April 14, 201115 yr Howdy from East TEXAS!! Can't see the number in the first pic. Will need that to date your anvil. Condition looks pretty ruff on the far side in picture 2 but the near side looks fairly good. Also the hardie hole looks as though the previous owner used it to shape his horse shoes, the edges of the H hole look to be beaten down. This is a farrier's anvil with the clip on the side. Get us the Serial number and we can tell you when she was born.
April 14, 201115 yr Author well thanks but i rubbed chalk on those so i dont know how to reveal the rest
April 14, 201115 yr Author looks as though its been painted black so maybe ill try to wire brush it or something
April 14, 201115 yr Author those numbers are under the horn. i think thats where i should be looking???
April 14, 201115 yr Correct, under the horn and on the left side. If you have a grinder with a wire wheel that would help clean it up. The numbers are stamped into the foot, I have taken a rag with a little bit of wax on it and lightly rub it over the area, do not rub hard as this will get the wax into the markings. Doing this the numbers will show through pretty good.
April 14, 201115 yr Note that if you can read the numbers and supply them to us it would help a lot over trying to pick them out of a fairly low resolution picture under dubious lighting...
April 14, 201115 yr Author good point thomas!!! I rubbed chalk in what i could see that looked like numbers, but im going to perhaps sand with 400 grit or brush it. Thanks for the input keep checking back!!
April 15, 201115 yr Author i wire brushed it at the foot but there is seriouse diagonal marks that are old? Maybe someone used the foot dont know why but probly miss use!!!! Im new at this but why use the foot????
April 15, 201115 yr Author Ive seen pics of numbers on hay buds before and there not to straight from the factory ?? All crooked am i correct? If so I may never know the year she was born?? /
April 15, 201115 yr Many people used to test the temper of chisels using the side/base of an anvil---kinda funny as that area is usually pretty dead soft! Just be glad they didn't do it on the face! Hand stamping of generally HOT anvils makes for quite a bit of strangeness in numbers or letters on anvils. Note that your anvil will work just the same even if you don't know what *century* it was made in. Don't get hung up on it!
April 16, 201115 yr Perhaps that first number is an A, I hope that helps. (if it is an A memory tells me I read somewhere it's older than 1917-1918 but not by much, I think it was about then they started the serials over but keep in mind this is all hearsay)
April 17, 201115 yr I have a similar anvil dating from 1901. Mine weighs 140 pounds which is stamped in the waist, same side as the clip horn. This is a period of time when I think that Hay-Budden was experimenting with the farrier pattern. They got rid of the cutting table which adjoins the step, and they added the clip horn. As the farriers' pattern further evolved, the horn became "swelled." It was larger around at its base than the anvil waist was wide. This was supposed to facilitate opening shoes. Then, H-B added another pritchel hole, apparently thinking that the shoe chould be pritcheled with less chance of the shoe falling off the anvil. http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools
April 20, 201115 yr Perhaps that first number is an A, I hope that helps. (if it is an A memory tells me I read somewhere it's older than 1917-1918 but not by much, I think it was about then they started the serials over but keep in mind this is all hearsay) The A prefex started in 1918 and used till the end in 1925. AIA pg 303 Ken.
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