DennisG Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 Well Sat was a busy day around here.... There is an old smith in our area, 83, who has smithed since he was 12. He is now in a home due to health reasons. His home (where he was living) has several sheds on the property all with things stuffed in them. He also has a shop in town that is LOADED with history and equipment. A life time of collecting. We found 11 anvils between all the places, 3 peters with one being 226 (286lbs). Most were in the 125+ lb range. 2 he had made. Every anvil was in great shape. There was a Wesco one that looked "new", clean crisp edges with no scaring. We found many leg vises of every size, even one that was 15lbs or so, some were together and alot were in the process of rebuilds. There were several forges of which my daughter Andie bought and this came with the working blower. One forge in the shed was just the table, no legs or firepot it measured about 3'wide and 4'long, cast, and I think the blower for it was in the other shed cause it had to be about 16"across if not bigger. Each shed we went into was a trip back in time and a oooh! aaaah! time. You go look at something and as you pick it up you find another treasure hidden away. His shop was the same way. If there was a corner, cranny, or nook, it had a treasure in it. His work area was left as if he had just finished work for the day and was coming in to start a new day. This man has forgotten more about Blacksmithing then I know. Sadly one day he will not be with us and all he has collected will possibly be lost. A few of us that know him try to buy what we can, but he finds it hard to let it go and we understand that. If I won the lottery today at 46 , and he would sell it all to me, I could spend until I retire going thru, sorting it and cataloging it. We just hope that over time he will let us acquire some more of these treasures. So after all that rambling.... I was able to pick up one of his trentons, it is iether 123 or 128 hard to tell with the 3/8. The serial number is 196027S with a vertical line in the 0. It has had a working life but not abused too much. If one of you fine gentleman out there could let me know where I can get info on the anvil with the numbers that would be great. I'd like to know how old she is. Now the pics..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sask Mark Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 Hey Dennis, Nice score! I love my Trenton anvils. Yours looks to be made in 1928 according to AIA. The 0 with the line through it almost looks like there was a '1' stamped over the 0 (or vice versa) as a correction? Don't you just love those old shops? There's a small town about 10 minutes away from where I grew up where an old wheelwright shop still stands. The blacksmith/wheelwright died probably about 30 years ago and now his daughter and son-in-law own the shop. I was in it once when I bought some coal and it sits just as it did when it was operating. There's a full line shaft system with a trip hammer, there's numerous wheel components hanging from the rafters etc. I don't think they intend to get rid of anything any time soon. I'm going to try to get into the shop this summer to at least take pictures. I want to let them know if they ever want to get rid of anything they should keep me in mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisG Posted June 12, 2011 Author Share Posted June 12, 2011 Thanks for the info Mark. Yeah, this old Smith had a wheel shrink-er for wagon wheels in one shed. I forgot to mention that the smith had welded on a little more tail to it for some reason, THAT will be coming off this week. The ring I get from it is high and clear. I used this very anvil last summer at a demo and enjoyed it, now I own it and will have to silence it a bit and start taking it out. forgot to also ask ya Mark, is it the german or US version, I am guessing US, I am not sure since it has a larger "hollow" area on the bottom and not so oval. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 Hey Dennis, The 0 with the line through it almost looks like there was a '1' stamped over the 0 (or vice versa) as a correction? I would guess that the "O" with a line through it designates it as a zero rather than the letter "O". It is a common practice to avoid the confusion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sask Mark Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 It is a U.S. version. I think U.S. production of Trentons started in the late 1890's. The hourglass hollow under the base is strange. The cast bases of Trentons usually had the caplet indentation. Yours looks more like a forged base. Are you sure it's a Trenton? Hay Buddens usually had that shape under their base. As well Hay Buddens usually had the serial number stamped on the LEFT side of the foot while Trentons had the weights on the left side of the foot and the serial numbers on the RIGHT side of the foot. If it's a HB, the serial number corresponds to 1912. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 Looks like a Hay-Budden. If so, it's 1912 period. http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisG Posted June 12, 2011 Author Share Posted June 12, 2011 well Trenton is what the Smith said, although there is no diamond with trenton name in it, I figure it is worn down. The number is on the left side. Maybe it is a HB. hmmmm............... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old N Rusty Posted June 12, 2011 Share Posted June 12, 2011 You got to go thank the old man. Go listen to his storys. And bring him a trinket you forged on his anvil. Bring the checkbook too. You might buy some more goodies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted June 13, 2011 Share Posted June 13, 2011 I was guessing HB from the looks of it. HB is a great brand too. Why remove the extra tail? You might find you like it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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