caotropheus Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Greetings everyone This anvil looks Chinese ASO 75 kg low quality built and cheap, really cheap at about 190 USD http://www.lkltd.co.il/web/8888/nsf/ProLookup.taf?_function=details&_ID=140271&PF=&did=3508&G=&lang=HE&SM=&_UserReference=3F152E8257B53A2A4A38891D Please experts, I know an internet photo is not enough to make an objective review but even though I'd like to read your opinions. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric sprado Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Don't walk-RUN in the other direction!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mainely,Bob Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I`d buy 2.That way you can have one for both the front and back gardens. I hear the squirrels go nuts over them. That is not an anvil,that is an overweight doorstop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry H Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 It has holes to attach the chain, I bet it bites the sand good too, try not to bump the side of the boat bringing it back aboard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McPherson Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 More like 1.90 USD, 'coz that is what the junkyard would pay you for it, and THAT is what it is really worth. It is not even pretty enough to mount a mailbox on. How many times to we have to say it? You would not try to find a good Christian girl for a wife by trawling the sleazy bars and back alleys, why do you waste time looking at shiny ads of import junk tools for a real anvil? Snap out of it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knots Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I am in general agreement with the advice given in the previous responses to your inquiry . However let me explain why. It is assumed that the anvil shown an iron casting. These castings generally tend toward being very Brittle and therefore can be expected to have a short useful life. Because the material from which they are cast is brittle hammer blows can send shards of metal flying. This is a dangerous characteristic of these objects. Out of curiosity several years ago I found and purchased a cast iron anvil for the purpose of testing it to see if their performance was as bad as their reputation. I paid 50 US dollars for it so there was no impediment to doing what ever I wanted to it to satisfy my curiosity. My main goal was to see if heat treatment could make the casting less brittle (and this one was very hard and brittle). Well, much to my wife's displeasure it fit nicely into her oven. I set the temperature at 450 degrees and soaked the object for 5 hours at that temperature. The results were, My wife said would not talk to me fro a couple of weeks, and the anvil brittleness was unchanged. From that experiment I concluded that cast iron anvils do indeed deserve their bad reputation. As for the promised period of tranquil silence, it didn't work out that way so I resold the anvil, with full disclosure of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caotropheus Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Thanks guys, your advice was helpful to teach my eyes to distinguish ASO from a real Anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunsmithnMaker Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I`d buy 2.That way you can have one for both the front and back gardens. I hear the squirrels go nuts over them. That is not an anvil,that is an overweight doorstop. I was going to say 2 of them would make good, if ugly, book ends for your smithing books. Having had an ASO to work with before I can tell you they are not worth the "cheap" prices you pay for them. The one I had was so soft it took the imprint of everything I tried to shape on it. I found a piece of railroad rail worked better, and our rail around here is small. Stay away from these things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philip in china Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I think enough has been said on ASOs and this one certainly fits into that category. I can get them very cheap here in China so got 3- the biggest size, the smallest and a mid range one. The big one is totally useless. I have enjoyed playing on it to see just how bad it really is. I loose all my energy in a blow because every time I hit the anvil deforms to accomodate the work! The smallest size I bought for the son of a colleague of mine. As a toy for a little boy it is ideal. The mid range one I gave to a colleague who teaches physics. He uses it when he wants an inert block as an example. I understand it is good for that although a block of concrete would do the same job- the anvil shape just looks good. BTW it is NOT a cheap anvil. It would, actually, be the most expensive one you would ever buy as it is worthless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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