Nicemibs Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 Hello to all, I have an upcomming local auction the 11th and there is a huge anvil listed, pics of it are on a 4x4 skid, I am guessing it to be aroung 200-250lbs??? It looks like it has Trenton feet on it, but it is missing part of the face plate, would this be a good contender to be fixed or reparied? Only get to see it the night of the auction! and possibly hope to own it? thanks Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 You'd need to get it real cheap. That faceplate is gonna be tough to replace. If you are good at welding you'll have to do a build up rod and a hard facing rod. One I'm currently working on is a cast anvil, I did 3 overlays with a 309 stainless rod, next is two with a Stoody Nicromang. It's a small anvil, but still taking about 150 bucks in rods to repair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkrankow Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Manganese build up wire is another choice, you need impact resistance, not abrasive resistance. If you can score for $1/lb or less it probably is worth fixing. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicemibs Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 Thanks for yhe replies, where do I find the links on anvil rebuilds and repair? Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Hale Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Pass that anvil up and save your mooney for one you can use from day one. If you have a lot of experience welding and repairs on things like this you may be able to repair this. If you have no welding experience there are places that you could send it to for repair.That will onlly depend on how they feel abouit this particular repair. Expect to pay big money for the repair. MAnkel horse shoe supplies has done a lot of them. If they are still in business you might give them a call and talk with them. I have repaired over a dozen anvils and have welded all of my long life. I would not touich this anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Fyi, Stoody Nicormang is a manganese buildup rod designed for rail roads. It is a work hardening steel. The 309 work hardens, but I don't think it gets hard enough. If you can get it cheap and don't mind the work (and it is a lot of work) go ahead. I wouldn't drop more than 50 on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woody Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Remember that the cheapest thing you can buy is usually the most expensive thing that you will own. I would pass on that anvil, if that much of the face broke off my guess is the rest of the face isn't all that securely attached. If you spend a few hundred repairing the front half of the anvil you will be heart and bank account broke if the back half breaks off once the repairs are complete. Save your money and look for an anvil that is in better shape. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinton Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 That anvil looks very familiar to me I think it may have been a ebay listing, maybe not the same anvil but it had the face plate missing just like this one. I would pass unless it goes for no more than .50/ LB. It would be a lot of welding to repair that and you would have more in material than it is worth. If it is wrought iron there is value in that, cut the horn off and keep it then find someone that needs large pieces of wrought iron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudbugone Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Here's the answer to your question should you purchase that anvil http://www.iforgeiron.com/page/index.html/_/blueprints/100-series/bp0101-anvil-repair-r330 I found this thread in the archives after much looking & asking and found it quite by accident while searching for something totally unrelated online. I can only assume this info has been lost to the members for some reason since I was never directed to it during many conversations about anvil repairs. If you can fix it it'll be expensive....So you better get it cheap. Unless there is an adventuresome soul bidding against you it might go cheap because of that damage. The rear portion still looks intact and the horn too...so there is enough anvil still left to use at some level ...just don't beat on that exposed section of the body you'll just inflict serious damage. It looks like it was just set aside once the face plate became detached...I've seen many that some fool continued to beat to death. Price ? It's your money.... Myself.. I buy whatever I want if I can afford it at the time and want it. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evfreek Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 This anvil is as good as some I have seen that have had some good work done on them. You will miss the far edge adjacent to the horn. The horn is still usable, as is the rear of the anvil including the hardy hole and the shelf. This anvil is certainly worth more than a block of mild steel of the same size. Our local scrap store sells for 0.65 per pound unless it looks like an anvil and you look like a blacksmith. Then, it is $1 per pound. This includes pieces of RR track, ship cleats made out of cast iron, etc. You will not see this anvil at the local scrapyard. A blacksmith would have already bought it, at a premium. If I were to buy this anvil, I would probably not try to restore it to its original state. I would weld a hard strip just at the near and far edges near the horn. All preheating, weld prep and composition precautions apply! My current anvils all have something wrong with them. A collector would turn up his nose at every single one. That's why they are mine. The good anvils are the ones that the old timer informs you: "Son, you're 15 minutes late. The feller before you just walked off with that beauty for $5 per pound." They have all done some good work. I would pay 50 cents per pound for this anvil. I would rather pay $1 per pound for this anvil than the same for a piece of RR track. If you are in an anvil rich area, you might get a better deal on a used anvil. Not here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicemibs Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share Posted April 9, 2012 Thanks for the replies, I already have 3 nice anvils that are keepers. This might be a learning experience, to do with my Dad if we get it? I will know more about it Wednesday night seeing it in person. Are there some other steps in reparing, I thought you had to heat the whole anvil before welding rod to it? Thanks again Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Hale Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 Repairing that anvil at home is juts not a good idea. For all of the reasons listed above. Not wanting to be the bearer of bad news but the anvil speaks for itself> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentiron1946 Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 My first anvil, which I still have, looked much like that and it is still a nice one to work on but I wouldn't go putting a lot of money into fixing it if I were you. If you can get it for around $50 to $75 dollars go ahead and get it. If you are all gungho to fix it up I think that the way to go would be to weld a whole new hard face on like Thomas Dean, at least I think he is the one that does it that a way, does it. and then you will have a truly useful anvil. I'm not all that sure the way some of the "experts" talk that a welded up face is the way to go and by the time they are finished they have nearly the cost of an anvil that was in better shape to begin with. I still think the world of my half face anvil, it's a good one for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicemibs Posted April 12, 2012 Author Share Posted April 12, 2012 Didnt get it, the anvil went for $220 dollars,the guys were bidding like crazy, and it was showing a crack around the waist as well. thanks for all of the imput, Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudbugone Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Don't feel too bad...There had to be at least 2 nuts bidding on that damaged anvil to raise the price to that level ,even if it was a pretty large one. I'm surprised it went that high Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Crack at the waist might just be the "show" of the waist weld---a lot of anvils have them but few have broken there---I have an example on my wall of shame that was most likely from a PW (according to Postman). I just have the base; but it's stamped in CWT for a full anvil and has the PW ledges on the feet. I stopped going to auctions as I found better anvils cheaper just asking around and didn't have to waste a day to miss out on an anvil that someone wanted as a decoration... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clinton Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 It is amazing what some people will pay for useless tools. I was at an auction once where a big post vice went for over $1200 It was big around 200 pounds but the screw was completely destroyed half the teeth were gone. I was the only one there that opened it to look at the screw. I was going to bid if it stayed around $100 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Around 20+ years ago I was at an auction and a battered PW with a crack at the hardy hole all the way to the side brought over US$1 a pound way more than it was worth back then in OH. I stayed as there was some hardy tools---same guy bought them "for the anvil" though they all had stems *larger* than the hardy hole and you couldn't use them anyway as the heel was cracked. I talked to him and he just wanted them for sitting next to his fireplace. He paid about 3 times what each hardy was worth and twice as much as he should have on the anvil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bentiron1946 Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 But they're old, Thomas, don't you know that makes them worth more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Nice to know we're appreciating every year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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