FlatLiner

I had elm logs under my anvils then I made steel tripod leg stands , I personally wouldn't go back to logs now.

My 125 lb Sisco was a ranch anvil from Wyoming. Its edges were chipped up also but it's my favorite anvil. You can't ask for a better one in my opinion, especially one with a family connection.

That's a beautiful anvil. I would love to have one in that style and size but I don't have the discretionary funds for one right now.

I would think about what you plan on blacksmithing. Bladesmithing and blacksmithing you can get away with a block anvil like what Japanese bladesmiths use. You can pick up blocks of steel for pennies on the dollar. I picked up a Sisco/Söderfors anvil for $100 I love the looks of both anvils but I personally wouldn't pay that price + shipping when I am just a hobbiest blacksmith. If I was a professional blacksmith then I would think of getting a "better" anvil but My beat up anvil has been able to do everything that I have asked if it and has paid itself off many times over.

Looks like a cast steel Russian anvil to me. I'm sure others with more knowledge will chime in soon.

I don't see an anvil as a diamond but as a tool. Nobody would paint a diamond but they would paint a tool. I don't care if an anvil is painted or not. I don't care if it has patina or not. I don't pay extra for paint and I don't pay extra for patina. I also don't pay extra if the face has the edges welded or if it has been recently ground and polished. Its pretty easy to spot imperfections under patina or paint when you know what your looking for unless it has lots of layers of paint, which I have never seen on an anvil in my limited experience. Since both of my anvils came off ranches both had edge damage, both had patina and paint. Both you could see where just fine for the price.

Out of my anvils the Sisco is just slightly better then my Columbian, but my diy post anvil made from a hydraulic breaker is right up there with them. 

Looks like it will serve you well. It's got lots of possibilities as an anvil and swage block.

If it were me I would weld up a forklift tine post anvil and use the cylinders as horns, save the rail road rail for future projects, and use the coupler as a striking anvil if you ever have someone striking for  you. The coupler has some great features, it looks like you have a built in dishing depression/ straightening. It works well on end as a post anvil, has a hole that you can drift through. The possibilities are endless.

That would of been a cool find.

I've always liked your forklift tine anvil Thomas. I didn't find one with a built in horn. I did found Two that I welded back to back and left part of the forks to be used as feet.

Great score. I really like my forklift time post anvil.

I'm in your camp biggundoctor. I don't see how a thin hardened face really makes that much difference on an anvil. I believe its more for longevity and it has an unintentional placibo side effect. Yes mild steel will dent and deform even lesser hardened anvils dent and deform over time. Mild steel is harder then wrought iron and there are plenty of saddled wrought iron anvils with hardended face faces out there that show that even they deform over time. But cast iron is a big no go. Any steel is better then cast iron.

I second that once you work on a Swedish anvil you get spoiled.

It is a small world  My Great Grandfathers family lived in the Fife for generations.

That's awesome. My Great Grandfather was from Cowdenbeath. His last name was Litster his mum was a Campbell.

What part of Scotland? My great grandfather is from the Fife.

Rojo Pedro I notice a slight difference between my Sisco and Columbian anvils that are a similar weight the Sisco moves steel a little better. And they both are slightly better then the post anvil I made from forklift tines. So I would think that you would see a bit of a difference between a Refflinghous and a Vulcan.

My most used anvil is a 125 lb Sisco. I have used a 16lb sledge on it no problem, My second most used is a 135 lb Columbian I have used the 16 pounder on it no issues at all. But what I prefer to use the heavy sledge on is my post anvil 20" of S5 steel under it. It moves metal like a dream under the 16 pounder.

Pre heating and post heating the block about 400 ° F will help with not getting haz cracking.

I made an anvil block out of a piece of fork lift tine just to say I made one. Truthfully I use a drop of S7 or the post anvil I made from two fork lift tines more then the anvil block. If I need "better" edges for something that I am doing. I welded the shank like Frosty explained but I added two to the front that slide outside the anvil to prevent twisting.

To me it looks like A8229.

It was very educational. I wish mine looked as clean as yours :-)

My Columbians edges are worse and it works just fine. Yours looks to be in good condition so I assume it will be fine as is.

Very nice.