with the specific date, but perhaps it was the owner stamping it when it was acquired?

Nice! Tell him it's worth a lot more to Hay Budden collectors if he doesn't mill it. I got offered quite a bit for my 155 pound BIC Omaha that wasn't nearly as nice as that one.

Where does he reference Matco? I believe he's just asking what kind of precautions he should take in heating chromed metal. Seems like a legitimate question to me, especially on a site that is all about safety. I don't know the answer, but I'm sure someone here in the know will be willing to help you.

That's a nice Hay Budden. The weight in pounds should be stamped on the side.

If you are interested in learning more on the origins of your anvils, Richard Postman published a book on the history of the Mousehole Forge.

Good to hear. An induction forge is definitely on my wish list and it's reassuring that there is a reliable source for when I'm able to pull the trigger.

Thanks Kerry. That's very kind of you.

I just picked up another 40 pound Fisher tonight. This one is dated 1889. It's a good 'twin' for my 1921 40 pound Fisher And they both look good with my 40-ish pound Boker

Thank-you Dillon. That rose in your avatar is impressive. I also use 18ga. sheet.

Great to hear Larry. I'm sincerely happy for both of you that Janice is doing as well as she is.

You produce some beautiful art Vladimir. Thank-you for showing us the pictures.

That is a beautiful piece Mike.

There's a good thread with a lot of information on this machine going on over at Blacksmith.org: http://blacksmith.org/forums/threads/1890-Iron-Giant....-50K-ton-press-back-in-service

Here's my 110 pound 1899 Trenton (stamped upside down) here's my 103 pound 1916 Trenton and here's a 117 pound farrier pattern

10880 = made in 1894

That stamp appears on a Soderfors anvil on page 63 of Anvils in America. That anvil also had the weight (in pounds) stamped on the front foot.

I would think that Incadescent Ironworks in Spokane would be a good resource for you. Steve McGrew is an excellent smith and teaches classes to boot. http://incandescent-iron.com/index.html

I would guess Arm and Hammer. If it was a Trenton it would be a U.S. produced one (as indicated by the the cast steel base). The U.S. produced Trentons commonly had the weight stamped on the front foot. A&H's tended to have the weight stamped on the side of the waist.

That's amazing! First class all the way. The amount of heat that had to go into that steel to work it must have been incredible.

Best of luck for Janice and yourself Smithy1.