Guest DanielT Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 I am new to blacksmithing, currently taking a 10 week class, and I am interested in finding an inexpensive anvil. I am in Cincinnati and have been looking on Craigslist and EBay but have not really had any luck, every decent anvil seems to go for over $500. I was thinking about a railroad anvil but can't seem to find any place that sells old railroad. Anyone know of where I could find something that is useful for an amateur starting blacksmith or where I should start looking?? Thanks for your help and I look forward to being on this forum and hopefully sharing some of my work once I do something good. Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Did you ask around at the SOFA meetings? If not the next one is *Saturday*! They should know if there are any floating around or where to find a nice big chunk of steel to hammer on in that neck of the woods. Next you are living in the blacksmith's happy hunting grounds---stop relying on sources where people are trying to make money sell stuff to you and go out and beat the bushes for all those anvils sitting in garages and basements! Talk to everyone you meet and explain how you are hunting for an anvil to *USE*. If they ask you to set a price on it and it's in decent using condition start at US$1 a pound. When I lived in Columbus, OH, I averaged a good name brand anvil in great shape a year for about a dozen years at under $1 a pound by going out and finding them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurlyGeorge Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Welcome to IFI Daniel. I'll be looking forward to seeing you get set up and to seeing some of your work. Good luck. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DanielT Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 yeah I had looked into the SOFA and would love to go but unfortunately my current blacksmithing class is in Cinci on Saturday's from 12-3 and I still have 7 more weeks to go so I won't be able to make it to a meeting for a couple more times. Thanks for the suggestions, I have been asking around but most of the people in my circles aren't the type to have an anvil laying around, but I will keep trying. If you have an extra anvil just laying around collecting dusk just let me know and I can head up there and take it off your hands. Other than SOFA would you have any other places to suggest to find anvils or large blocks to beat on? Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunsmithnMaker Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Don't forget the junk/salvage yards, the metal pickers, and farms. I plan on checking every yard sale I can get to this year. I'll probably watch the auctions just in case as well. Like Thomas said, ask everyone you know and you might turn over those sweet deals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old N Rusty Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 1$ a pound for anvil sounds cheap to me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason @ MacTalis Ironworks Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 1$ a pound for anvil sounds cheap to me It is, they are averaging $2-$3 $1/lb. is a great deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reivertom Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Don't give up. I looked for about 2 years off and on, and found 2 locally within 2 months of each other just recently. Check "Craigslist, etc . Don't forget word of mouth either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reivertom Posted February 3, 2011 Share Posted February 3, 2011 Here's one about 120 miles from Cincy. It is $400.00 without the clawfoot tub.I would try to deal a little bit. I just remembered after my last post. http://huntington.craigslist.org/atq/2173492725.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tala9 Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 I have some RR but sadly it is buried under the snow and yesterday we took about 2 more feet so I will not be able to find it till spring. But I do have a couple of forklift fork pieces I would sell you for what I get scrap 13 cents a pound plus shipping or if you get around Milwaukee Wisconsin you could pick it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DanielT Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Here's one about 120 miles from Cincy. It is $400.00 without the clawfoot tub.I would try to deal a little bit. I just remembered after my last post. http://huntington.craigslist.org/atq/2173492725.html Yeah I saw that one as well. Not a bad price per pound but I think a little too large for what I need right since I am going to have to move the anvil in and out of the garage or shed once I start. Thanks for the help, Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DanielT Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 I have some RR but sadly it is buried under the snow and yesterday we took about 2 more feet so I will not be able to find it till spring. But I do have a couple of forklift fork pieces I would sell you for what I get scrap 13 cents a pound plus shipping or if you get around Milwaukee Wisconsin you could pick it up. Thanks for the offer I sent you a PM with some questions. Anyone here ever use a Fork Lift fork as an anvil? Hows it work? Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurlyGeorge Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Do a search thru the anvil forum. There have been several guys on here that have made anvils from fork lift forks.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Still Learnin' Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Daniel, there is a really good site called searchtempest. You can search C/L within a radius as small as 25 miles up to any distance away from where you want the search to begin. You can even include ebay and amazon listings. All of the suggestions are excellent and you can indeed find anvils or at least ASO's at scrap yards and as gunsmithnmaker said, farms are an excellent source. Almost every farm at one time in the past had to do their own repairs to a certain extent. Many many anvils and forges are just lying around rusting because they are out of sight and out of mind. Even funnier than that is when they are in plain sight but the farmer has gotten so accustomed to seeing it that he basically forgets it as a part of the background. You could also put a post up on C/L for an anvil. Most metal pickers don't pay for their scrap. They only offer to clean up an area of scrap or respond to an offer for free scrap metal. Good luck finding one and welcome to IFI. Stay persistent... they will appear. Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reivertom Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 Yeah I saw that one as well. Not a bad price per pound but I think a little too large for what I need right since I am going to have to move the anvil in and out of the garage or shed once I start. Thanks for the help, Daniel Yeah it is a little large, but if I hadn't just bought one I would be on it like a duck on a June bug. I found a 102# PW and it's all I can do to move it around, much less a 366# hunk. I'm not the stud that I used to think I was.! :^) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tala9 Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 hopefully I replied to your PM, if you did not receive it let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 WIDEN YOUR CIRCLE! That area had heavy industry back in the day, they're out there! I found one once mentioning at church that I was looking for an anvil---a retired rancher *gave* it too me along with a massive Elk rack and several large mule deer racks for me to make handles from! (Too pretty, they are in my SiL's "man cave") You ever asked the person next to you in line to check out if they know of any anvils. How about your Mechanic, Dr, fellow at the self service gas station? I assume you have talked with all your relations already. I found one once talking with the maintenance guy at a hospital---they still have one left over from WWII for forging specialized braces for casualties. (It's still there in Columbus OH IIRC in the sub basement of the OSU hospital) (Of course that was cheating as I had talked with the fellow who used to be the orthopedic smith for them 60 years ago---met him at a garage sale...and so knew that it had been there once) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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